REU Site: Ecology in Context for Undergraduate Students

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9605098 Berkowitz New York's Institute of Ecosystem Studies (IES) hosts a summer-research program for undergraduate students, with support from the NSF REU-Sites program. Building upon a distinguished record of training and research, emphasizing forest ecosystem structure and function, the Institute's program immerses students in a highly interactive, 12-week session of field-based projects, seminars, workshops, and presentations. Anticipated outcomes include: (1) students acquire a broad perspective in modern field-based ecology and in science more generally; (2) students learn fundamental skills in designing, executing, and completing a research project; and (3) students become better prepared to choose and pursue a career in science. Minority-student participation as well as participation by women have been significant in past NSF-supported programs, and efforts are being made to continue those emphases. The program has four components: (1) Student research projects--working closely with a mentor scientist, each student develops a research question and associated hypotheses, implements the project, collects and analyzes data, gives an oral presentation in a formal Research Symposium, and writes a paper. (2) Research strategies for undergraduates--workshops provide training in various tools and techniques essential for modern ecological research. (3) Research in context--the staff of IES along with visiting scientists offer seminars and case studies to broaden students' perspectives on scientific work. (4) Forum on opportunities in ecology--a full-day forum exposes students to a broad range of career choices in basic and applied ecology.