Schapiro Undergraduate Research Fellowship: SURF

From SURF to Success

Paulo Garcia '06, a physics major and math minor, discovered a passion for research while completing a SURF research project with physics professor Deonna Woolard. Now with a PhD in biomedical engineering, Dr. Garcia is part of a multidisciplinary team developing a groundbreaking new cancer treatment. "R-MC," he says, "prepared me extremely well for my graduate studies." Read more about Paulo Garcia's R-MC experience

SURF offers Randolph-Macon College students the unique opportunity to conduct ten weeks of full-time, original research during the summer months, under the guidance of a faculty mentor.

Like professional scientists and scholars, Randolph-Macon students apply to the SURF program by writing a proposal and a request for grant money to fund their research. If their project is approved, SURF participants receive a modest stipend as well as free housing.

At the conclusion of the SURF program each year, students present their research in a conference keynoted by an esteemed academic or other nationally recognized leader. Students also submit a final written report and are encouraged to present their findings at a professional meeting in their discipline.

Former SURF participants who go on to graduate school find themselves particularly well prepared for the rigors and intellectual challenge of independent research, which many of their graduate-student peers are encountering for the first time

For more information about SURF, contact co-directors Professor Kelly Lambert (Psychology) or Professor Serge Schreiner (Chemistry ).

Explore more SURF stories

Michael True '12: depression and effort-driven rewards

Cara Carne '12: migratory birds.

Rebecca Johnsen '10: theatre, economics