Departments
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Week of 19 March 1999 |
Vol. II, No. 27 |
Feature Article
BU to receive Beckman Scholars Awards
BU's Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) recently announced that BU has been chosen to receive one of sixteen nationwide Beckman Scholars Program awards in this year's Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation Beckman Scholars Program competition.
Up to four BU students will be selected to become Beckman Scholars. Current sophomores who are majoring in biology, biochemistry and molecular biology, chemistry, or biomedical engineering and have an overall GPA of 3.4 or higher will be eligible to apply for research funding as Beckman Scholars. The program includes summer term 1999, academic year 1999-2000, summer term 2000, and academic year 2000-2001.
Applicants must plan to study at Boston University throughout the complete award period. Each Beckman Scholar must work with one of ten participating faculty mentors who will serve as research advisors. The professor's academic expertise should be in the student's major. Beckman Scholars will be awarded up to $5,500 each summer and $3,600 each academic year, and will be given up to $3,500 for supplies and travel expenses. UROP will provide up to $3,600 of continued research support for each Beckman Scholar during the 2000-2001 academic year. Beckman Scholars will be required to participate in an enrichment program of meetings and workshops throughout the full award period. Eligible students should complete a Beckman pre-application and submit it to the UROP office at 143 Bay State Road by noon on Monday, March 22. Students should first investigate the research interests of the faculty mentors and indicate on the pre-application form the faculty mentors with whom they would like to work. A complete pre-application consists of the form (which is available online at www.bu.edu/urop/b/form.html), transcripts, an essay of no more than two pages that addresses experiences that have motivated the student to pursue a career in research, career plans and goals, and how a Beckman Scholars award would further these goals.
Students may be invited to submit a final application, which will consist of a project proposal and two faculty recommendation letters. No more than 10 finalists will be interviewed by the University's Beckman Committee, and four recipients at the most will be selected. Beckman Scholars will be required to participate in UROP's Undergraduate Research Symposium in the fall of 1999, and will be expected to participate in the Beckman Scholars Annual Symposium (expenses paid) in California or Illinois.
Finalists will be scheduled to meet for an interview with members of the Beckman Committee April 20 through 23. Awards will be announced on April 30.