Why Summer Experience?
Summer undergraduate research opportunities are a great way to expand your research skills and gain new experiences in a wide range of disciplines throughout the nation--and in some cases--the world.
University of Iowa Funding Summer Funding Options
OUR Fellowship Program - $3000 Fellowships awarded to research and creative scholarship projects in all disciplines between students and mentors. Applications open in February and close in March each year. Open to all degree seeking UI undergraduates in good standing.
Dewey Stuit Fund for Undergraduate Research For students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
John and Elsie Mae Ferentz Undergraduate Research Fund For students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Student Impact Grants allow UI students in any discipline to pursue opportunities outside of the classroom.
Hawkeye Experience Grant For unpaid summer internships and research experiences
Many undergraduate research opportunity applications open in November or December and are due in January or February. Some are paid and some are unpaid. The University of Iowa has competitive funding options for students on campus and off campus. If you are planning to apply for summer research experiences, please plan to apply early.
Current Summer Opportunities
Undergraduate Research Assistant for the Mangalam Lab in Pathology
Mangalam Lab's goal is to develop better treatment options to cure multiple sclerosis (MS).
HEART - Harnessing Educators for Advancing Refrigerant Technologies ($)
A 4- week summer program designed to immerse educators in the field of HVACR systems with a focus on sustainable refrigerants
FROST: Fostering Research Opportunities in Sustainable Technologies
A 10-week summer program designed to immerse undergraduate students in the field of HVACR systems with a focus on sustainable refrigerants.
Inspiring New Science in Guiding Healthcare in Turner Syndrome (INSIGHTS)
This is a Research Internship for students interested in learning more about sex chromosome aneuploidies and pediatric clinical research.
The internship experience:
• Hands-on exposure to clinic and clinical research
• Assigned Mentored Scholarly Project
• Educational Seminars for professional development
• Opportunity to present your scholarly project in a professional research setting at the eXtraOrdinarY Kids Research eXpo
REU in Computing for Health and Well-being
The Computer Science Department at the University of Iowa will conduct a 10-week summer research program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Our site is motivated by the considerable strain on the U.S. healthcare system due to short-term challenges, such as those posed by the COVID-19 outbreak, and long-term trends, such as an aging U.S. population. Computer scientists are in a unique position to help solve these and other problems in health and well-being. Ten participants will join their faculty mentor's research group to work on interdisciplinary projects
Gut Microbiome Interbacterial Interactions
Our laboratory studies interbacterial interactions among colonic commensals. Altered composition of the gut microbiome contributes to many disease states, and targeted manipulation holds therapeutic promise. The intestinal microbiome is a complex ecosystem where bacteria occupy overlapping niches. Bacteria contact one another, eliciting responses which may neutral, competitive, or collaborative. Bacteroidetes comprise one of the dominant phyla in the human gut microbiome and are known to compete with diverse species to colonize and persist in the intestine. As part of their fitness for the colonic environment, Bacteroidetes utilize a remarkable diversity of carbon sources, and some encode type VI secretion systems which deliver effectors (toxins) to kill contacting bacteria. Genomes of these Bacteroidetes also encode immunity proteins which prevent intoxication of self and kin.
Biobanking science and Spatial technologies ($)
The NeuroBank Core Lab is seeking undergraduate students to support exciting research in spatial biology and human brain studies. This includes working with clinical specimens across various levels, from submolecular and cellular analysis to whole tissue and organ research. This position offers a great opportunity to deepen your understanding of scientific research and get involved in groundbreaking work to prepare your future medical or graduate schools.
Edge of Space
The University of Iowa offers undergraduates a paid summer research experience centered around space-based instrumentation for observing Earth and space. This immersive program will run for two weeks over the summer in Iowa City, Iowa. Students will be building small instrument payloads that will be integrated onto drone and high-altitude aerial platforms to take measurements of the Earth below and the atmosphere and space environment above. No prior experience in hardware, instrumentation or electronics is necessary. This hands-on experience is designed for all students who have an interest in Earth, atmospheric, solar and space science. Students from historically marginalized populations in STEM are highly encouraged to apply.
ISA Summer Program 2025
The ISA Summer Program is 8 weeks long and is available only to active ISA students. Students are expected to do intensive research over the summer and meet once a week for an educational seminar hosted by ISA.
All UI-MARC, LSAMP, Science Alliance, and Latham students are eligible to participate in our summer program. Summer research is required for UI-MARC students. MARC students must participate in the ISA Summer Program if staying on campus, or do summer research with an approved program off campus. For all other students the ISA Summer Program is optional.
Interdisciplinary Evolutionary Science REU
The focus of this REU is training in evolutionary science, with students working on research projects across several disciplines. Several academic departments at the University of Iowa offer research projects that span a range of topics, including evolution of behavior, origin of species, cancer evolution, evolution of sex, paleontology, and the evolution of disease.
Iowa Summer Institute in Biostatistics
The objective of the Iowa Summer Institute in Biostatistics is to provide biostatistical research education and applied research opportunities to undergraduates. The Iowa Summer Institute in Biostatistics (ISIB), in its 15th year, is funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).
The ISIB is a seven-week program. The structure of the program is through case based instruction of real biomedical research, computer laboratory training, research projects, and clinical and translational research enrichment activities.
Summer Undergraduate MSTP Research Program
The Summer Undergraduate MSTP Research Program offers an intensive experience for undergraduates interested in combined MD/PhD training for a career as a physician-scientist.
Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP)
An award-winning program designed to provide promising underrepresented undergraduate students with in-depth research experiences.
Cancer Research Opportunities at Iowa (CROI)
CROI is a free ten-week program for underrepresented undergraduates interested in cancer-related biomedical sciences with mentors from the colleges of medicine, nursing, public health, engineering, pharmacy, and liberal arts & sciences.
Biomedical Scholars Summer Undergraduate Research Program (BSSURP)
The Biomedical Scholars Summer Undergraduate Research Program offers research opportunities in the laboratories of faculty in free radical and radiation biology, genetics, human toxicology, immunology, molecular medicine, and neuroscience.
Biochemistry Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (BSURF) Program
A ten week program providing students with hands-on experience in an active research laboratory under the direction of an established scientist. The research involves planning and performing experiments to answer questions of interest in contemporary biochemistry.
Prestigious Fellowships Available for Undergraduate Research
The Iowa Sciences Academy is seeking current sophomores and juniors involved in research to join the UI-MARC program during the academic year of 2025 - 2026. The UI-MARC (Maximizing Access to Research Careers) is an NIH-funded program that supports students committed to pursuing a research-focused PhD or MD/PhD program in the biomedical sciences (not intended for clinical only careers). The fellowship is for June 1, 2025 - May 30, 2026, during a student's junior or senior year.
National and Regional Summer Experience Programs
BIG10 Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP)
All disciplines
National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates
STEM and Social Sciences
Other Sumer Opportunities
Environmental Restoration Technician – Seasonal
Natural Shore Technologies (Independence, MN) is a well-established ecological restoration company serving the Twin Cities area.
Lead Restoration Technician– Full Time
Natural Shore Technologies (Independence, MN) is a well-established ecological restoration company serving the Twin Cities area.