Our NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program in the UC Davis Department of Physics and Astronomy will continue during summer. We fully expect the program to take place in person.

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Research projects form the heart of the 10-week program. These provide a view of physics very different from typical coursework. Our program strongly encourages interactions among participants, for example through field trips and shared housing.

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The application, when open, can be reached from the Application Information page.

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Program Summary

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Research Project- Students can choose from several of the physics and astronomy subfields represented at UC Davis. Each student has a personalized project, which concludes with a 15-minute presentation to the rest of the REU group and other interested department members. About 30% of the participants co-author journal articles based on their summer work.

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Housing - The REU students live together in housing arranged by the program. In 2022 this was in subleased apartments in the Arlington Farms, Aspen, Glacier Point, and Saratoga West complexes. All of these are in West Davis, less than 10 minutes apart by bicycle. Each apartment had at least two REU students, as well as one or more UC Davis undergraduate students who remained in Davis for the summer. We expect a similar arrangement, possibly with different apartment buildings. Bicycles will be provided for easy access to campus. Students who live with the main group will receive an additional allowance for food, much of which is pooled for communal weekday dinners. Teams of two or three students take turns preparing these weekday dinners for the group. For other meals students can choose between making their own food or eating out.

Stipend - Students receive a $600/week stipend and some support towards travel to and from the program.

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Student/Faculty Interaction - During the first week of the program, faculty give introductory talks to put the students on a common ground so they can discuss their research. Throughout the summer, weekly gatherings are held, with a faculty mentor present, in which students will discuss their work. The weekly meetings also include learning about career paths of previous REU participants. At least one session is entirely devoted to information on graduate school.

Social Programs - The program usually includes one local and four out-of-town field trips, the latter often on weekends. Trips may have a scientific emphasis, such as touring a national laboratory or industry facility, or may be primarily recreational. See the descriptions of our past REU programs for examples. These trips provide another opportunity to interact with faculty and graduate students in several subfields of physics.

• Students must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents to receive funding from our main grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation. We can accommodate non-citizens if they do not need financial support, or if we are able to find other means to support them. This may depend on the specific research group. We will try to find ways to enable all selected students to attend.
• Students must have finished high school by summer 2024 but must not have completed a B.S., B.A., or equivalent degree in Physics or a related field.
• College students from two-year or four-year institutions may apply. All participants must be continuing their college education in Fall 2024.
• Strong preference is given to students who have completed at least one year of calculus-based introductory physics.
• Although there is some flexibility in dates, we normally ask that students be able to attend the program for at least 9 weeks, through August 16. If your college schedule requires you to leave before then, you may want to consider REU programs that better fit your availability.