Intellectual Merit: Through collaboration between its Divisions of Physical and Biological Sciences and Division of Student Affairs, UCSD is providing scholarships for low-income undergraduates majoring in quantitative or interdisciplinary science. Thirty qualifying students will receive $3,000 annually over four years or until graduation beginning in fall, 2006; 12-15 upper-division students will receive $3,000 annually for two years effective fall, 2008. Upper-division students who have completed a summer research program or internship may receive an additional scholarship of $1,850. Each Scholar will have opportunities for enrichment activities involving faculty, industrial partners and peers through mentoring and collaborative learning experiences.
Broader impact: Recruiting is initiated through personalized letters from PIs to potentially eligible students. To encourage applications from women, underrepresented students and those with disabilities, notices are posted in specialized campus locations such as the Women's and Cross-Cultural Centers. Primary objectives are to support timely degree completion; increase research and internship opportunities; and increase numbers of low-income, underrepresented and first generation college students, women, and persons with disabilities entering quantitative and interdisciplinary science graduate programs.