Summer Research Fellowships (SRF) are research projects that are undertaken under the direction of a Bates faculty advisor or a specialist from another institution. Research is broadly defined, and also includes projects focused on artistic practice. Summer Research Fellows are expected to devote at least 8 weeks of the summer to full-time research (approximately 40 hours per week).

The fellowship includes a grant of $5,000.

Actively enrolled and full-time first-year, sophomore, and junior students may apply. Graduating seniors are not eligible. Approximately 25-30 Summer Research Fellowships are awarded annually.

• Because the goal of summer grant programs is to contribute to a student’s academic success and persistence at Bates, all summer funding is contingent upon a student maintaining a G.P.A. of at least 2.0.
• You can not use research grant funding to participate in a credit-earning summer academic program or 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 hold any other job at the college during the weeks you conduct your research, and you are not expected to be working in any other job during this time.

Students applying for a Summer Research Fellowship need to fill out the SRF application form and attach within the form the following documents as a SINGLE combined PDF by 11:59 PM on the deadline listed above.

• provide a one-paragraph (NO MORE THAN 100 words) abstract of the research project describing the research questions and project goals;
• provide a project description of NOT MORE THAN 2 DOUBLE-SPACED pages outlining methodology and timetable, relevance to the student’s academic program, and the student’s qualifications for the research;
• on a separate sheet, provide short list of bibliographic resources (4-5 references);
• 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 on the same day as the application deadline so please plan accordingly. If letters of support are sent separately, they can be sent via email to Alison Keegan (akeegan@bates.edu).

Summer Research Fellowships are awarded by the Student Research Committee, chaired by Assistant Dean Edili Lopez.

Within two weeks of completion of the project, research fellows are expected to submit an electronic abstract and a brief final report to Alison Keegan (akeegan@bates.edu) in the Dean of the Faculty’s Office. Fellows are required to present their research during the Back to Bates Summer Research Poster Session unless they are studying abroad that fall. Any future grants from this office are contingent upon receiving the final reports.

The final report should give a summary of your project goals and whether or not you accomplished what you set out to do from your original proposal. What surprised you about your research? What were the challenges? What were the discoveries?

Summer Research Fellowships are funded through a variety of sources, including  an endowment established by the Maximilian E. and Marion O. Hoffman Foundation; the Dorothy Dole Johnson ’41 Endowment for science research; the Kelsey Endowment (for research in neuroscience); the Phillips Endowment; the Pribram-Ruff Endowment (for research in physics); the Ruggles Endowment (supporting pre-thesis research in the humanities, social sciences, and non-science interdisciplinary programs; the Stangle Endowment (supporting research or internships in politics, economics and law); and the Tanaka Foundation (supporting research in Asia).

To apply, please submit an application form. All the package requirements detailed in the application materials above must be combined and attached into a SINGLE PDF form within the application form and by the deadline noted above.