Hughes Summer Fellowships are from funds from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to Bates to provide opportunities for qualified students to conduct summer projects in the sciences, neuroscience, mathematics, science and mathematics education, or interdisciplinary programs involving the sciences or math.

Application Deadline:  March 2

Fundable projects include:

1) collaboration with a faculty member on the faculty member's research;

2) research of the student's design, conducted under the direction of a Bates faculty member or a researcher at another research institution;

3) K-12 science education, including teaching, curriculum development, or curriculum assessment, under the direction of a Bates faculty member, a K-12 teacher, or an education specialist from another institution;

4) research in genomics, bioinformatics, computational biology, or math biology;

5) applied science research for government or nonprofit organizations.

Eligibility and Award. First-year students, sophomores, and juniors may apply. Hughes Summer Fellowships include a taxable support of $3,500 for eight to ten weeks of full-time work. If a student has additional expenses associated with an individual research project, a science education project, or an applied research project, he or she may apply for up to $500 in additional taxable support for travel, supplies, etc. (see application procedures below).

Student-Faculty Research Collaboration. Faculty in biology, biochemistry, chemistry, geology, math, neuroscience, and physics may apply by 15 January for research support grants that include summer funding for one or two students. The faculty members whose proposals are approved then choose the students who will collaborate with them. If faculty members do not have a student or students selected in advance, all first-years, sophomores, and juniors may apply by 2 March, and the faculty researcher makes the selection of the Hughes Fellow(s) from those applications. Students interested in working with faculty members on faculty research should ask faculty members about their intention to conduct summer research, and if they have funding for student assistants. Declaring interest in a research collaboration to a faculty member is an important first step in securing a position. Some faculty also have external grants from NSF, USGS, and other sources that include funding for student stipends. So ask around.

Note: Student-faculty research projects funded by Hughes must be initiated by the faculty member, not proposed as an individual student project (see below).

Student-Initiated Research. Individual student research fellowship proposals are reviewed by the Hughes Council, a committee of science faculty. The committee gives preference to the most creative, student-initiated projects. In other words,

• you should apply to this program if you have conceived an original research project. While your work may relate to the research of your Bates advisor, you need to show the Hughes Council that your project is distinct from your advisor’s. This is an important clarification to make in your application. If you have an idea for a summer-long research project that is closely related to your faculty advisor’s ongoing research, you may want to talk with your advisor about the ways in which your proposal differs from her/his work, and how you can convey that distinction to the Council. This will strengthen your application.

• you should apply to this program if you wish to work at an outside laboratory, whether as a research assistant or intern, or on a project of your own design. If you wish to conduct your research project at an outside laboratory, you must secure a letter of support from the research director at that lab; the letter should explain the work of the lab and your role in summer research. In your own statement, provide a brief description of the facilities, the research personnel, or the other factors that attracted you to the laboratory. This may strengthen your application, especially if the lab will enable you to conduct research you would not have been able to undertake at Bates.

K-12 Science Education. Students may secure support for a fellowship to conduct education research or curriculum development, or to actually teach in a summer program focused on science or math in grades K-12. The idea for the project may be generated by the student, a Bates faculty member, or a K-12 teacher. The project must be well-focused and doable in an eight to ten week period. The proposal should clearly state the project objectives, the role of the student, and the role of the Bates or K-12 advisor. Students working with K-12 teachers may request support for a stipend for the teacher of up to $500 to $3,500, depending on the time commitment made by the teacher (who should indicate that commitment in a supporting letter). Science education fellowship proposals are reviewed by the Hughes Council.

Bioinformatics, Genomics, Biomathematics. A focus of the College’s 2004 grant from HHMI is bioinformatics, a growing interdisciplinary field that uses computer science and algorithms in the study of biology. Bioinformatics focuses on genomics, DNA sequencing, predicting protein structure, and other studies requiring the processing of massive amounts of data. Computational biology includes the use of computers to simulate biological activity, such as disease treatment outcomes of molecular dynamics. Math modeling in biology uses differential equations and difference equation models in a wide range of fields, but particularly biology. Two fellowships a year give preference to students working in these areas, either with a Bates faculty member or with a researcher from another institution.

Applied Research. Students may design projects in collaboration with municipalities, states, or nonprofit organizations that apply the student's science background and research skills to a particular public policy issue. These projects may include water or air quality issues; environmental impact and habitat assessments; disease, public health, and epidemiology; or natural resources inventory, among others. The student's proposal must be accompanied by a letter of support form the outside agency, describing the value of the proposed work to the agency and the implications it holds for public policy development. Applied research fellowship proposals are reviewed by the Hughes Council.

Application Procedures

Students applying for a Hughes Summer Fellowship complete an application form for STUDENT RESEARCH GRANTS (available in the Office of the Dean of the Faculty, 121 Lane Hall or online at www.bates.edu/Prebuilt/General-Grant-Application.pdf ). On a separate sheet, the applicant should provide a one-paragraph abstract of the project, and a description of not more than two additional pages double-spaced describing the project in greater detail, including the research or science education goals and methodology, the project timetable with the begin and end dates (these dates will be used as the basis for the payroll contract), and how the research or science education work relates to the student's academic program. The applicant should explain his or her qualifications to undertake the project, including relevant coursework or other research or teaching experience. If a K-12 teacher is involved, the student should describe the role the teacher will play in the project, as well as his or her qualifications. If an outside institution or agency is involved in the project, the student should describe that institution and the role the student will play in it. If a student is seeking additional support for supplies or travel (up to $500) or a K-12 teacher stipend (up to $3,500), a detailed budget should be attached.

The application must be submitted to the Office of the Dean of the Faculty by 2March.  PLEASE submit your ORIGINAL PAPERWORK AND 5 COPIES of the APPLICATION FORM AND 5 COPIES of the ENTIRE PROPOSAL for a TOTAL OF 6 COMPLETE PACKETS.

A box on the application form may be checked if the student wishes to be considered for a $1,000 Hoffman Research Support Grant (due 16 March) in the event that he or she does not receive a Hughes Summer Fellowship.

Letters of Support. The proposal must be accompanied by a letter of support from the project advisor, usually a Bates faculty member. If the summer project advisor is NOT a Bates faculty member, a letter of support is required from the off-campus advisor in addition to a letter of recommendation from a Bates faculty member. Letters of support are due 2 March.

STUDENTS STUDYING JYA or JSA may fax applications (207-786-8393) or email them (kobrien@bates.edu) by 2 March.

The Hughes Council, the grant review committee, gives priority to the best articulated projects which demonstrate the most student initiative.

Important Information for Students:

• All summer funding is contingent upon a student maintaining a GPA of at least 2.5.
• Students can not use research grant funding to participate in a credit-earning summer academic program or receive academic credit for summer research.
• This grant project involves a full-time (up to 40 hours per week) commitment for eight to ten weeks; therefore the student cannot earn additional funds at the College during the weeks they do your research.
• Hughes Math & Science Education Summer Fellowships recipients are expected to submit a brief progress report on their work within two weeks of the completion of the project to the Dean of the Faculty's Office (see Reporting Requirements) and to present their research during the Parents Weekend Poster Session unless they are studying off campus in the fall.

8/2008