RTP
Class of '09
Main
Page
Session
Dates
24 May 2009 - 1 August 2009
A
total of 10 students are anticipated
to join the RTP Class of '09.
Applicant
Pool
RECRUITMENT:
APPLICATION:
XX
applications received.
10
students anticipated.
Applicant
list
Semi-finalist
list
Finalist
list
Participants
2009
Archive
Meet
the 2009 participants
and read about their research projects.
Research
Training Program
Class of '09
Read
notes from the students about their summer
Program
Summary
This
summer we will welcome the 30th class of students
to join the Research Training Program (RTP) and
recorded 29 years (1980 - 2009) of inspiring the
next generation of scientists.
The
Research Training Program is a ten-week, museum-based
internship program featuring the unique opportunity
for currently enrolled undergraduate students to
explore research and study in the natural history
sciences through unparalleled access to the collections,
facilities and scientific community of the Smithsonian
Institution's National Museum of Natural History
in Washington, DC.
Established
in 1910, the NMNH is home to one of the best assemblages
of natural history collections and professional
scientists. The community of more than 500 professionals
includes NMNH scientists, as well as in-residence
staff from U.S. Government affiliated agencies (U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), U.S.Department of Agriculture
(USDA)) plus graduate students, research associates,
collaborators and visiting professional. This community
represents the world's largest collective of scientists
dedicated to the study of natural and cultural history.
The research environment features 126 million specimens
of plants, animals, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites,
and human artifacts from worldwide locations. The
collections provide inspiration for new discovery
and essential evidence for much of what we already
know about the world around us, including documentation
of changes in the Earth and climate, evolutionary
history of plants and animals, and human origins
and culture.
Since
1980 the Research Training Program has actively
participated in the education and inspiration of
the next generation of scientists interested in
the biological, geological, and anthropological
sciences. Encouraging confidence and competence
in the research process is the cornerstone of this
program.
Emphasis
is placed on providing a first-time opportunity
for undergraduate students, especially underrepresented
minorities and persons with disabilities, to be
involved in active research participation in the
natural history sciences including students who
might not otherwise have the opportunity to engage
in research projects such as students from institutions
where research opportunities in the natural history
sciences are limited.
Under
the mentoring guidance of one of Smithsonian's expert
research scientists, participants pursued individualized,
hypothesis-testing research topics in the biological,
geological or anthropological sciences. Research
findings were shared through a variety of media
including electronic publications, poster presentations,
written manuscripts, and in some cases (Anthropology,
Paleobiology, and Mineral Sciences) oral presentations.
Through
an active schedule
of events, participants will come together several
times each week to gather as a group and join in
an interactive series of lectures, discussions,
workshops, field trips, social events, and collection
tours highlighting the diversity of scientific disciplines,
research techniques, and career choices available
in the natural history sciences. Community interaction
and communication will be fostered through the Academic
Resources Center (ARC), a community gathering space
located on the Ground Floor of the Main Building,
just down the corridor from the Consistitution Avenue
Lobby.
Alice
Eve Kennington Internship Endowment
