Monday, August 24, 2015

Paid Research Opportunity for Underrepresented Students

You read about environmental health problems every day:  diseases spread through unsafe drinking water, cancer-causing toxins, poor air quality leading to respiratory disease, deadly foodborne illness outbreaks.  Have you ever thought about being part of the solution to these problems?  In environmental health science, you can, by studying the link between the environment and human health.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), one of the largest research agencies dedicated to improving human health, has a new funded opportunity for underrepresented students at UW to conduct environmental health science-related research alongside faculty in the School of Public Health. This new program, Supporting Undergraduate Research Experiences in Environmental Health (SURE-EH) is now accepting applications from underrepresented UW students.

SURE-EH provides a meaningful opportunity to work with experienced faculty on a research project addressing the relationship between environmental exposures and human health. Work alongside faculty as a paid student researcher for up to 2 years, full-time during summer and part-time during the academic year.

Examples of possible projects include:

  • Developing resources for local communities at high risk of air pollution exposure
  • Developing new methods to detect polio-virus, which is reemerging in Africa
  • Analyzing genetic and environmental factors that may influence health outcomes

SURE-EH will provide academic opportunities to complement the research experience, including course recommendations, seminars, workshops, and research symposia. These educational opportunities will enhance your breadth and depth of the SURE-EH’s environmental health science training, and help you become a leader in the field of environmental health sciences.

The application (including instructions and eligibility information) is online here (https://catalyst.uw.edu/webq/survey/tsterry/272008).

Questions? Please contact: Trina Sterry, sure@uw.edu, 206-543-4207