This page answers frequently asked questions about the Solar and Alternative Technologies (SALT) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) hosted at the University of Tulsa (TU).
Did participants publish or present their work anywhere?
Yes. Juston Ward presented at the ACS Meeting in Spring 2022. Tiffany Cheung and David Opiela presented at AIChE Student Research Poster Sessions. Dr. LeBlanc is working on a paper with an REU participant.
What are the former participants doing now?
Of the 15 participants who are known to have graduated in May 2023, three are working on PhDs, one is in a masters program, and others are working.
Who was accepted for 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023?
In the four years of the project, we had 31 distinct participants. Of those, 16 were women, 11 were under-represented minorities, 7 were first-generation college students, and 17 were from non-research-intensive institutions.
What do I need to collect for my application?
For the application form, you will need a short description of why you want to participate in the REU. You will need to ask two references (college faculty) to load references letters onto the ETAP website. You will also need to upload an electronic copy of your transcript (unofficial is fine) to the ETAP website.
What are the eligibility requirements?
This REU is funded by the National Science Foundation, which requires that participants be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or permanent residents of the U.S. You must be a freshman through a senior at a college or university in the fall of 2023. Students who have graduated with a bachelor’s degree are not eligible.
What will make me competitive?
One goal of the REU is to encourage participants to go to graduate school, so you will need a GPA of at least 3.0 to be competitive (and a still higher GPA for graduate school). Another goal is to provide research opportunities to those who do not have them at their own schools, so participants from non-research-intensive schools are more competitive. A third goal is increasing the participation of under-represented groups, who are therefore more competitive.
What will I do in the REU?
It depends on which lab you’ll be working in! You’ll spend most of your workweek working on your project with graduate students and your research mentor. You might be running physical experiments, running simulations, and/or taking SEM images. We’ll have lunch twice a week to cover responsible conduct of research and communication skills, and we’ll take a field trip each week to (mostly) renewable energy sites.
Can I take a class, work another job, take a vacation with my family, or take weekend trips during the REU?
The REU is the equivalent of a full-time job. You may be able to take an on-line or evening class, but only if it does not interfere with your REU duties and participation. Please discuss classes with Dr. Ford. A part-time job is similar and unlikely to work. Yes, you can take a pre-planned vacation with your family, but you will not receive the traineeship or food stipend for any time you are away from the lab due to a family vacation. There will be three weekend field trips, so please plan any weekend trips around those.
Where will I stay?
You will have a room to yourself in LaFortune House on the University of Tulsa campus. You’ll be in a suite of 2 or 3 rooms that share a bathroom and a living space. A mini-fridge will be provided, and the dorm has a shared kitchen. https://utulsa.edu/housing/residence-hall-life/lafortune-house/