Why Participate? | The Program | Where Are They Now? | Requirements | Application
Our program provides each student with an exciting opportunity to do cutting-edge research. Possible areas of research include astronomy/astrophysics, atomic physics, biological physics, condensed matter physics, materials science, medical physics, and plasma physics. Students may work on computational, experimental or theoretical problems. | |
Our students work directly with faculty members on their research problem. The faculty member provides background information about the area in which the student is working as well as detailed guidance about how to work on the student’s individual problem. This regular contact with the faculty is very valuable. Unlike other programs in which REU students rarely see the faculty and only work with a postdoctoral research associate or a graduate student, our program places a high value on the personal interactions of the REU students with the faculty. The link below will direct you to thumbnail sketches of the research interests of our faculty. Faculty Research Profiles (Note that this is a pdf file.) | |
The opportunity to work on the research frontier while still an undergraduate student is unique. The work is challenging, but the rewards are tremendous. You will be working on your own project in the field of your choice. You will be the first person to work on this problem and your results will be of interest to the entire scientific community. | |
There can be no greater thrill for a scientist than to discover something new. Our students have this opportunity and many have contributed new and fundamental knowledge to the world of science. Many of our students publish their findings in the refereed literature. Many of them also present their research at a professional meeting. The students have the opportunity to discuss their research with the scientists working in their area. They also learn many new things at such meetings. It is an exciting experience to learn that one can participate in the highest level discussions about their chosen area. | |
Another benefit of such interactions is that the student gets to meet the "big shots" of their chosen scientific area. Making contacts with these people is exciting and invigorating! Such contacts are also very useful, particularly when one is trying to decide which graduate school to attend. | |
Undergraduate research is a very useful experience since it teaches
you how to ask the right questions. This
is an enormously important skill and, like riding a bicycle, can only be learned
by doing. The regular classroom
courses which every student takes provide an excellent education to understand
the framework of scientific knowledge. However,
these courses teach you how to generate the right answer, they don't teach you
how to ask the right question. |
$3250 stipend for 10 weeks on campus On-campus housing provided Travel expenses to and from the University of Toledo provided Schedule: 03 June 2002 - 09 August 2002 (different schedules possible if necessary) Deadline: 15 March 2002 for full consideration. However, applications will be considered up until 26 April 2002, depending on the availability of funds and openings. |
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Our students
are fully engaged in research at the "frontier of knowledge".
On the basis of their stated interests, students are managed to
faculty members working in those areas.
At the beginning of the program, there is usually a period of time
in which the student learns the background information relevant to her
research. This usually
consists of reading books and research articles as well as discussions
with the faculty mentor. Once
the student has become familiar with the basics in the field, the student
studies the details of her problem. Usually,
this means mastering the techniques to be used in working on the problem.
These techniques depend on the nature of the work.
A student working on a computational problem would learn the
relevant computational techniques. A
student working on an experimental problem would learn the details of
performing the experiments. A
student working on a theoretical problem would study the details of the
theory. |
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Our program
is not just all work. Students
are housed in suites in the International House, our most advanced
dormitory. A sense of
camaraderie is encouraged by housing the students close together.
There are a number of social activities in the Metropolitan Toledo
area available to the students. One
high point of the summer is always the trip to Cedar Park, a nearby
amusement park which specializes in roller coasters.
Students have a great time studying conservation of energy! The
Toledo Museum of Art has a world renowned collection, surprising
considering the size of Toledo. The
Toledo Zoo has a number of interesting exhibits, including the world's
only hippoquarium. There is
also an active night life in the city as well as many coffee houses. |
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The exact
projects available each summer changes as the interests of the faculty and
students evolve. In order to
get an idea of the kinds of projects which are available, click on the
link below to direct you to the Abstracts of Summer 2001 research
projects:
Summer
2001 projects (Note that this is a pdf file.) |
Our former student participants have had a very successful rate at admission to the premier graduate and professional schools in the nation. Click on the link below to see this list:
Graduate and professional schools
Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
Be
an undergraduate student in an accredited program at a
college or university.
Have an official transcript sent from your home institution.
Have two letters of recommendation sent to our program.
Please have your letters of recommendation and official transcripts sent to:
Prof. Thomas Kvale, UT/REU Program Director
Department of Physics & Astronomy
Mail Stop 111
University of Toledo
Toledo, OH
43606