DIVERSITY PROGRAMS - SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROGRAM

Summer Program 2013: Sunday, May 26 - Saturday, August 3, 2013

Program Overview

The Summer Internship Program (SIP) provides experience in research laboratories to students of diverse backgrounds, including underrepresented minority students, students from economically disadvantaged and underserved backgrounds and students with disabilities that have completed one - two or more years of college.  The purpose of this exposure to biomedical and/or public health research is to encourage students to consider careers in science, medicine and public health.  The program runs nine to ten weeks and a minimum stipend of $3,000 is provided.  Housing is provided near our undergraduate campus; the University has a shuttle service that provides convenient transportation between the Johns Hopkins Medicine Institutions (JHMI) and the undergraduate campus.   

"Partner Programs": As summer research programs are increasingly competitive, it is advisable to apply to several summer programs.  We have partnerships with the following summer programs that will permit you to do your summer research at Johns Hopkins:

The Leadership Alliance
NIDDK STEP-UP
American Society for Microbiology URF program
MCHC/RISE-UP

Opportunities for Students With Disabilities:

Johns Hopkins is a community committed to sharing values of diversity and inclusion in order to achieve and sustain excellence. We firmly believe that we can best promote excellence by recruiting and retaining a diverse group of students, faculty and staff and by creating a climate of respect that is supportive of their success. This climate for diversity, inclusion and excellence is critical to attaining the best research, scholarship, teaching, health care and other strategic goals of the University. Taken together these values are recognized and supported fully by the Johns Hopkins Institutions leadership at all levels.

We have a focused recruitment effort for students with disabilities at all levels (i.e. undergraduate and graduate) and our summer programs.  To enhance these efforts,

We have formed partnerships with the Institute of Accessible Science (IAS, based at Purdue University) Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Entry Point! program.   

The Institute of Accessible Science (IAS) Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (summer research experience will be at Purdue University IAS):

http://iashub.org/iasundergradfellowshipapp

AAAS Entry Point! sponsored by the American Asociation for the Advancement of Science, recruits undergraduae and graduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics students with disabilities for paid summer internships with leading companies and government agencies.  Full details www.entrypoint.org

Summer Internship Program (SIP) also encourages students with disabilities to apply.

Eligibility

Students must have completed one year of college and be a U.S. citizen to apply to the Pulmonary Medicine and Institute of NanoBioTechnology divisions; students must have completed two years of college and be either a U.S. citizen or international student currently studying in the U.S. to apply to the Basic Science Institute division;  students much have completed two years of college and be a U.S. citizen to apply to the Biology of Healthy Agings and Bloomberg School of Public Health divisions of the program. Basic Science Institute students must have a demonstrated interest and potential to pursue a PhD degree.

Benefits
Acquire both theoretical knowledge and practical training in research and scientific experimentation and other scholarly investigations. The program runs ten weeks and a stipend of ~$3,000 is provided. Housing is provided near our undergraduate campus; the University has a shuttle service that provides convenient transportation between the medical school and the undergraduate campus.

Overall, you can expect an experience similar to that of a first-year graduate student who does a three-month rotation in a laboratory or out in the community to become acquainted with the project, techniques, and people working in that area.  Before arrival each intern receives several papers related to their specific research project.  The goal of the project and its relationship to other work in the area will be discussed, and you will be instructed in the techniques necessary to conduct the research.  As each technique is mastered, the responsibilities for seeing the procedure through will rest increasingly with you.  Besides daily interactions with others at the project site, most groups have a more formal meeting once or twice a week to discuss research problems, and progress and developments reported in the literature.   While the style and character of each research site varies considerably, all are composed of very dedicated and hardworking individuals who are more than willing to help others who are similarly committed to learning.  The program concludes with a poster session by the interns describing their projects. 

This summer internship program requires a full-time commitment.  Interns should be prepared for long days and short weekends.  It is not permissible to take academic classes or hold other employment during the internship.  There are no vacations during the program. 

The Complete Application
We ask that students complete the application describing relevant course work, research experience and future plans regarding a career in science.  We require two letters of recommendation and official transcripts.

The SIP divisional admissions committees will inform applicants of admissions decisions by March 1st of the year that you are applying.  We anticipate that ~56 internships will be available each summer – 20 in the Basic Science Institute, 20 in the Bloomberg School of Public Health and 16 in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.     

Applicants will be informed of their status by March 1st.

RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

Research opportunities available in each area of the program are described below – please indicate which area you wish to be considered for (your application may be reviewed by more than one committee). 
* Each division of the Summer Internship Program is administered separately and may support different stipend levels and academic programs during the research experience. 

