REU Site: Research Experiences in Plant Science at the Danforth Center

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This REU Site award to the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, located in St. Louis, MO, will support the training of 10 students for 11 weeks during the summers of 2017- 2019. The program provides a comprehensive research experience in the areas of plant and life sciences. Students conduct a research project under the guidance of senior scientists at the Danforth Center, an independent non-profit private research institute dedicated to fundamental research in plant biology. This research component is supplemented with additional activities, including workshops in the Center's Integrated Microscopy, Proteomics & Mass Spectrometry, Phenotyping, Maker and Tissue Culture and Transformation facilities. Weekly meetings, a scientific retreat, field trips and a career panel will expose interns to current research topics in the plant sciences, provide exposure to several possible career paths and offer ample networking opportunities with Danforth Center scientists as well as those from other local institutions. Special emphasis will be on developing effective verbal and written communication skills. The program culminates in a one-day symposium where interns will deliver their projects via a scientific paper and presentation. Applications are available online and are due each February. The program runs each summer from May through August.It is anticipated that a total of 30 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. The program aims to increase the diversity of the scientific field by offering extensive research experience and training to students from underrepresented groups and from rural areas. Since a goal of the Center's research is to have an impact on agricultural productivity and added value, the research conducted by interns has the potential to be of significant interest to the plant biology community and the community at large. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at national and international scientific conferences.A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU Site programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information about the program is available by visiting http://www.danforthcenter.org/internship or by contacting internship@danforthcenter.org.