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Join us for an online info session to learn more about the NSF REU Program. To register, click the available dates below.
Unable to attend either of the above info sessions? Submit your questions here.
The NSF REU Summer season will run from May 26 - August 3, 2024.
Applications will open mid-December. Application deadline is February 15th.
Since 2003, Mote Marine Laboratory has been a host site for the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program. The NSF REU Program offers research training experiences in estuarine science to 10 undergraduate students during a 10-week period between May and August. NSF REU participants are paired with Mote scientists and conduct mentored research projects related to their advisor's expertise. Students gain experience in science communication by presenting the results of their project in a manuscript-style research paper and orally at a laboratory-wide research symposium. Participants attend research seminars and workshops on career skills in science. Students may also have the opportunity to present their research findings at professional conferences.
Eligibility
NSF’s goal is to broaden participation in research through the NSF REU program. Individuals historically underrepresented in STEM are encouraged to apply, including: underrepresented minorities (African Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians or Other Pacific Islanders), persons with disabilities, first-generation college students, women and veterans of the U.S. Armed Services.
To be eligible for the NSF REU Program, students must be:
- U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the U.S. or its territories
- Currently enrolled* in a degree program (full-time or part-time) leading to a baccalaureate degree.
- First-time NSF REU participants. If you have already completed an NSF REU internship, you will not be considered for the program.
- Available for the full duration of the program, from May 26 to August 3, 2024. For questions regarding scheduling conflicts, please see our FAQs page.
*Students may NOT have already graduated at the time of participation in the NSF REU internship.
In addition, applicants should possess a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher (on a 4-point scale), and make efforts to receive academic credit for participation in the NSF REU Program. However, these are NOT requirements to qualify for the program.
No former research or internship experience necessary.
Participants:
- Conduct mentored research projects under the direction of a Mote scientist.
- Gain experience in the development of research plans by completing a research proposal.
- Gain experience in scientific writing by completing a "manuscript-style" final research paper.
- Gain experience in oral presentation of scientific data by presenting their research results in a laboratory-wide poster presentation.
- Attend research seminars on ocean science.
- Learn about opportunities for graduate study, careers in marine science, and communication skills in science by participating in student workshops.
Stipends, travel and housing information
Students participating in the NSF REU Program receive:
- $6,000 stipend and $1000 food stipend over the 10-week period
- Free housing in a local dormitory
- Financial support for travel expenses between Mote and their home institution
Note: Provided dorms are approximately 5 miles from Mote’s campus. Bringing a car is highly recommended but public transportation between Mote and most local areas is available through the Sarasota County Area Transit bus system. Interns are responsible for providing or making arrangements for daily transportation to Mote.
Dates
The 2023 NSF REU program will run from May 26 to August 3, 2024.
Application deadline is February 15th.
*Participants must be available for the full duration of the program. See FAQs page for more details about scheduling.
Application Procedure
Applicants must complete the online application form and upload a resume or CV, and unofficial transcript. Applicants must also request one letter of recommendation. A second letter of recommendation can be sent to intern@mote.org to be added to your application. More detailed instructions for preparing and submitting these materials are provided on the application page.
Still unsure what to expect from an internship with Mote. Check out this video to hear directly from our interns and learn more!
Research Programs & Participating Mentors
Please note: The specific project each NSF REU student will undertake will be determined after the student's acceptance.
One student will be selected for each of the following research experiences unless otherwise specified.
Dr. Emily Hall, Ocean Acidification Program
The Ocean Acidification program in Sarasota focuses on the effects of ocean acidification (OA) coastal acidification (CA) and climate change (CC) on marine organisms and their ecosystems. Potential projects include the effects of OA and CC on important marine organisms like bivalves and seagrass, the effects of OA and CC on red tide blooms, effects of red tide mitigation on carbonate chemistry, and monitoring coastal acidification at the riverine-coastal interface of the surrounding bay areas. NSF REU students will predominantly be working within an experimental facility, assisting with field collection of samples, data entry, and laboratory analysis. Students with a chemistry background preferred. One student will be selected for this research experience.
