Research Experience for Undergraduates

Integrative Developmental Biology at ETSU

More About Our Program

Our program in Integrative Developmental Biology will be led by six mentors with ongoing research in molecular, cellular and/or organismal biology.  In our experiences, students working on different aspects of a larger project (i.e., a central theme) interact more frequently and freely, which accelerates learning.  Although we emphasize lab time for our student-faculty teams, varied types of meetings are designed to enhance student interactions, both formal and informal. 

• First Week:  All participants will meet for a series of seminars and discussions to introduce basic concepts of developmental biology, research design, experimental methods, and pertinent literature. Students will be trained in lab safety and introduced to a guide that defines and describes development of diverse research skills. Laboratory rotations will introduce students to the research aims and procedures of individual laboratories. Students will finalize their project selection after these introductory seminars and lab rotations, at the end of the first week.
  
  
• Weeks 2—9:  Students will work intensively on their chosen projects for the next 8 weeks. A schedule of ongoing interactive programs (seminars, workshops, field trips, and social meetings) are aimed at deepening and broadening understanding of their work and the research process.  Individual progress in research skill development will be provided by self- and faculty assessments.  During the ninth week, mentors will begin assisting students in developing oral presentations of their research results.
  
  
• Final Week:  During the 10th week, students will wrap-up their research projects and engage in assessments of their individual progress and of the REU program.  The culmination of the summer experience will be formal oral presentations of their research results, given in the final week at the annual Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium, sponsored by the ETSU Quillen College of Medicine.  This event will be followed by a social gathering of all participants in the program.

If you should have questions, please contact: Dr. Rebecca Pyles (pylesr@etsu.edu, 423-439-6077) OR Dr. James Stewart (stewarjr@etsu.edu, 423-439-6927).