UNDERGRADUATE
TWINNING PROGRAM

About

Program Overview

The GEI Twinning Program is a year-long research experience aimed at fostering participation of undergraduates from minoritized communities in subduction zone science and hazards research. Funding students to focus year-round on research differentiates our program from typical research internships and thus increases the likelihood of lasting student impact. Engagement in funded, mentored research experiences is directly tied to increased retention of underserved students in the STEM pipeline. Because the program supports students year-round, students do not need to find employment outside of their focused-STEM scholarly activities. The focus of this program is a “twinning” model where the student participates in a research project involving more than one institution. The student is thus introduced to different mentors and a mode of scientific collaboration that closely mimics real-world experiences. Through experiential learning, undergraduate students will gain valuable, high-impact research experience and build their oral and written scientific communication skills.

Each student will have a well-defined project and two mentors, one who is the Project Director and one who is considered the ‘Twin’ mentor. The Project Director is the one who proposed the research project and who will lead the project. The Project Director will be the primary mentor to the student. The Twin mentor can be a known collaborator to the Project Director or simply someone from the student’s home institution willing to support the student throughout the program. Students are supported by a monthly stipend as well as travel funds to the Project Director’s institution and to attend a major scientific conference.