Dr. Vince Lovko, Phytoplankton Ecology Program
Projects under this program will focus on the biology and ecology of phytoplankton, typically with an emphasis on the red-tide dinoflagellate, Karenia brevis. Projects may include laboratory and/or field-based studies exploring population and bloom dynamics, species interactions, or phytoplankton community composition and species distribution. REU students will have opportunities to learn aspects of phytoplankton culture, identification and enumeration, bioassay techniques, light and fluorescent microscopy, field sampling of phytoplankton communities and data analysis techniques.
Dr. Cathy Walsh, Marine Immunology Program
Dr. Walsh conducts basic research related to innate and acquired immune function in marine organisms as well as cell line development with fish and invertebrate species. Past NSF REU students have worked on projects related to effects of algal toxin exposure on immune function in marine vertebrates (Florida manatee, sea turtles, sharks, fish). Other projects have also investigated cellular effects of proteins isolated from shark immune cells on target tumor cells. Research projects are primarily laboratory-based and focus on cellular effects of algal toxins, growth of cell lines, or cellular assays of bioactivity from cell cultures from various marine species. Other research projects may include various cell culture approaches to establishing cell lines from various marine species. Successful students exhibit a desire to learn more about laboratory-based research related to marine science. Laboratory techniques students may learn include cell culture, electrophoresis, western blotting, microplate based assays, qPCR, and cell flow cytometry, etc.
Gretchen Lovewell, Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Strandings Investigation Program
This program responds to reports of marine mammal and sea turtle strandings 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Live and dead cetaceans (whales and dolphins) and sea turtles are rescued and/or recovered and transported to Mote for rehabilitation or detailed post-mortem examination. The majority of the work is carcass recovery and necropsy, not rescue and rehabilitation. Interns will assist in responding to stranding calls, documenting stranding events and collecting samples and data. Interns will also assist researchers and program staff with other projects, such as sample processing, assisting in the Ruth DeLynn Cetacean Osteological Collection and general maintenance of stranding equipment. REU interns will be expected to create, implement and present a research project. Successful students should "think outside of the box" and be creative and innovative. For example, investigating the amount of human interaction found in stranded marine animals is not a research project; that is part of the standard data we collect on every animal. We encourage students to ask questions of those data such as ‘how, when, why, where’ are animals affected by humans, what can be done to help conservation, or to ask anatomical, physiological, or life-history questions.
Dr. Jake Lasala, Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program
The Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program (STCRP) at Mote has documented sea turtle nesting trends on 35 miles of Sarasota, Florida beaches for over 40 years. Since 1982, STCRP has identified over 133,000 sea turtle crawls and estimated that nearly 3.4 million hatchlings have left these beaches. Dr. Lasala is creating and implementing research projects that focus on these nesters and their offspring to ask questions about behavioral shifts over time. The core of his projects focus on genetic proxies to identify how individual behavior affects these local and global species populations. NSF REU students will primarily assist in the field at night to collect samples, but will also learn how to enter and work with raw data, genetic analysis techniques, and statistical techniques. This population of sea turtles is growing in the region and provides an excellent opportunity to ask novel and insightful questions moving forward.
Dr. Ryan Schloesser, Program Manager for Fisheries Ecology & Enhancement
The Fisheries Ecology & Enhancement REU opportunity provides research experience on the ecology of estuarine fishes, and will focus on examining multi-species habitat use patterns in response to restoration. The selected intern will get experience in data analysis and will have the opportunity to learn a variety of data management and statistical techniques using R statistical software. The intern will also get experience with field sampling and fish identification activities, for which we apply quantified stratified sampling with seine nets, monitoring of water quality and habitat features, and maintenance of the antenna arrays used to monitor movement and survival of fishes tagged with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags. The goal of the field sampling is to recapture wild and hatchery-reared fishes that were tagged with coded-wire tags and PIT tags. Interns will also have the opportunity to contribute to stock enhancement research projects, including the tagging and release of hatchery-reared fish, as well as other projects at the Mote Aquaculture Research Park to learn about best aquaculture practices and gain experience in animal husbandry. This internship may require the physical ability to lift 50 lbs to shoulder height, walk/work in difficult field environments, bend and stoop for prolonged periods of time.
