Are you interested in mentoring undergraduate researchers this summer?

Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense (CBTS) is seeking faculty mentors for the Summer Research Institute (SRI).

Program Overview

SRI is a 10-week paid internship program for promising junior and senior undergraduate majors in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The Institute is an opportunity to develop hands-on technical skills and conduct research to support the missions of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, DHS. The program allows participants to focus their research activities on one of two areas:

Cybersecurity - RELLIS campus in Bryan, TX
Biological threat defense - Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Weslaco, TX

Activities for each focus area will be located at their respective campus with field trips scheduled intermittently. Housing will be available to students upon request.

Prerequisites

Current faculty member in good standing at an accredited higher education institution
2 years experience leading undergraduate research projects

Faculty Expectations

SRI will be led by faculty mentors, with each mentor supervising the student researchers in their topic area. Faculty mentors will be expected to:

Be able to guide the students in the development of their project, but not drive the direction in which the project goes.
Be on-site with the students and participate in all activities with the students for approximately six hours each day.
Prepare a weekly summary of the activities completed that week, and the expected activities for the next week.
Document the hours the students participated and the hours the faculty member participated.
Provide professional development mentorship to the students.

Compensation

Faculty mentors will receive compensation for 75% Time and Effort for 3 months.

Important Dates

Faculty Mentor Application Closes: March 12, 2024
Faculty Mentor Selection Announced: Week of March 18, 2024
Student Researcher Application Closes: March 8, 2024
Student Researcher Interview Notifications: Week of March 18, 2024
Student Researcher Interviews: Week of March 25, 2024
Summer Research Institute Begins: May 28, 2024
Summer Research Institute Concludes: August 2, 2024
Final Reports Submitted: August 9, 2024

Application

In order to be considered for SRI, complete this application by March 12, 2024 by 5:00 PM CST.

If you have any questions, please reach out to CBTS@ag.tamu.edu