Centers & Research - Simpson College
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Academics & Programs
Opportunities Beyond the Classroom
Centers & Research
Centers & Research
Ideas and innovation that make a difference.
Through research and outreach, Simpson College makes a positive impact in our local community, in Iowa, and beyond.
In labs, offices, and studios across campus, our faculty members are conducting original research, creating artistic works, and contributing to important advocacy and outreach efforts. Many of them also mentor and collaborate with students as they embark on their own research projects.
Simpson is also home to several unique centers, institutes, and outreach programs, each of which offer a range of programming and opportunities for the campus and local community.
Research at Simpson: Creating & Sharing Knowledge
At Simpson College, research, scholarship and creative work provides an opportunity for individual students or small groups of students to explore an issue of interest to them in a manner consistent with the discipline and to communicate their results to others. Projects may involve inquiry, design, creation, investigation, research, analysis, discovery, application, writing and/or performance.
Experiments done in a scientific laboratory, archival research, interviews that explore a social or political concern, data collection and analysis, and creation of an artistic work are all examples of research that can involve undergraduate students.
Most Simpson College students have an opportunity to participate in undergraduate research as part of their course work or by working on research projects outside of the classroom.
Travel stipends
allow students to travel to regional or national conferences to present their work. In addition, over twenty students each year get paid to participate in undergraduate research during the summer.
Every spring the
Undergraduate Research Symposium
hosted by Simpson College showcases the outstanding research conducted by our students.
For questions regarding abstract submissions for the symposium, please contact:
aswati.subramanian@simpson.edu
100+
Present at our annual Research & Creativity Symposium each year
2025 Schedule
We offer grants and travel stipends for students to perform and present research.
Grant Application
Summer Research
Participating in a summer undergraduate research program is an opportunity for students and faculty to spend 8-10 weeks focused on research projects. Students get to explore research in their major and they generally receive a stipend and housing allowance.
Simpson College hosts several different summer undergraduate research programs on its campus each year including the
Bryan Summer Research Program in Mathematics
and the
Simpson College Ecological Research Program
. More information on the current projects from each program can be found on this site.
Each fall, Simpson College showcases the summer research conducted by its students during the Summer Research Symposium.
Summer research programs are held for 8 to 10 weeks at colleges, universities, laboratories, hospitals, and institutes across the country and abroad. They are usually intended for students after their sophomore or junior years of college, but there are an increasing number of programs that seek students after their first year. A student’s time at a summer research program is generally devoted to working in small groups with other undergraduate students on original research projects under the direction of a professional researcher.
Summer research programs usually pay each student a stipend of several thousand dollars to participate. In addition, they often cover travel and living expenses for the duration of the program and fund travel to present research at conferences.
Tips on applying to summer research programs
Customize your application for each program. Indicate why you are specifically interested in that program.
Many programs have special niches. For instance, they want to promote graduate school or they want to introduce laboratory skills to students who do not have much laboratory experience. Make sure your personal statement clearly highlights how you fit in this niche.
Each program has different requirements for its participants, so pay close attention to them. For example, some programs expect their participants to have completed certain classes and the majority require U.S. citizenship.
Emphasize your potential by mentioning any undergraduate research you have completed and any outstanding projects or term papers you have completed for your classes.
Indicate any interest in graduate school that you may have. Note that programs in biological or medical fields generally prefer students who have an interest in graduate school rather than students who are strictly interested in medical school.
Ask a professor in your major to read over your application materials.
Every application will require recommendation letters. Do not wait until the last minute to request them from your professors!
Links to summer research opportunities on and off campus.
