U-RISE@WPI
Welcome to the U-RISE@Wπ
The goal of the program is to guide our undergraduate students towards successful biomedical research careers with a cohesive structure and supportive research ecosystem. We will improve the retention and graduation rate of students by creating small teams of undergraduate researchers, each with a faculty Coach dedicated to each student’s success. Research, like sports, requires dedication, perseverance, and conditioning to improve skills and feelings of self-efficacy. The best way to retain players is to promote a fun, supportive culture and invest in player skill development, regardless of their incoming skill level or prior experience
U-RISE Coaches
Would you like to have a dedicated professor that coaches you about undergraduate research and who cares about your overall success at WPI?
Our biomedical-related professors have developed a personalized Coaching Model to support you and a cohort of students in your research interests as you begin your WPI educational journey through:
- Group Meetings with Coach & 5-student Cohort (monthly)
- Individual meetings with Coach to develop your Game Plan
- Scouting Lunches to meet with potential research
- Advisors (monthly)
- ”How Research Works” Seminars (once a term)
- Lab Crawl for hands-on learning
The time commitment is ~1hr per week. Fun food will be provided at most meetings.
Coaches will help foster your well-being, retention, and success and are specifically trained to advocate for you. Coaches will build relationships with you over the first two terms of your first year as you participate in program activities, self-reflections, and individual game plans (IGP). They will also help you develop your application for the funded U-RISE@WPI program.
As Draftees (first-year students), you will have the opportunity to view videos of Draft Year Coaches and list your top three match preferences. Draftees will be matched to Draft Year Coach and the U-RISE Coach will set up Coaching meetings to set goals for the year, help advise on introductory chemistry sequence, guide you in completing your individual game plan, and connect you with wellness and academic supports as needed.
U-RISE Events
Scouting Lunch
To build community and enhance networking skills, accepted Draftees will have informal lunches two times per term with participating faculty members. At each lunch, faculty will talk about their research in an approachable way. The goal is to introduce Draftees to research options on campus and to meet faculty to broaden their feelings of community with other participants and faculty on campus.
How Research Works
How Research Works talks focus on speakers sharing their lived experience in research, the hurdles they experienced, and how they overcame them. The talks are about both the research and the researcher.
Summer Research Opportunities
Applications Open for the 2025/2026 Academic Year
Thank you for your interest in the U-RISE program! We are inviting you to apply to become a Trainee in the U-RISE@WPI program by answering several short essay questions (max 300 words each). Topics for the essay questions are: Learning Experiences @WPI, Pursuing Biomedical Science Experience, and Biomedical Science Career Goals.
Please contact gr-urise@wpi.edu for the application form.
Application deadline: Friday, February 21st at midnight.
Next Steps: Applications will be reviewed by a group of faculty in the U-RISE program, and you will be notified if you were selected for an interview by February 28, 2025. Interviews will be conducted the week of March 5th. You will be notified by March 14, 2025, of whether your application is accepted to the program. Please be aware that the awards will be available pending funding from the NIH.
Path of a U-RISE Trainee
Example
Eligibility
You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident AND majoring in a STEM field.
How Research Works
Medicinal plants as effective and more sustainable therapeutics: Artemisia as a case study.
Pamela Weathers, PhD
Wednesday, February 19th, 2025
4-5pm
Salisbury Labs, Room SL105
Most of the world uses traditional medicines for their health. Two plant species, Artemisia annua and Artemisia afra, are especially widely used in low- and middle-income countries for treating malaria, parasitic infections, and other diseases. While my lab has focused on elucidating the science behind the efficacy of these traditional uses, these two plants are also a more cost-effective sustainable therapeutic option, a feature historically ignored during drug development. I will share these considerations with you.
Please register here to attend.