Summer Research Apprenticeships

150720_Internship_Fan_Dong_0034-900x600

Faculty Application Deadline: 1 February by 11:59 PM 
Student Application Deadline: Determined by PI

Click here to apply for the Summer Research Apprenticeship Grant!

Each year the College awards up to five Summer Research Apprenticeships to Bates faculty who wish to hire Bates students as research assistants during the summer Each grant provides funding for student wages (please budget at $14.15/hour) for up to 320 hours (e.g., 40 hours per week for  eight weeks) during the summer ($4,528). Students pay for room and board with these wages.

Preference is given to projects that would otherwise have no student involvement. Normally no more than one grant may be awarded to a single project. These grants are competitive; faculty members in all academic departments are encouraged to apply. A faculty applicant may have a student research assistant in mind, or the dean’s office can run a competition for students for the position. Students may begin working full time in Short Term ONLY if they are not enrolled in a Short Term course.

NEW FOR 2024: This and related internal awards provide the faculty member with a choice of either professional development funds or personal stipend of $1,000 per student up to a maximum of three such awards (i.e. max of $3,000 per faculty member per summer, across all mechanisms of student support). If the faculty member chooses to receive this money as professional development funds, the funds can be used in support of this project or any other appropriate project within three years; restrictions on use are similar to those outlined for the Bates Faculty Development Fund.  If the faculty member chooses to receive this money as a personal stipend, note that this is taxable income subject to that individual’s normal tax rates and rules.

Application:

1. Faculty members who wish to sponsor a student research apprentice during the summer may submit an application form and proposal to the dean of the faculty’s office. The proposal must include an abstract and a statement describing the research goals and methodologies, the anticipated student hours needed, and the project timetable with the begin and end dates of the project (these dates will be used as the basis for the payroll contract) as well as the specific involvement of the student research apprentice.  Please submit your application and proposal materials electronically by 11:59 PM on February 1.

2. The Committee on Faculty Scholarship reviews proposals, considering the degree of faculty commitment to providing students with genuine research opportunities, and the benefit of the research experience to the student’s college career.

3. Following the selection of faculty proposals for funding, all first-year students, sophomores, and juniors will be informed of those research positions for which the faculty member has not yet chosen a student collaborator. Interested students may apply to the dean of the faculty’s office, which will forward applications to the sponsoring faculty member who selects the student for the award. Students may receive application information through the Office of the Dean of the Faculty.

4. Students hired as Research Apprentices must meet with sponsoring faculty members as soon as they receive notification of their awards. Faculty and students should discuss the scope of the project, the schedule and other details of the work before the student agrees to participate. Students are paid hourly (hours must not exceed 40 per week). Hours are submitted through Web Time Entry with the Faculty researcher approving the hours.

Conditions:

1. Students who have Summer Research Apprenticeships are ineligible for other grants.

2. Research Apprenticeships are intended to give students an opportunity to engage in long-term, intensive research. Students are expected to work eight to ten weeks full time during the summer (up to forty hours per week).

3. Because this is a job, all work must be conducted in Maine due to tax implications. Work can be conducted on the Bates campus or remotely, as long as that remote work is done within the state of Maine.

4. Each faculty sponsor must also submit a one-page written evaluation of the student’s work, and comment on the overall success of the project within two weeks of the completion of the project. For reporting requirements see below.

5. Each student participant also must submit electronically their abstract and report to their sponsor for approval (see reporting requirements below) and to present his/her project during the Back to Bates Poster Session unless they are studying off campus in the fall. Students must also complete the online SURE survey, if they are working in STEM fields.

6. All future grants are contingent upon receiving these reports.

Information on the Written Application Process for Students

Some faculty researchers require a written application.

If the position in which you are interested requires a WRITTEN APPLICATION, please complete the summer research fellowship general application form. 

You do NOT need a faculty signature or a letter of support unless the faculty researcher asks for one, but please provide the NAME of a faculty member who can attest to your qualifications should the faculty researcher need for information on you.

Attach to the completed form a two-page essay in which you:

–explain why you want to work on the research project

–explain how this work relates to your academic interests

–describe courses you have taken which may qualify you fore the project

–describe any prior research experience you may have (if applicable)

–explain what you hope to get out of the summer research experience and how it might inform future work

More Important Information for Students:

  • You cannot use research grant funding to receive academic credit for summer research.
  • This is a research project that involves a full-time (up to 40 hours per week) commitment for eight to ten weeks; therefore you cannot earn additional funds at the College. Projects may begin in Short Term, however, the student CANNOT be enrolled in a Short Term course at the same time.
  • Summer Research Apprentices are expected to present their research during the Back to Bates Poster Session unless they are studying off campus in the fall.

Applications must be received by midnight on the deadline established by the PI. The applications will be turned over to the faculty researcher, who will select the summer researcher.

# # # # # # # # #

RESEARCHER REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Summer Research Apprenticeships

In order to assess the value of our summer research programs, make improvements to them and secure further funding to support them, it is critical that the Dean of the Faculty’s Office secure specific feedback on each summer research project from each participant. We excerpt the reports for our own reporting to our funders.

What Do We Need from You? For student-faculty research projects funded through the Dean of the Faculty’s Office, we need a report from both the student researcher(s) and the faculty researcher. In addition, we need an abstract of the work completed.

When Do We Need the Information? We need all abstracts and reports submitted within 2 weeks of the completion of the project (i.e., the last day of the student’s payroll contract). We recommend that you spend time during the last week of the project to compile the report. We require timely submission of the reports because of our own reporting requirements to our funding agencies.

Abstract. The student or students in the research team should prepare a 100- to 150-word abstract summarizing the research question, the methodology, and the results of the research. The abstract must be reviewed by the faculty research director and approved before submission to the Dean of the Faculty. The faculty P.I. should add a statement to the end of the abstract stating his or her approval. Do not use the abstract originally submitted by the faculty researcher in his or her proposal; report on what you actually did.

Student Report. Each student on the project should submit a separate report of 500 words or less addressing the following questions:

1) What were the significant findings of the research?

2) Did you actually conduct original research? Do you now know more about your research topic that you knew before?

3) Did your understanding of the material under investigation change as a result of this research experience?

4) How did your summer research experience compare to your previous academic experience in the discipline under study?

5) Are you continuing the research following the summer experience (e.g., thesis, independent study, paid assistantship, following summer)?

Faculty Report. The faculty research director should submit one report assessing the work of the student or students on the project, addressing these questions:

1) Was progress made on your research?

2) Please assess the contribution of each student to the project.

3) Do you anticipate that you and/or the student(s) will present the research at a scholarly meeting or publish the work?

4) In assessing student learning in summer research, please comment on the extent to which you think the student(s) might better understand the research questions, the underlying disciplinary principles, the research methodology, critical thinking, and reasoning from evidence.  If appropriate, comment on student gains in quantitative literacy as a result of the project.

Submission of Approved Abstract and Reports. Please submit the abstract and all reports ELECTRONICALLY by sending Word attachments or pdf files to Alison Keegan (akeegan@bates.edu) in the Dean of the Faculty’s Office. Any future grants are contingent upon these reports.