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UROP: Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program

The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) cultivates and supports research partnerships between MIT undergraduates and faculty. One of the earliest programs of its kind in the United States, MIT’s UROP invites undergraduates to participate in research as the junior colleagues of Institute faculty. UROP emphasizes the power of learning by doing.

UROP offers the chance to work on cutting edge research—whether you join established research projects or pursue your own ideas. As UROPers, undergraduates participate in each phase of standard research activity: developing research plans, writing proposals, conducting research, analyzing data and presenting research results in oral and written form. UROP projects take place during the academic year, as well as over the summer, and research can be done in any academic department or interdisciplinary laboratory. Projects can last for an entire semester, and many continue for a year or more. UROP may students receive academic credit, receive pay, or work on a voluntary basis. MIT students use their UROP experiences to become familiar with the faculty, learn about potential majors, and investigate areas of interest. UROPers gain practical skills and knowledge they eventually apply to careers after graduation or as graduate students. Most importantly, they become involved in exciting research.

The MIT UROP Office maintains a list of open UROP positions. While this resource is helpful in finding out about potential research projects, not all opportunities reach the UROP Office. Professors will sometime send email announcements or post fliers regarding available UROPs; in other cases, they may "create" UROPs specifically because a student expresses interest in their research. Thus, there is no substitute for student initiative in finding a UROP position. Students should contact potential supervisors to discuss their interests. Sending email or talking to a professor after class may be a good way to explore opportunities. Occasionally, the ME Undergraduate Office can provide pointers to faculty who are seeking UROP students.

After the student has reached an agreement to work with a given faculty member, he or she must submit to the Undergraduate Office a completed UROP Cover Sheet (available in Room 1-110). The faculty supervisor must endorse the agreement. The MechE Undergraduate Office must also endorse the agreement.  The student must then take the signed form to the UROP Office, Room 7-104, by Add Date.

If you wish to add credit after Add Date, the add card must be signed by Peggy Garlick as well as by your advisor and your project supervisor. Your proposal will be due at the time the add card is signed.

For further information or to obtain forms, see the UROP web site: http://mit.edu/urop/ .