HR: 08:30h
AN: ED41A-03    [Abstracts]
TI: The Effective and Evolving Role of Graduate Students in the SURFO REU Program
AU: * Pockalny, R A
EM: robp@gso.uri.edu
AF: Graduate School of Oceanography / University of Rhode Island, S. Ferry Rd, Narragansett, RI 02882 United States
AB: The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships in Oceanography (SURFO) program is a 10-week research/educational program designed to expose 9 undergraduates per year to cutting-edge, authentic oceanographic research at the Graduate School of Oceanography/University of Rhode Island. The SURFO program primarily focuses on the more quantitative aspects of oceanography (e.g., physical oceanography, geophysical fluid dynamics and marine geophysics), which closely parallel the strengths of GSO/URI. Thus, the primary undergraduate population targeted by the program includes students from various disciplines, but with strong backgrounds in math, physics, computer science, and engineering. Over its 20-year existence, the SURFO program has continuously evolved; however, three basics goals of the program have been maintained: 1) expose students to the breadth and depth of oceanography, 2) provide students with an authentic research experience, and 3) integrate/assimilate students into the lifestyle and community of a graduate research institution. An integral component for achieving these goals has been the inclusion of graduate students as workshop leaders/instructors, research mentors, and social directors. In these roles the graduate students act as a 'big brother/sister' to transition the undergraduates into the academic and research community. The graduate students also initially behave as liaisons between the senior researcher and the SURFO participant by fielding questions and concerns the undergraduate may be too intimidated to voice. As the summer progresses, the graduate students typically evolve into a lead research advisor and begin to learn effective techniques for advising students. Responses from SURFO participants on exit questionnaires frequently comment on how their experience and research project were directly affected by the extent of graduate student participation during the summer. Anecdotal evidence also indicates the participating graduate students gain maturity in their approach to research and become more willing advisees.
UR: http://espo.gso.uri.edu/~surfo/
DE: 0850 Geoscience education research
DE: 3000 MARINE GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS
DE: 4200 OCEANOGRAPHY: GENERAL
DE: 4500 OCEANOGRAPHY: PHYSICAL
DE: 4800 OCEANOGRAPHY: BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL (0460)
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005