Dr. Kirstie Francis, Molecular Microbiology
Our oceans are home to some of the most productive and biologically diverse ecosystems in the world. This biodiversity translates to incredible chemical diversity, and the intense competition for resources observed in marine ecosystems promotes the evolution of secondary metabolites, or marine natural products. The new molecular microbiology research program under Dr. Francis will focus on identifying bioactive natural products from marine microorganisms. NSF REU students in this program will be able to complete multidisciplinary projects involving microbiology, organic chemistry, and/or molecular biology. Responsibilities could include culturing activities to maintain and expand the Mote microbial library, development of microbial extracts, testing microbial extracts for a variety of biological activities, and purification of active compounds. Successful applicants should have completed coursework in microbiology or organic chemistry and demonstrate an interest in laboratory techniques. Prior lab experience is helpful but not required. Please note the majority of research activities are carried out at the Mote Aquaculture Park (MAP); a satellite site located in eastern Sarasota County, Florida, approximately 17 miles from the main laboratory.
Dr. Jennifer Toyoda, Ecotoxicology
Mote's Ecotoxicology program studies how natural toxins and man-made chemicals affect the health of marine ecosystems, wildlife, and humans. Research projects seek to understand and to mitigate the harm caused by environmental contaminants. Ecotoxicology combines chemistry, biology, and ecology and interns may gain experience in performing chemical extractions, experimental exposures of marine organisms, red tide mitigation product testing, toxicity assays, molecular assays, and cell culture assays. Both wet lab and bench work will be required, field sampling may be involved. Please note the majority of research activities are carried out at the Mote Aquaculture Park (MAP); a satellite site located in eastern Sarasota County, Florida, approximately 17 miles from the main laboratory.
John Langan, Ocean Technology Program
Join the Ocean Technology Program for an exciting journey into the world of cutting-edge marine science and technology! Our program harnesses innovative ocean technology to achieve interdisciplinary scientific objectives, emphasizing expertise in sensors, autonomous assets, field operations, and engineering. As a student in our program, you'll actively contribute to projects that impact our local coastal environment, such as routine environmental monitoring in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico using advanced autonomous underwater vehicles known as Slocum gliders. These high-tech tools relay crucial measurements via satellite, including temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll-a fluorescence, CDOM fluorescence, and particle backscatter.
Our program is also at the forefront of ocean science by developing, producing, and deploying Programmable Hyperspectral Seawater Scanner (PHySS) instruments in coastal Southwest Florida. These instruments detect phytoplankton taxa, including the red tide-producing Karenia brevis. As a college student intern, you don't need any prior technical experience. We welcome students from diverse backgrounds, offering guidance and training from our Ocean Instrument technicians, engineers, and scientists. Your role will include maintaining and deploying Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), data interpretation, and active participation in advanced ocean instrumentation processes. This internship is a chance to explore ocean exploration, regardless of your technical background. Join us, and let your curiosity and enthusiasm drive your journey into marine science and technology!
Questions?
Email your questions to reu@mote.org
Note: All students who are offered a position at this NSF REU Site have until March 15, 2024 or later to accept or reject the offer. This NSF REU Site is funded by the National Science Foundation's Division of Ocean Sciences located in Arlington, VA (Award #1757419). The NSF contact for this program is Elizabeth Rom; however, NSF does not handle REU applications; please contact each REU site directly for application information.