UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State undergraduates from all campuses are invited to apply to the Spark Program, now in its third year.
Organized and led by Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM) and University Libraries, the Spark Program has helped numerous students to be better prepared for the rigors of fellowship applications such as Fulbright U.K. Summer Institutes, Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, as well as Penn State-sponsored programs such as the Erickson Discovery and the Student Engagement Network grants. Students may also opt to work on another, pre-approved, research experience or internship that requires a personal narrative.
Visit urfm.psu.edu to find profiles of students who have benefited from the Spark Program.
Applications are open now and close on Sept. 18. The application can be found here. Faculty can recommend students to the Spark Program.
Those accepted into the Spark Program will meet each week for seven weeks through the fall semester for a series of workshops featuring speakers with a wide range of experience. Participants are also expected to meet individually with representatives from URFM and the Libraries. The fall program will be conducted remotely Tuesday afternoons in October and November.
Eligible students must submit an interest statement, have a GPA of 3.3 or higher, have made an impression on faculty and staff and commit to attending at least six of the workshops.
First-year students can apply for the spring Spark Program starting in January.
To learn more about University Libraries, visit libraries.psu.edu. Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education, the academic administrative unit that provides leadership and coordination for University-wide programs and initiatives in support of undergraduate teaching and learning at Penn State. Learn more about Undergraduate Education at undergrad.psu.edu.