BiologySummer Research Opportunities

January 13th- This webpage is being updated weekly as more 2023 research opportunities are posted. Please kindly check back!

A great way to apply and extend what you have been learning in the classroom and the laboratory is to join an active research lab over the summer. Amherst College and many institutions across the country (and beyond) offer summer undergraduate research programs that typically last about 10 weeks. Descriptions of some of these programs and the applications can be found at the links provided below.

Students are encouraged to apply to multiple programs as there are limited spots in each. Through sending out many applications, most students are successful in obtaining off-campus summer research experiences and internships.

Local Opportunities:

• Amherst College Summer Research 
• Five College Summer Research: 2023 information not posted yet
  

External Opportunities:

• Programs with Many Opportunities in Biology
• Ecology / Evolution / Plants / Animals
• Molecular Biology / Medicine
• Neuroscience
• Biology Education
• Sites with Program Lists
• International Research

For International Students seeking summer research opportunities in the United States: Due to visa restrictions, international students interested in off-campus summer research opportunities must ensure that they are properly authorized to engage in such activities. If the summer internship includes any kind of compensation (salary, stipend, scholarship/grant, room and board, transportation, etc.) from a source other than Amherst College, the student must apply to the U. S. Government for "optional practical training" permission. International students should consult the Office of Student Affairs to discuss their plans and initiate the authorization process. Students are encouraged to do so as early as possible, even before a specific internship has been secured, as authorization process for obtaining permission for off-campus summer internships can take several months.

Amherst College Summer Science Research

Summer Science Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF): for first/second-year students: 2023 applications open January 31, deadline February 20.
The Gregory S. Call Summer Research Program (SRP):  The 2023 deadline for submission of proposals is April 14.

The STEM Incubator Program: for second-year students. This cohort program, launched in 2020, is designed to support and train students who are underrepresented in STEM disciplines, including Black, Latinx, Indigenous, first-generation and low-income students.

Five College Summer Science Research

• Five College Funded Summer Research Internships: offer students enrolled in the five colleges support for summer research positions at approved marine laboratories.  There are two types of paid summer research opportunities available through Five College Coastal & Marine Sciences. Each of the two internship categories has its own application requirements and deadlines. Seniors may apply only to the Marine Biological Laboratory internships. 2023 information not yet available.
  

Programs with Many Opportunities in Biology

• The Leadership Alliance, Summer Research - Early Identification Program (SR-EIP): 2023 application due February 1.
  
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) OSSI: 2023 applications vary, many opportunities.
  
• Oak Ridge National Laboratories (ORNL), Oakridge, TN: 2022 application deadlines vary by program.
  
• University of Oregon: 2023 applications open in December 2022, no hard deadline, review and offers are typically in mid-February.
  

Programs Emphasizing Ecology / Evolution / Plants / Animals

• American Museum of Natural History (evolutionary biology): 2023 deadline January 31.
  
• American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB):  2023 deadline March 15.
  
• Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences: 2023 applications open January 1, deadline February 15.
  
• Boise State University Research Experiences for Undergraduates Site in Raptor Research (REU-RR): 2023 deadline February 13.
• California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, Summer Systematics Institute: 2023 deadline February 13.
  
• Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies: No 2023 summer program.
  
• Cornell University and Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Plant Genome Research Program (PGRG): 2023 applications due January 22..
  
• Cornell University, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva, New York: 2023 applications due January 20.
  
• Donald Danforth Plant Science Center:  2023 applications due February 4.
  
• Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort, NC:  2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Environmental Data Initiative: 2023 information not posted, email for info.
  
• Georgia Tech, Aquatic Chemical Ecology (ACE):  2023 deadline February 15.
  
• Harvard University, Arnold Arboretum, DaRin Butz Foundation Research Internship Program: 2023 deadline February 15.
• Harvard University (Harvard Forest), Ecology: 2023 deadline February 3 .
  
• Indiana University, Center for the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior: 2023 application due February 15.
  
• Institute for Tropical Ecosystem Studies, Ecology and Evolution: 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• Kansas State University, Konza Prairie Biological Station: No 2023 information.
  
• W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, Michigan State University: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Michigan State University, Plant Genomics: 2023 applications due February 10.
  
• Michigan State University, Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center: 2023 application deadline January 15.
  
• Mount Desert Island Biological Lab: 2023 application deadline January 27.
  
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) OSSI:  2023 opportunities have varying deadlines.
  
• National Park Service, Scientists Parks- Fellows: 2023 deadline January 22.
  
• The Noble Foundation, Research Scholars in Plant Science:  Pausing educational programs until further notice
  
• Northwestern University and the Chicago Botanic Garden, plant biology and conservation: 2023 deadline February 10.
  
