The National Institutes of Health Idaho INBRE (IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence) grant provides funds for undergraduate and graduate students to do research with the goal of educating the next generation of researchers for Idaho’s industry and universities.  We are currently seeking research faculty from the Albertson College of Idaho, Boise State University, Northwest Nazarene University and Idaho State University, and University of Idaho to serve as Mentors for the Summer 2008 INBRE Undergraduate Fellowship Program.

Undergraduate students from across the state of Idaho will compete for fellowship positions.  The winning students will receive a $5000 award and the opportunity to perform biomedical research for ten weeks as an integral part of the mentor’s lab.  In addition, INBRE Undergraduate Fellows will be expected to attend a weekly training component organized by INBRE which will enhance student knowledge of seminar, poster presentation and graduate school opportunities.

Why become a Fellow Mentor?

There are many reasons to become a Fellow Mentor:

• INBRE students consistently contribute to the productivity of the lab, providing extra labor on existing projects and developing pilot data for new ones.  All at no cost to the mentor’s lab. 

• An undergraduate already working in your lab can apply and if successful, will bring INBRE funding to your program.

• The INBRE  Fellowship program is highly competitive.  The selected students are some of Idaho’s brightest scientists.  Several fellows that have been placed through the fellowship program have gone on to become graduate students with the same mentor.

• Teaching credit (depending on the institution).

• The ability to interact with undergraduate students on a more in-depth project than is possible during the course of the school year.  Giving students an opportunity to become fully engaged in a research project can change a student’s life and career goals.  Many research faculty find showing students the fun of pursuing a research project very rewarding.

How are students selected to be INBRE Undergraduate Fellows?

The INBRE fellows are the best and brightest undergraduate students in Idaho.  The selection process is competitive and rigorous.  Students submit a pre-application form that includes one short essay, their GPA, letters of recommendation and their college transcript.

Selected students will be invited to complete a full application.

To see student application process, please click here.

How will mentor/student matches be made?

As part of the application process, students will view the mentor profiles and list a 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd choice for mentors.  INBRE will appoint students to labs based on the rank of their application, their mentor preferences and their appropriateness for a specific research project.

What is the Time Line?

February 1st, 2008 - Full student applications are due

March 7th, 2008 - Award letters will be mailed to students and faculty

April 7th, 2008 - Students must accept or decline

April 14th, 2008 - Research proposals are due 

What is expected of mentors?

Upon notice of award, the mentor/student team writes a “Summer Research Plan” This document will outline the student’s project.  It should include the anticipated working hours and a rough timeline of events.  This will be used as a guide for the summer activities.

The mentor will provide all space, supplies, and resources the student needs to complete the outlined project.  They will be available to provide guidance and be a resource for the student, as well as serve as a role model for the student.

The Fellows are required to attend weekly INBRE training sessions and seminars.  You will be notified of the dates and times.  These sessions are an integral part of the fellowship experience, and mentors should not consider this time away from the student’s research commitments.

All Fellows will present their summer project in a poster session at the Annual INBRE Research Conference which will be held in Boise at the Grove Hotel, August 4th-6th.  After the poster presentation, an awards banquet will be held.  All mentors are asked to attend.

How will costs be associated with being a mentor be addressed?

INBRE provides a financial award of $5,000 to the student.  Transportation and lodging for all undergraduate fellows and their mentors will be provided to attend the August INBRE Research Conference.  In addition, INBRE provides a $1000 reimbursement allowance to each mentor lab to help cover costs incurred by the student.  The mentor can use this money for research supplies, student travel, equipment, as well as for the expense of creating the poster for presentation at the August conference.

What will INBRE do during the course of the Fellowship program?

INBRE will organize guest lectures and training for the INBRE students on a weekly basis.  This will include scientific presentations, guest lecturers and training on poster presentation skills.  We estimate this to take no more than 2 hours/week of the student’s time.  Students are expected to attend each session.  Sessions should be acknowledged as part of their full-time position.    

If you have any additional questions about being an INBRE Mentor, please feel free to contact the UI INBRE office at 208/885-5373 or inbre@uidaho.edu.

For information specific to:

ACI, please contact Dr. Ann Koga at 208/459-5040;

NNU, please contact Dr. Dan Nogales at 208/467-8672;

ISU, please contact Dr. Chris Daniels at 208/282-2682; or 

BSU, please contact Barbara Jibben, 208/426-2924

Become a Mentor:

1.  Fill out the Fellow Mentor Form:

       Fellows Mentor Research Form

      (If you are unable to download this file, please contact inbre@uidaho.edu with any questions).

2.  Or if you were a mentor last year and would like to use the same project, please e-mail INBRE at inbre@uidaho.edu.