Collections-Based Research Experiences for Undergraduates at The Academy of Natural Sciences

9731886致力于收集为基础的研究专家的数量已经下降，因为学生往往很少接触到收集和研究在许多现代大学的科学课程的生物体生物学。 拥有强大研究计划的博物馆，如自然科学院，为填补本科教育的这一空白提供了机会。 我们的目标是为本科生提供多样化和令人兴奋的研究经验，努力招募新的年轻研究人员到这个重要的领域。 生物多样性，分类学和分类学教育沿着保护将使学生能够探索，记录和保护全球生物多样性和生态系统。 申请者将主要来自大费城地区（包括新泽西和特拉华州）的大学，重点是招募女性和服务不足的少数民族。将颁发20个为期10周的奖学金，学生将根据学习成绩、整体兴趣和潜在能力、两份推荐信和一次面试进行选择。 在为期一周的介绍会议后，学生将选择一位导师作为他们研究项目的主要顾问。 研究项目将涵盖与系统生物学相关的各种主题，包括进化，分子生物学，生态学和科学收藏的历史。 学生将与策展人和资深科学家并肩工作，并将参与收集为基础的研究的各个方面，包括：在博物馆的世界级生物收藏品，标本的收集和策展进行研究，参加实地考察，参加与科学家的讨论小组，并通过口头演示和出版传播科学成果。 导师和学生的书面评估将用于评估本研究计划的影响，并在随后改进该计划，并在完成他们的研究经验后，他们将评估该计划的价值，以达到这些目标。 导师还将评估学生和计划的表现。 学生将以论文的形式展示他们的研究成果，并将其发表在经评审的期刊上。 此外，学生将在为期一天的学生研讨会上口头介绍他们的研究。

9731886 The number specialists dedicated to collections-based research has declined because students often receive little exposure to collections and research in organismal biology in many modern university science programs. Museums with a strong research program such as The Academy of Natural Sciences offer an opportunity to fill this gap in undergraduate education. The goal is to provide a diverse and exciting research experience for undergraduates in an effort to recruit new young researchers to this ever important field. Education in biodiversity, systematics, and taxonomy along with conservation will enable students to explore, document and conserve global biodiversity and ecosystems. Applicants will be sought primarily from colleges in the greater Philadelphia area (including New Jersey and Delaware), with emphasis on recruiting women and underserved minorities. Twenty, 10-week fellowships will be awarded and students will be chosen on the basis of academic performance, overall interest and potential ability, two recommendations, and an interview. After a one-week introductory session, students will choose a mentor to serve as the primary advisor of their research project. Research projects will cover diverse topics related to systematic biology, including evolution, molecular biology, ecology, and history of scientific collections. Students will work side-by-side with curators and senior scientist and will be involved in all aspects of collections-based research including: conducting research in the museum's world-class biological collections, collection and curation of specimens, participation in field expeditions, participation in discussion groups with scientists, and dissemination of scientific results through oral presentation and publication. Written evaluations by mentors and students will be used to assess the impact of this research program and to improve the program in subsequent, and after completing their research experience they will assess the value of the program t oward reaching these goals. Mentors will also evaluate the student and program performance. Students will present the results of their research in the form of a paper to be published in a refereed journal. In addition, students will give oral presentations of their research in a one-day student symposium.