• Ohio State, Stone Laboratory, Lake Erie, the oldest freshwater biological field station in the United States: 2023 deadline February 25.
  
• Pepperdine University: 2023 application deadline February 8.
  
• Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, SURF: 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory: 2023 application deadline February 15.
  
• Shoals Marine Laboratory: 2023 deadline TBD.
  
• Smithsonian Environmental Research Center: 2023 deadline December 15.
  
• University of California, Santa Cruz, Doris Duke Conservation Scholars: 2023 applications due January 27.
  
• University of Cincinnati Sensory Biology and Behavior (SBB): 2023 application review February 1, final deadline February 17.
• University of Delaware, College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment: 2023 applications due February 10.
  
• University of Georgia, Fungal Genomics & Computational Biology: 2023 applications due March 1.
• University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences Sea Grant's REU: 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• University of Massachusetts, Boston, Integrative and Evolutionary Biology- 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• University of Nevada Las Vegas, Mechanisms of Evolution: 2023 information available Jan/Feb.
  
• University of Oregon, SPUR: 2023 program does not have funding for non UO students.
  
• University of Pittsburgh's TEC Program (Computational Biology): 2023 deadline February 13.
  
• University of Virginia, Blandy Experimental Farm: 2023 applications due February 15.
  
• University of Virginia, Mountain Lake Biological Station:   2023 deadline February 20.
  
• University of Washington, Friday Harbor Laboratories: 2023 applications due January 31.
  
• University of Wisconsin, Madison, Biological Interactions: Phenotype, Genotype & Environment: 2023 application deadline February 15.
  
• Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS):  2023 deadline February 3.
  
• The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience: 2023 program may possibly run, check back in February.
  
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution:  2023 deadline February 5.
  
• Woods Hole, The Polaris Project:  2023 deadline January 9.
  

Programs Emphasizing Molecular Biology/Medicine

• Albert Einstein College of Medicine, SURP: 2023 applications due February 1. 
• Baylor College of Medicine, SMART Program:  2023 applications due January 13.
  
• Boston University Bioinformatics, BRITE Program: 2023 portal opens December 1, review starts in mid-January.
• Boston University, Summer Institute in Biostatistics (SIBS): 2023 application deadline February 17.
  
• Brandeis University:  2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Brigham and Women's STARS Program: 2023 deadline January 2.
  
• Brigham and Women's Four Directions Summer Research Program (FDSRP): 2023 deadline January 2
  
• Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Tech Foundation 2021 Remote Summer Data Science & Medical Research Fellowship: 2023 information not available yet.
  
• Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard- Summer Research Program (BSRP) Program: 2023 applications due January 10.
  
• Burke Neurological Institute: 2023 information not available yet.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-  various deadlines.
  
• California Institute of Technology, SURF: 2023 applications due February 22.
  
• Caltech, Amgen Scholars Program:  2023 deadline February 1.
• Caltech, WAVE Fellows Program: 2023 application deadline January 9
• Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute Summer Scholars Program-  2023 deadline January 31.
• Cold Spring Harbor: (includes Neuroscience): 2023 applications due January 15.
• Colorado State University, Summer Program in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Columbia University, Barnard College, Amgen Scholars Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, CURE Program:  2023 due February 6.
  
• Dartmouth, ASURE:  2023 deadline not posted, only accepting applications through  Leadership Alliance.
  
• Duke University, Amgen Scholars Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
• Duke University Summer Research Opportunity Program (SROP): 2023 information not posted
• Emory University, Natural and Biomedical Sciences: 2023 deadline January 16.
  
• Fox Chase Cancer Center: Annual deadline for submitting nominations is April 1. 
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center: 2023 application deadline January 6.
  
• George Washington University, SPARC Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
• Georgetown University ARCHES Fellowship:   2023 information not available yet.
  
• Gerstner Sloan Kettering: 2023 applications due February 1. 
• Harvard University, Summer Scholars Program- 2023 applications open. All applications are considered between December and April for the upcoming summer internship, successful applicants will be notified on a rolling basis.
  
• Harvard Medical School, Department of Cell Biology, Cell Biology Research Scholars Program (CRSP):  Please check the website in February / March of 2023 for updates regarding the 2023 program.
  
• Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Multiple Summer Programs,: Multiple opportunities
  
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute-Janelia Farm Summer Program: No program in 2023.
  
• The Jackson Laboratory: 2023 deadline January 30.
  