On Campus
DNA Computing Group
Dr. Albert H. & Greta A. Bryan Summer Research Program
(Mathematics)
Simpson College Ecological Research Program
Off Campus
Education and Social Sciences
Collaborations in Discipline-based Education Research
“Hands-On, Minds-On”
ICPSR
Kentucky P20 Innovation
National Opinion Research Center
Political Science
Research Experience for Undergraduates in Civil Conflict Management and Peace Science
Science, Technology, Mathematics, Neuroscience
Biomedical Research Apprenticeship Program (BioMedRAP)
at Washington University in St. Louis
(International students currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in the United States are encouraged to apply)
National Science Foundation
list – (if you are in a science, technology, mathematics, or neuroscience field, you should start your search for a summer program by searching the NSF list)
American Mathematical Society list (
AMS
American Physiological Society list (
APS
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology list (
ASBMB
Center for Disease Control list (
CDC
Department of Homeland Security list (
DHS
NASA
list
Oak Ridge National Laboratory list (
ORNL
The Ohio State University SUCCESS (Summer Undergraduate Course Creating Excellence in Scientific Study) Program
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Summer in Biomedical Sciences (SIBS) Undergraduate Research Program
University of Alabama at Birmingham
rep
ara
tion for
raduate and
edical Education (PARAdiGM)
University of Iowa – biological and medical sciences list (
UI-B&M
University of Nebraska – Lincoln summer research programs
Applied Plant Systems
Bioenergy Systems
Biomedical Engineering
Chemistry
Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC)
Minority Health Disparities
Redox Biology
Sustainability of Civil Infrastructures in Rural Environments
Systems Biology of Plant and Microbiome
Virology
Virginia Bioinformatics Institute list (
VBI
EDGE for Women at Purdue University
APS/IBM Research Internship for Undergraduate Women
Carleton College Summer Mathematics Program for Women
Distributed Research Experiences for Undergraduates
Gulf Cost Research Laboratory Summer Field Program
Integrated Biological Sciences Summer Research Program
Statewide Land stewardship Internships
Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute Summer Program
Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship
MSCS Research Experiences for Undergraduates
National Center for Toxicological Research – U.S. Food and Drug Administration
National Undergraduate Fellowship Program in Plasma Physics and Fusion Energy Sciences
Real-World Research Experiences for Undergraduates
(National Weather Center)
Rice University Summer Institute of Statistics
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Sanford Program for Undergraduate Research (SPUR)
Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship program
(Department of Energy)
Stowers Summer Scholars Program
Summer Program for Undergraduate Research in the Biomedical Sciences
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship
(Mayo Clinic)
Tackling the Environmental Grand Challenges of Engineering
Click
here
for the Fall 2017 program.
Click
here
for the Fall 2016 program.
Click
here
for the Fall 2015 program.
Click
here
for the Fall 2014 program.
Symposium Abstract Submission
Our Centers, Institutes & Outreach Programs
The Culver Center for Public Policy
Civic engagement and activism is alive at Simpson. The renowned nonpartisan John C. Culver Center for Public Policy encourages active participation in democracy and presents students with research, internship, and service opportunities.
Visit the Culver Center
The Iowa History Center
This center preserves and promotes Iowa’s story. Its speaker series brings scholars, authors, and public figures to campus, and an internship program places students at local museums and historic sites. It also makes Iowa history accessible to K-12 students through field trip grants.
Explore the History Center
Storm Initative
This interdisciplinary program taps into the entrepreneurial spirit at Simpson. Offerings include specialized electives, an innovation hub, and the cocurricular Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO) where students earn credit for working on real-world projects.
Get More Details
Student Research Opportunities
Undergraduates students can get involved in research in many ways, from capstone and honors projects to paid summer research positions on campus.
Faculty Directory
Browse our directory to learn more about our faculty members, their teaching interests and areas of expertise, and their contributions to their fields.
Simpson Magazine
Among the many stories, profiles, and news updates in each issue of Simpson Magazine, you can learn about compelling research projects happening on campus and beyond. Explore recent and back issues to see how we’re making an impact.
Special Collections & Archives at Dunn Library
For those looking to do specialized research, Dunn Library’s Special Collections is home to the Washington Carver Collection and the Joseph W. Walt Research Library & College Archives.
Center and Research Stories
Making a Powerful Impact
Mulligan Named Director of Athletics
Simpson Productions presents The Children’s Hour
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the
Next Step
Get closer to your bright future.
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