Undergraduate Summer Programs for Underrepresented Groups

1 – In a partnership with the University of British Columbia (UBC) Centre for Brain Health, IBRO will fund 7 Canadian Indigenous undergraduate students to conduct 3-month summer research internships in neuroscience labs at UBC, UBC Okanagan, University of Victoria, and the University of Lethbridge. In addition to working in a host lab, this program will provide mentorship and tutorials on developing critical thinking skills, searching, reading, and critiquing scientific literature, and on fundamentals and techniques in neuroscience. Community building is central to this experience, with structured journal clubs and discussions between participating trainees, and opportunities for their interaction with and mentorship of K-12 Indigenous students.

2 – In 2021, McGill University and the BRaIN program established the IBRO Summer Studentship Program for black undergraduate students which aims to support both black and indigenous students in neuroscience research. Every year, this collaboration has hosted 4 students in their pursuit of neuroscience research.

In 2024, 4 students will be selected based on their academic transcripts and an essay outlining their background, aspirations, and desire to explore and undertake an internship in neuroscience. Students will be notified by mid-May 2024 with placement starting in June for a 12-week period.

This program will allow awardees to pursue research at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), in addition to providing access to:

• Educational workshops organized by the BRaIN EDI committee.
• McGill University-wide student networking luncheons.
• Neuroscience Lunch & Learn Series.
• BRaIN EDI committee mentors.
• Attendance at neuroscience workshops/meetings/lectures. 

3 – At Brown University, The Robert J. and Nancy D. Carney Institute plans to continue its collaboration with The Leadership Alliance to offer world-class, hands-on training to undergraduate students in computational brain science research. They strive to create a welcoming and inclusive training environment where students from a variety of backgrounds and experiences can thrive. This program consists of a nine-week virtual summer research experience in computational brain science labs.

The two IBRO-USCRC supported students will participate in research techniques training, research in-progress presentations from faculty mentors and panels about life as a graduate student at Brown, organized by the Carney Institute.

As members of The Leadership Alliance program, they will also meet weekly as a group with a brain science graduate student mentor, participate in professional development programming to prepare students to apply to graduate school and present a poster at the Leadership Alliance National Symposium at the end of the nine-week program.

4 – At Harvard Med. School, the Summer Studentships for minorities seeks to engage scientific curiosity, create research opportunities, and promote academic success in mental health fields for promising young Black, Indigenous and underrepresented People Of Color (BIPOC) individuals interested in science.

This 10-week program will offer a top-notch research experience to these underrepresented groups, with the goal of encouraging BIPOC students to pursue neuroscience research as a career. This program will provide a hands-on research experience at a world-class institution (https://sites.google.com/view/kirby-neuro-edi) to those who may not otherwise have considered research as a career.

This intensive, 10-week, full-time research experience will involve three components: (1) Mentored research experience in a basic neuroscience laboratory; (2) Workshops to teach and promote strategies for scientific success; (3) Outreach and community engagement