Interested Students still have Time to Apply for Summer NSF-REU Programs at Rochester
Planning is in full swing at the University of Rochester (UR) as different NSF Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) programs get ready to bring students to campus for research this summer.
Applications are being accepted now, but the deadline is fast approaching. Students looking to apply to the Photonics REU at Rochester will only have a few more weeks to do so, with the application priority deadline set for February 15th.
This year will look a little different than last, with the Physics and Astronomy REU being the only other REU planning to operate this summer. That REU is still awaiting NSF approval but will continue to accept applications through the ETAP portal through January 31st. Here are the applications links for Phonics, and Physics and Astronomy. (Please continue to check our REU page for updates.)
What To Expect as an REU Student
Students who are selected for an REU and come to UR this year, will spend 10 weeks on campus, May 27, 2025, through August 2, 2025. Their participation in the program is an opportunity to build skills, expertise, and a network, with students getting an immersive lab experience and the chance to participate in professional development classes and social activities that are coordinated by the David T. Kearns Center. The Kearns Center also coordinates travel and housing, making sure it’s a seamless and enjoyable experience for students, from start to finish. “UR REU programs help cover expenses typically associated with conducting summer research – with free housing, travel reimbursement, and a supplemental on-campus meal stipend – scholars get that financial support all while being paid for their time working in lab,” says Kearns Center REU Program Manager Samantha Branch. “This provides a more accessible route for undergraduate students to grow as a researcher, student, and develop future plans. While at the University of Rochester, students connect with mentors, peers, and the academic community,” Branch explains.
Participation in an REU program can also be a crash course in self-exploration and path clarification says Branch, allowing students to really dig into their interests and consider what they’d might like to do beyond their undergraduate studies. “REU participants gain research experience while developing their career and exploring areas of interest such as for graduate study and future work in industry or academia,” says Brach. “REU Scholars learn tools and techniques specific to their field of interest and deepen their understanding of how researchers think and work through challenges in the research process. Scholars have reported significant gains in developing a research plan, data collection and processing, and spoken research presentations.”
Students usually hear if they’ve been selected for an REU by the end of March or early April and then will begin to be contacted by Brach as to what they can expect. Leading up to arriving on campus, students will have the chance to take part in a pre-arrival video call with their cohort, where they are given more information about what their summer will entail.
Those selected for the 2025 program will begin their experience with virtual onboarding days on Thursday, May 22nd and Friday, May 23rd, with an on-campus move in day scheduled for Tuesday, May 27th. To kick things off, all students will take part in a full orientation run by the Kearns Center, which is scheduled for Wednesday, May 28th. The program will wrap up with a symposium on Thursday, July 31st, a chance for students to share their work with their peers, faculty mentors and PIs. Students will then move out of the dorms on Friday, August 1st and Saturday, August 2nd.
- 5/22 & 5/23 – Virtual onboarding
- 5/27 – On campus move in day
- 5/28 – Kearns led orientation
- 7/31 – Kearns Summer Research Symposium
- 8/1 & 8/2 – Move out day
Hear from Former REU Students about Their Experience
For those still curious about what a Rochester REU would be like, just take it from the students who participated last year. Meet seven students, from four different programs, who completed ten weeks of research and had one uniquely impactful experience.
Meet ECE REU Scholar Ismerai Gonzalez
Ismerai Gonzalez came to the University of Rochester from the University of Texas at San Antonio and spent ten weeks working on research surrounding ultrasound-tomography-guided and targeted drug delivery using nanodroplets.
“I first came in thinking, OK, ten weeks straight research. I don’t have time to make friends, I don’t have time to interact. But the first welcoming was an orientation. They broke us up into groups, and that is where I got to meet other people from my ECE program as well as from the Physics and Chemistry departments…Kearns did such a great job just being able to provide the students with different diverse and educational [opportunities].”
Meet ECE REU Scholars Alex Gandy and Alex Balarezo
Alex Gandy came to the University of Rochester from the University of Texas at San Antonio and Alex Balarezo came from the University at Albany. Both spent ten weeks working on a project involving ultrasound studies in phantom models and mice using 3D blood volume reconstruction.
Gandy: “I’ve meet people from around the country that I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet if I stayed at my home university over the summer. California, Egypt, Massachusetts, like all over. Very much a good time getting to enjoy and interact with these new people that I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet before.”
Balarezo: “It was great to hear all these crazy stories, different walks of life and different things people are researching. I think it’s important to immerse yourself in things – [have] a different view to learn and grow as a person – and that’s what this experience has provided.”
Meet Photonics REU Scholar Zahidul Zahin
Zahidul came to the University of Rochester from City University of New York. He spent ten weeks working on research involving the automated characterization of nano-photonic cavities.
“I think it’s a great way to get your hands dirty, especially to see parts of science that you haven’t worked on before. Try different things, see what you like. See if you don’t like it because that’s really important. You don’t know if you want to do something until you actually do it. And if you find out you don’t like it – great – you can narrow your options down. I just got lucky and happened to find something I like!”
Meet Chemistry REU Scholar Josephine Hastings
Hastings came to the University of Rochester from SUNY Geneseo. She spent ten weeks working on research involving analysis of thermal expansion in crystal structures using variable-temperature low-frequency vibrational spectroscopy.
“Because I hadn’t taken physical chemistry [in school] yet, I was nervous that I wasn’t going to be able to understand what I was doing, or I wasn’t going to be able to accurately work on the projects. However, everyone made it so I can learn as much as I can, as much as I need to, to be able to do research here, it’s been amazing.”
Meet Physics and Astronomy REU Scholars D’Ross Prince and Taylor Williams
Both D’Ross and Williams came to the University of Rochester from Southern University– and spent ten weeks working on research involving automation of a shearing interferometer to improve electron density measurement accuracy.
Williams: “It’s not just about research, but about the people you meet. Coming to the REU in and of itself was a huge networking opportunity for people who are potentially getting PhDs, like a lot of people here are trying to go for PhDs... You’re put into an environment of being in one building, going to the same classes, you are seeing each other every day and it’s building this relationship over the ten weeks that you are here. For me personally the people in the physics building, the people in the Kearns building, I’ve always felt like they want the best for me.”
Prince: “I had the opportunity to meet people who were not just in the REU’s, so I’ve got to meet U of R students, other people who were doing some research here. And I got some of their LinkedIn [profiles] and some of their numbers so I’m glad about that…making a lot of connections, and they were able to help me in different parts [of this experience].”