• Johns Hopkins University- Visualization of Macromolecules in Biological Research: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Summer Internship Program: 2023 applications due February 1.
• Johns Hopkins University, Institute for Nanobiotechnology: 2023 applications due February 1.
  
• Joslin Diabetes Center: 2023 deadline January 31.
  
• Loyola Adventures in Urobiome Data (LAUD): 2023 deadline March 3.
  
• Maine Medical Center Research Institute (MMCRI): 2023 deadline January 31.
  
• Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF): 2023 applications due February 1.
• MDI Biological Laboratory- 2023 deadline January 27.
  
• Medical College of Wisconsin, SPUR: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• Medical University of South Carolina, DART Program: 2023 application deadline February 1.
  
• MIT Summer Research Program in Biology (BSG-MSRP-Bio): 2023 application deadline January 30.
• Montana State University: 2023 applications due February 15.
• Mount Sinai Ican School of Medicine, Summer Undergraduate Research Program for Underrepresented Scholars (SURP4US):  2023 applications due January 15.
• National Cancer Institute: several opportunities, varying deadlines.
• National Institute of Health: 2023 deadline March 1.
  
• New York University: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• North Carolina State University, Summer Institute in Biostatistics: 2023 deadline March 10.
  
• Ohio State University, Dept. of Molecular Genetics: 2023 applications due February 15.
  
• Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine Summer Scholars: 2023 deadline January 15.
  
• Oregon Health & Science University, Cell, Developmental and Cancer Biology: 2023 applications due in February 6.
  
• Pediatric Oncology Program (POE), St. Jude Children's Research Hospital:  2023 applications are open,  applicants are encouraged to get their credentials in by mid-December.
  
• Rockefeller University:  2023 application deadline February 1.
  
• Roswell Park Cancer Institute: 2023 applications due January 31.  
• Rutgers, RISE Program, (Piscataway, New Jersey): 2023 application open, no hard deadline but it's recommended that you apply by February 1.
  
• Rutgers, Neuro SURP (Newark, New Jersey): 2023 deadline February 17.
  
• Scripps Research Institute, SURF Program, La Jolla, CA and Jupiter, FL: 2023 application deadline February 15.
  
• Stanford University, SSRP-Amgen: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Pediatric Oncology Education (POE), Memphis, TN: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse: 2023 applications due February 28.
  
• Texas A&M Health Science Center, College of Medicine: 2023 applications due February 13.
  
• Thomas Jefferson University College of Life Sciences: 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• Tufts University Building Diversity in Biomedical Sciences (BDBS) Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• University of Alabama at Birmingham, SIBS Program: 2023 application deadline February 10.
  
• University of Alabama at Birmingham, PARAdiGM Program: 2023 applications open, deadline not clear.
  
• University at Buffalo Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE): 2023 application will open soon.
  
• University of California at Berkeley, Amgen Scholars Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• University of California at San Francisco, SRTP: 2023 applications due February 1.
  
• University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)- Amgen Scholars Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• UCLA, B.I.G. Program: 2023 early decision is January 3, final deadline is March 1.
  
• University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)- SPUR Program-  2023 deadline March 31.
  
• University of Cincinnati Medical School Summer Research Fellowship:  2023 information not available yet.
• University of Connecticut Health Center:  2023 deadline March 15.
  
• University of Colorado Anshultz Medical Campus, Gates Center for Regenerative Medicine- 2023 deadline February 6.
  
• University of Colorado, Colorado School of Public Health, Summer Institute of Biostatistics (CoSIBS):  2023 applications are reviewed on a rolling basis from January through March.
  
• University of Florida,The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology SURF/REU: 2023 deadline 1.
• University of Georgia, Microbiology:  the REU link is not working, not sure if there is a 2023 program.
  
• University of Iowa Summer Undergraduate MSTP program:  2023 application deadline February 1.
  
• University of Iowa, Microbiology: 2023 applications due February 15. 
• University of Iowa, College of Public Health, Summer Institute in Biostatistics: 2023 applications are open, acceptance on a rolling basis, apply early.
  
• University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts: 2023 information not available yet.
  
• University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, SURF Program:  2023 application deadline January 26.
• University of Michigan, Frankel Cardiovascular Center Summer Fellowship Program (F-CVC): 2023 deadline January 31.
  
• University of Michigan Summer Undergraduate Research Experience: Diabetes & Metabolic Diseases (M-SURE):  2023 application deadline January 16.
• University of Michigan, School of Public Health, The Future Public Health Leaders Program (FPHLP): 2023 applications due January 31.
• University of Michigan Medical School: Multiple opportunities & deadlines.
  
• University of Minnesota-Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Program (LSSURP): 2023 applications due February 1.
  
