Science 198: Perspectives on Science
2005-2006
General Background
As part of Perspectives on Science (PS), you are encouraged to engage in scientific research for at least 10 weeks during the summer following the course. PS and the Yale College Dean's Office provide summer research stipends for students who elect to carry out research at Yale under the supervision of a Yale faculty member.
Timetable
In general, students should aim to have their summer position lined up by the end of spring break. DO NOT wait until the end of April. By then many laboratories will have filled any spaces that may be available. Also, if you know what you will be doing for the summer, you will be able to do some background reading before starting your summer experience. Your proposed summer research project can be used as the topic for your term paper for PS.
How to find a summer research position
It is your responsibility to seek out and identify a sponsor for your summer research. Some suggested approaches:
1. Ask your course faculty for suggestions. Upperclass and graduate students are also good sources for advice and leads.
2. Consult with the DUS in the department you might be interested in. Many DUS's canvass the faculty to see who anticipate summer research opportunities for undergrads. These data are often posted or available by request from the DUS.
3. Search the web sites of relevant departments for the names of faculty members and research groups that have research interests that overlap with yours.
4. Check out the YSER web site which has a comprehensive listing of Yale science and engineering departments with potential faculty mentors, along with additional suggestions on finding a research position.
5. You can tell potential faculty sponsors that you are in PS and that you already have your own support funds.
6. It is VERY IMPORTANT when you discuss a summer research position with a potential faculty mentor to do it in person and in an organized manner. Email or phone contact can be an effective means of making initial contact, but you should ask for an appointment to visit the person. This will allow you the opportunity to learn in detail what your summer project might entail and to gain a sense of the environment within which you will be working.
Mechanism of Support
When you have a commitment from a Yale faculty sponsor, you should inform the PS co-directors. To make it easier to do this, please go to the Summer Research Form, print it out, get your sponsor's signature, and hand it in to one of the PS co-directors. We will then initiate the paperwork required for payment of your summer stipend. The summer 2006 stipend is TBA (for 2005 is was $3,600) total for a minimum of 10 weeks of full-time research. Full time means full time. You are not permitted to take summer courses or to hold down an additional job.
1. How do I find a research mentor? There are several ways you can discuss opportunities with your science teachers, lab assistants, etc.; you can ask upperclass students whom you know for suggestions based on their experiences; you can search the YSER web site which has links to the research interests of faculty in more than 40 Yale science and engineering departments.
2. How should I approach a potential research mentor? Unless you have direct contact with your potential mentor, through a course, e.g., it is generally best to begin with a call or email to ask for a face-to-face appointment to explore the possibility of a summer student research position. You can greatly increase your chances of a successful interaction (i.e., get your foot in the door) if you mention that you will have financial support through the PS program, so that your research mentor does not need to be concerned with providing your support.
3. What will I do during my summer research program? When you interview with potential mentors, tell them your course background, prior work history, future career and academic interests and then ask them what are the sorts of projects they might suggest that you participate in. Often you will not have your "own" project, but will collaborate with a more advanced scientist (upperclass student, grad student, post-doctoral fellow, or faculty member) and assist with a component of the ongoing research. While you may be expected to do a small amount of routine laboratory support work, such as lab maintenance, library research, etc., you should not take a position in which your major duties are glassware washing, xeroxing for the faculty member, or other such positions which do not fully expose you to the active research of the research group.
4. What are the specific financial arrangements? The Perspectives in Science program has a fixed budget for summer research support. It provides $3,400 for a 10 week period of full-time work. The dates of this work are negotiated between you and your mentor. The stipend will be paid in three approximately monthly installments. Your research mentor will not provide any additional supplementation.
5. What about taxes? Your stipend is reported by Yale as taxable income. You will have to report the income in your annual IRS report and pay taxes if required based on your income and filing status. International students are subject to special regulations governing tax withholding from the stipend payments, and should contact W. Segraves as soon as they make summer plans for instructions on the completion of documents required for employment and for proper tax treatment of stipends.
6. Can I take a summer school course during the summer? No. The PS summer research experience is intended to be a full-time, 10 week commitment, with no distractions or other commitments.
7. Does the program provide housing? No. Yale housing (the Colleges) are not generally available for the summer. You must make your own living arrangements for the summer. Often groups of PS students have jointly taken summer sub-lets near campus.
8. What are the time deadlines on this program? During the first half of the spring semester, you should initiate contacts and begin discussing projects with potential research mentors. You should finalize your plans as early as you can, but you must finalize your arrangements and communicate them to the course co-directors by the end of classes, April 24, 2006, to assure your funding and to assure timely processing of your first stipend check.
9. Can I get offers from more that one potential mentor, apply for PS funding, and then decide which offer to take after I get funded? No. You must decide on your research mentor and make commitments to each other prior to application for PS funds. If it becomes necessary to change mentors after funds are committed, the directors of the PS program must approve the change.
10. Can I write my PS final term paper on my proposed summer project? Yes. That is encouraged so that you will have a chance to survey the background research for your summer project. You can consult with your summer research mentor for suggestions about sources for this paper.
11. What is expected of me in the way of a final report, etc.? You are obligated to provide the PS directors with a two page summary of your research at the end of the summer. Also, you are requested (not required) to provide permission to Yale to divulge your demographic data (ethnicity and sex) to the funding agency that supports the summer stipends.
12. Can I present my results in the fall 2006 Perspectives on Science Summer Research Symposium? Absolutely. You are the stars of the show! The summer is the time to start gathering materials you will need to make your presentation.