Students and faculty will spend the first two weeks of the program in DeKalb, Illinois, at Northern Illinois University. During this time, students will be paired and in close contact with their faculty mentors, research their projects, receive training in field and laboratory methods, develop research proposals, and prepare for the next four weeks in Mexico.

Upon arrival in Mexico, activities will focus on daily field sampling and measurements and laboratory analyses at Centro de Investigación Científica de Yucatán (CICY). This is an exciting time in the project as students work to implement their research plans, overcome challenges, and work together to reach their goals. Students will be working closely not only with their faculty mentors, but also with scientists from Mexico.

The final two weeks of the project will consist of data analysis, preparation of research abstracts and posters, and discussion of plans for presenting the findings.

• We are looking for a diverse group of students who are current undergraduates in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) majors.
• You can be a freshman to super senior.
• The ideal candidate will be bilingual in Spanish and English.
• You must be a current undergraduate student and a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or permanent resident of the United States.
• You also must have a valid passport or green card to participate in this program.
• You also must be enrolled in undergraduate classes in the fall semester to participate in this program.