Basic Science Institute (BSI)

Research opportunities in the Institute for Basic Biomedical Science (IBBS) are available in all of our basic science departments: Biological Chemistry; Biomedical Engineering; Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry; Chemistry/Biology interface; Cell Biology; Molecular Biology and Genetics; Molecular and Comparative Pathobiology; Neuroscience; Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences and Physiology.  Past program participants have participated in a broad array of projects from molecular and cellular analysis of the aquaporin water channels, molecular genetic basis of Down syndrome, genomics, neurobiology of disease, applications of polymeric biomaterials to drug delivery, gene therapy, and tissue engineering.  Program activities include weekly journal clubs, semi-monthly professional development seminars and the program concludes with a poster session.  The rich environment and guidance by our faculty helps prepare our students for successful careers as independent research scientists. 

Biology of Healthy Aging Program:

The Biology of Healthy Aging Program is the basic research arm of the highly acclaimed Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology. We offer summer research opportunities to explore the basic science of aging at a time when national health care resources are shifting toward the needs of the rapidly expanding population of older adults. Our multidisciplinary research projects aim to understand the molecular basis of physiologic decline with age, and then test appropriate clinical interventions in cellular and rodent models. Specific research projects include understanding the molecular basis of: repair and renewal of muscle; erythropoiesis in the setting of inflammation and aging; mitochondrial metabolism and mitophagy; chronic inflammation and late-life decline; genetic determinants of aging.

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/geriatric_medicine_gerontology/aging_research/biology_healthy_aging/

Bloomberg School of Public Health

As a leading international authority on public health, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is dedicated to protecting health and saving lives.  Every day, the School works to keep millions around the world safe from illness and injury by pioneering new research, deploying its knowledge and expertise in the field, and educating tomorrow’s scientists and practitioners in the global defense of human life.  At the Bloomberg School of Public Health, you will be mentored by some of the world’s leading authorities on public health issues.   Some of our major research initiatives are in these areas: improving the health of women and children; identifying determinants of behavior and developing communication programs to promote healthy lifestyles; protecting our nation from bioterroism; preventing and controlling AIDS; reducing the incidence and severity of injuries; elucidating the causes and treatment for mental disorders; preventing chronic diseases (heart diseases, stroke, cancer, diabetes); improving the health of adolescents; preventing and treating substance abuse; assessing the effect of environmental toxins on human health; making water safe and available for the world’s population; assessing the health needs of disadvantaged populations (rural, urban, refugees, US ethnic groups);  and developing methods to better understand, manage and finance health care.  Your research opportunity may take place in a laboratory, health department, clinic, office, or in a community setting.

Institute for NanoBioTechnology (INBT) - Nanotechnology for Biology and Bioengineering Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)

INBT has created a unique model for training researchers at the interface between nanoscience and medicine. All of our summer labs are interdisciplinary labs that offer students the ability to work in both the physical sciences/engineering and biological sciences/medicine. With funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), we recruit students from Biology; Bioengineering; Biomedical Engineering; Biophysics; Cell Biology; Chemistry; Material Science & Engineering; & Physics. Our summer students can choose to work in various research areas such as: nanotechnology, biomaterials, nanoparticles, microfabrication, tissue engineering, stem cells, drug delivery, particle synthesis, lab-on-chip devices and cancer research. INBT summer students are co-advised by faculty and senior lab personnel and work on current graduate level projects.  Students can work on a specific project or multiple projects depending on their interest and background. During the 10-weeks of research students participate in lab research and attend educational and professional development seminars. At the end of the summer the students present their research at a university-wide poster session. The ultimate goal of the program is to give undergraduates a true perspective of graduate research with the hope that this experience will inspire a pursuit of a PhD.  For more information on requirements, admissions and benefits- http://inbt.jhu.edu/education/undergraduate/reu/ 

Applicants should indicate the area(s) of research they are interested in (choose up to three areas of research):

Biomaterials; Biophysics & bioengineering; Cancer; Drug/Gene Delivery; Nanofabrication; Neuroscience/Neurology; Stem Cells & Cell Engineering and Tissue Engineering

Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine

Students work on specific research projects under the supervision of an assigned mentor.  Projects span a broad range of research, from the basic science of endothelial or epithelial cell biology to asthma epidemiology.  In addition to the research experience, students participate in a weekly journal club, during which they present primary research articles to their peers and members of the faculty.  Students also attend a seminar series featuring faculty members from Johns Hopkins and the NIH.  This forum provides students with the opportunity to interact with faculty members and hear different perspectives on issues related to career development.  Students interested in clinical medicine are given the opportunity to “round” with the Johns Hopkins Medicine residents, providing a glimpse of life in clinical medicine as a resident at an academic institution.  At the end of the summer, students present their work in a poster session.  We hope that through these activities students will gain first-hand knowledge of research and academic medicine, and ultimately pursue careers in the biomedical sciences.

For more information contact Ms. Catherine L. Will, Program Manager - cwill@jhmi.edu