AEOP Research & Engineering Summer Program
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Research & Engineering Apprenticeship Program (REAP) is a summer STEM program that places talented high school students, from groups historically under-represented and underserved in STEM, in research apprenticeships at area colleges and universities. REAP apprentices work under the direct supervision of a mentor on a hands-on research project. REAP apprentices are exposed to the real world of research, they gain valuable mentorship, and they learn about education and career opportunities in STEM. REAP apprenticeships are 5-8 weeks in length (minimum of 200 hours) and apprentices receive a stipend.
PROGRAM GOALS
- To provide high-school students from groups historically under-represented and underserved in STEM, including alumni of the AEOP’s UNITE program, with an authentic science and engineering research experience
- To introduce students to the Army’s interest in science and engineering research and the associated opportunities offered through the AEOP
- To provide participants with mentorship from a scientist or engineer for professional and academic development purposes
- To develop participants’ skills to prepare them for competitive entry into science and engineering undergraduate programs
What is the REAP apprenticeship experience?
REAP apprentices are high-school age students selected for their interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Special consideration is given to under-represented groups.
The REAP Experience is designed to:
- Motivate students toward a career in science, mathematics, or technology.
- Expand students’ background and understanding of scientific research.
- Engage students’ active participation into the philosophy and objectives of scientific research.
- Expose students to science experiences not readily available in high school.
- Introduce students to the real world of research in these fields.
- Partner students with faculty mentors to support current and future professional growth and development.
What do participants gain from a REAP apprenticeship?
REAP apprentices typically spend a summer in a university research program under the tutelage of a professional mentor, performing experiments and carrying out research activities that immerse them in the realities and opportunities of careers in the applied sciences, engineering and mathematics, changing attitudes and firing the imagination of student participants—many who have but a general idea of what a career in these areas entails, and little or no contact with adults doing this work. Through the REAP experience, student participants are exposed to the real world of these careers and are able to see themselves as scientists and researchers.
Shoulder-to-Shoulder with Professionals
In a typical setting, students spend time applying their knowledge, performing experiments, participating in field trips or working in groups. REAP provides a much needed dimension to their education by allowing them opportunities to work shoulder to shoulder with researchers in university laboratories participating in original research, exploring interests and making informed educational and career decisions.
Personal Growth
The REAP experience allows students to find the answers to the questions they themselves pose about a topic. They develop their English language and presentation skills as they articulate the problems they have devised and through their efforts to solve them, they learn to learn on their own. Throughout the summer, students mature both intellectually and emotionally, develop friendships and foster a good sense of collegiate life. Self discovery of personal strengths and weaknesses and the setting of educational and professional goals contribute to personal development. Dr. Rolando Quintana, Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Texas El Paso writes of his apprentices: “The confidence they have gained is immeasurable, knowing that their future is a college education. They also have access to a college professor for mentoring and guidance through their high school years, and perhaps most importantly, college student mentors.”
Real World Contributions
Many students contribute specifically to the ongoing research of the laboratory project. Dr. Robert Thompson’s research (University of Minnesota) was focused on using silicified plant cells to identify the use of corn in prehistoric pottery. He developed a research technique which allowed identification to a sub specific level, in other varieties of corn. In order to publish this research he needed to have someone duplicate his results. His apprentice Alison Boutin did just that and more. He writes: “Alison proved such a talented, driven, and reliable researcher that I was able to entrust that task to her, which allowed me to present this research at the Second International Congress of Phytolith Research in Aix-en-Provence, France. Remarkably, Alison was then able to take my research one step further, and present the results of her own work at the same conference.”
Deadline to apply is February 28. Click here to learn more…
PROGRAM LOCATIONS
| STATE | UNIVERSITY |
| Arkansas | University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff – Biomedical/Nanotechnology |
| Alabama | Alabama State University, Montgomery – Mathematics & Computer Science |
| Alabama State University, Montgomery -Biology/Cancer Research | |
| University of Alabama, Huntsville – Nanotechnology | |
| University of Alabama . Huntsville – Chemistry | |
| University of Alabama, Huntsville – Environmental Engineering | |
| University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa – Metallurgical Engineering | |
| California | California State University, Sacramento – Engineering & Computer Science |
| University of California, Berkeley – Environmental Science | |
| San Jose State University, – Engineering | |
| Colorado | Colorado State University, Fort Collins – Physics |
| Connecticut | Yale University, New Haven – Biological, Physical & Engineering |
| Delaware | Delaware State University, Dover – Forensics |
| Florida | Florida A&M University, Tallahassee – Engineering |
| University of Central Florida, Orlando – Chemistry | |
| Georgia | Savannah State University, Georgia – Electronics Engineering/Robotics |
| Georgia State University, Atlanta – Physics & Astronomy | |
| Iowa | Iowa State University, Ames – Earth Science |
| University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls – Biology/Chemistry/Biochemistry | |
| Illinois | Loyola University, Chicago – Environmental Nanotechnology |
| University of Illinois Urbana, Champaign – Physical Chemistry | |
| Indiana | Ball State University, Muncie – Physics & Astronomy |
| Purdue University, Indianapolis – Mechanical Engineering | |
| Massachusetts | University of Massachusetts, Lowell – Physics |
| Maryland | John Hopkins University, Baltimore – Engineering |
| Morgan State, Baltimore – Chemistry | |
| Stevenson University, Stevenson – Biochemistry/Cancer Research | |
| University of Maryland, Baltimore – Biology | |
| Michigan | Oakland University, Rochester – Mechanical & Electrical Engineering |
| Minnesota | College of Saint Benedict & St. Johns University, St. Joseph – Chemistry |
| Missouri | University of Missouri, St. Louis – Biology |
| Mississippi | Jackson State University, Jackson – Biology |
| Jackson State Univeristy, Jackson – Technology | |
| New Hampshire | University of New Hampshire, Durham – Nanotechnology |
| University of New Hampshire, Durham – Biology | |
| North Carolina | Fayetteville State University, Fayetteville – Biochemistry |
| University of North Carolina, Charlotte – Physics | |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark – Electrical & Computer Engineering |
| New Jersey Institute of Technology, Chemistry & Environmental Science | |
| Caldwell University, Caldwell – Chemistry & Natural Sciences | |
| Rutgers University, Camden- Chemistry | |
| Stockton University, Galloway – Chemistry | |
| Union County College, Cranford – Engineering | |
| New Mexico | New Mexico State University, Las Cruces – Molecular Biology |
| University of New Mexico, Albuquerque – Nanotechnology | |
| Nevada | University of Nevada, Las Vegas – Data Science & Engineering |
| New York | City University of New York (CUNY), New York – Material Science |
| Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia – Engineering & Robotics |
| Puerto Rico | University of Puerto Rico, San Juan – Physics |
| South Dakota | South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Rapid City – Advance Materials & Engineering |
| Texas | Texas Southern University, Houston – Chemistry |
| Texas Southern University, Houston – Engineering | |
| Texas Tech University, Lubbock – Electrical & Computer Engineering | |
| University of Houston, Houston – Biology & Biochemistry | |
| University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington – Applied Mathematics | |
| University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso – Environmental Science | |
| University of Houston-Victoria – Computer Engineering | |
| West Texas A&M University, Canyon – Electrical Engineering | |
| West Virginia | Marshall University, Huntington – Chemistry |
| Marshall University School of Pharmacy, Dunbar – Medicine |