Program Description
The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (iSURF) program provides a ~8 week summer research experience for undergraduate students. This full-time, immersion experience is designed for students who wish to acquire skills and knowledge that can be directly applied towards research careers and/or graduate studies in the biomedical sciences. It provides not only opportunities to learn research skills and techniques, but also strategies for applying to graduate school and discussions of career options. In addition, as part of the New Hampshire Idea Network for Biomedical Research Excellence (NH-INBRE) program, students will participate in the state-wide NH-INBRE annual meeting, and through their poster and/or oral presentations, as well as their participation in journal clubs and discussion groups throughout the summer, will improve their ability to critically evaluate, present, and discuss research.
The iSURF program offers a variety of research experiences in basic science (i.e., wet lab, bench research), quantitative and computational bioinformatics, private sector research and development, and clinical research. Students are matched with opportunities that complement their current research interests and career plans, and do their research in laboratories located at Dartmouth College, the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, or in off-campus laboratories in the private sector.
The vocabulary of the iSURF program reflects these different aspects of the program, and helps define the type of lab environment and research opportunities typically offered.
iSURF – Bench is our traditional program that places students in biomedical research laboratories.
iSURF – Nursing is for nursing students acquiring clinical research experience at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (See Undergraduate Summer Research at Dartmouth (ISURF Nursing)).
iSURF – Industry gives students research and development (R&D) experience in the private sector.
iSURF – Bioinformatics provides students experiences in bioinformatics, biostatistics, and epidemiology.
Support
Student support includes up to $6,000 in salary, a summer meal plan, and free housing. Travel costs are covered, as are other minor program-associated expenses.
Eligibility
Students are eligible for the program if they are Sophomores, Juniors, or non-graduating Seniors from institutions within states or are residents of states that have INBRE programs (Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming). Dartmouth students are ineligible for this program. Students coming from NH-INBRE supported laboratories will have competitive preference. In these cases, we encourage the development of working partnerships between the students in the iSURF program and the laboratory at their home institution, so that research skills and techniques acquired in the Dartmouth iSURF program can be brought back to their respective NH-INBRE laboratories.
Required Application Documents:
- ISURF-Application
- 2 Letters of reference
- Unofficial Transcripts
In addition to these required documents, iSURF-Industry applicants should also submit a current CV or resume.
Application Deadlines and Program Timeline
Except for the iSURF Nursing component (See Undergraduate Summer Research at Dartmouth (iSURF Nursing)), key dates for the 2024 summer iSURF program are below:
November– January: Solicitation and handling of inquiries
February 12: Applications and two brief letters of recommendation are due
March 4: Acceptance offers made to students
April 1: Student acceptances/confirmations due
June 17: Start of the summer iSURF program
August 5-6: NH-INBRE annual meeting
August 7: End of the summer iSURF program
Application and Contact Information
Download the 2024 ISURF-Application iSURF program application form here: iSURF-Application. Direct all questions about the iSURF program, as well as any application and recommendation materials, to Jennifer J. Therriault NH-INBRE Program Manager, at Jennifer.J.Therriault@Dartmouth.edu.
