Freshman Research Initiative
Encyclopedia
The Freshman Research Initiative (FRI), developed at the University of Texas at Austin
, is an innovative model in undergraduate education that offers hundreds of first-year students in the College of Natural Sciences
the opportunity to advance academically while doing cutting-edge, authentic, publishable research in chemistry
, biochemistry
, nanotechnology
, molecular biology
, physics
, astronomy
and computer sciences
.
The collaborative efforts of Sarah Simmons, David Laude, Ruth Shear, in addition to a group of faculty members at the College of Natural Sciences, led to the launch of FRI in 2005. The pilot program started with 45 students enrolled in three Research Streams; The Vertebrate Interactome Mapping Stream, which was established by Scott Stevens, the Aptamer Stream led by Andy Ellington and The Nanomaterials for Chemical Catalysis Stream, which was established by Keith Stevenson, David Vanden Bout and Richard Crooks.
Currently, about 600 freshmen each year are enrolled in the 26 different Research Streams within FRI. Each Research Stream is led by a faculty member who has designed a program of research using our educational model to pursue their fundamental research questions. These faculty provide guidance to their respective Research Streams, set goals and directions, and develop and teach the Research Experience courses to the students within their stream. Each Research Stream has its own dedicated lab, which is run by a Research Educator (RE), a Ph.D. research scientist dedicated to the stream. Major funding for this program has been provided by National Science Foundation
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute
.
Students who participate in the FRI are 30-35% more likely to graduate with a science degree and 23% more likely to go to graduate school. In addition the program is significantly boosting the number of Hispanic students majoring in science, and 94 students have been included as authors of published research papers (R. I. Shear, S. L. Simmons. Teaching through research: Five-year outcome data from the Freshman Research
Initiative at The University of Texas at Austin. Presented at American Chemical Society 67th Southwest Regional Meeting, Austin, TX, Nov 11, 2011)
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, is an innovative model in undergraduate education that offers hundreds of first-year students in the College of Natural Sciences
University of Texas at Austin College of Natural Sciences
The College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin offers 10 Bachelor of Arts majors, 42 Bachelor of Science majors, and 20 graduate programs to more than 8,000 undergraduates and 1,600 graduate students. The college employs over 452 faculty . Many of the programs are consistently...
the opportunity to advance academically while doing cutting-edge, authentic, publishable research in chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
, nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, molecular biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
, physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
and computer sciences
Computer Sciences
Computer Sciences can refer to:*The general field of computer science*Computer Sciences Corporation, the Fortune 500 Information Technology company...
.
The collaborative efforts of Sarah Simmons, David Laude, Ruth Shear, in addition to a group of faculty members at the College of Natural Sciences, led to the launch of FRI in 2005. The pilot program started with 45 students enrolled in three Research Streams; The Vertebrate Interactome Mapping Stream, which was established by Scott Stevens, the Aptamer Stream led by Andy Ellington and The Nanomaterials for Chemical Catalysis Stream, which was established by Keith Stevenson, David Vanden Bout and Richard Crooks.
Currently, about 600 freshmen each year are enrolled in the 26 different Research Streams within FRI. Each Research Stream is led by a faculty member who has designed a program of research using our educational model to pursue their fundamental research questions. These faculty provide guidance to their respective Research Streams, set goals and directions, and develop and teach the Research Experience courses to the students within their stream. Each Research Stream has its own dedicated lab, which is run by a Research Educator (RE), a Ph.D. research scientist dedicated to the stream. Major funding for this program has been provided by National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a United States non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded by the American businessman Howard Hughes in 1953. It is one of the largest private funding organizations for biological and medical research in the United...
.
Students who participate in the FRI are 30-35% more likely to graduate with a science degree and 23% more likely to go to graduate school. In addition the program is significantly boosting the number of Hispanic students majoring in science, and 94 students have been included as authors of published research papers (R. I. Shear, S. L. Simmons. Teaching through research: Five-year outcome data from the Freshman Research
Initiative at The University of Texas at Austin. Presented at American Chemical Society 67th Southwest Regional Meeting, Austin, TX, Nov 11, 2011)
External Links
- http://fri.cns.utexas.edu/
- http://web5.cns.utexas.edu/news/tag/freshman-research-initiative/