• University of Nebraska- Lincoln: 2023 priority deadline February 1, application deadline March 1.
  
• University of Nebraska Medical Center (SURP): 2023 deadline February 1.
  
• University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Mechanisms of Evolution: Mechanisms of Evolution has entered the last year of the grant.  Check back in Jan/Feb 2023 for details for summer 2023.
• University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill: 2023 deadline February 17.
  
• University of Oregon, SPUR:  2023 program only for UO students.
  
• University of Pennsylvania ,TECBio:  2023 deadline February 13.
• University of Pennsylvania, Summer Undergraduate Internship Program (SUIP): 2023 applications due February 1.
• University of Pennsylvania, Penn Summer Program in Infectious Disease Research (SPIDR): 2023 applications due February 1.
• University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Interdisciplinary Biomedical Sciences (SURP): 2023 early application is February 1, final deadline is March 1.
  
• University of Rochester, School of Medicine & Dentistry, Summer Scholars Program:  2023 applications due February 28. 
• University of Texas - Houston Health Sciences Center:   2023 deadline February 1.
  
• University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas: 2023 applications due February 1.
  
• University of Virginia School of Medicine: 2023 applications due February 1.
• University of Washington Neurological Surgery Summer Student Program: 2023 deadline January 2.
  
• University of Wisconsin, Madison, Summer Research Opportunity Program (SROP): multiple opportunities available in 2023, application deadline February 15..
  
• Vanderbilt University, Chemical Biology: 2023 information not available yet.
• Wadsworth Center, New York State Dept. of Health: 2023 deadline February 28.
  
• Wake Forest School of Medicine, Summer Scholars Program: 2023 applications due January 15.
  
• Washington State University, RISE Program: 2023 ideadline February 21.
  
• Washington University in St. Louis Center for Engineering MechanoBiology (WU-CEMB)- 2023 deadline February 1.

Programs Emphasizing Neuroscience

• Columbia University, Summer of Translational Aging Research for Undergraduates (STAR U): 2023 applications due January 17.
  
• Huntington's Disease Society of America, Donald A. King HDSA Summer Research Fellowship:  
  
• 2023 deadline March 3.
  
• Oregon Health & Science University Vollum/NGP Undergraduate Summer Research Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
• Oregon Health & Science University Neuroscience Post baccalaureate Initiative (PREP): 2023 application deadline March 1.
  
• Princeton Neuroscience Institute Summer Program: 2023 deadline February 1.
• University of Cincinnati, Sensory Ecology: 2023 application review February 1, final deadline February 17.
  
• University of Cincinnati, RISE UP Program:  2023 applications close February 1 but apply by January 1 for full consideration.
  
• University of Florida, Summer Neuroscience Internship Program (SNIP):  2023 deadline January 7.
• University of Texas, El Paso, SMART-MIND Program:  2023 ideadline March 12.
  
• Washington University in St. Louis (WULST) ENDURE:  2023 deadline February 3.

Biology Education

• Undergraduate Biology Education Research (UBERv3), University of Georgia: 2023 information not posted, not sure if there is a program.
  
• North Dakota State University Growing Up STEM Program: 2023 deadline January 18.
  
• Rochester Institute of Technology, Center for Advancing STEM Teaching, Learning, and Evaluation: 2023 application deadline February 15.
  
• Teaching Experiences for Undergraduates (TEU): 2023 deadline February 28.
• Washington State University Research in Interdisciplinary STEM Education (RISE) Program: 2023 deadline March 21.
  

Sites with Lists of Many Programs

• National Science Foundation-Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) -This is an excellent site containing a list of participating universities and other research institutions that have REU programs in biology (many of which are listed separately above).
• Amgen Scholars Program -
• The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)
• Cornell University
• Columbia University
• Institute for Broadening Participation (IBP)
• Rochester Institute of Technology, Programs in Ecology, Animal & Plant Biology, Marine Science
• University of California, Berkeley

International Research

• Center for Environmental Research and Conservation, Earth Institute, Columbia University: Field research outside of the continental U.S. 2022 information not posted.
  
• Danta, Association for Conservation of the Tropics: Two summer field courses available for credit in Costa Rica.
• Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, International Exchange Program for minority students: 2023 iapplication is open, deadline not stated.
  
• John Innes Centre, Norwich, UK: 2023 deadline January 16.
• Max Planck Summer Internship Program:  Program information is for 2022.
• Institute for Tropical Ecosystem Studies, Ecology and Evolution: 2023 deadline February 15.
  
• Organization for Tropical Studies (Costa Rica): 2023 information not yet available.

Last updated: February 6, 2023 MGManning