Current opportunities at UAF
There are many ways for undergraduate students to get involved in research at UAF!
In addition to URSA funding, several other organizations at UAF, within the UA System,
and outside Alaska offer opportunities for our undergraduate students. Don't be afraid
to reach out to researchers, organizations, and institutes in your field to make a
connection and inquire about future opportunities! On this page we have provide information
about UAF organizations that regularly offer opportunities for funding and/or project
support. If you are looking to join an established project with faculty, staff, or
graduate students at UAF, see the list of opportunities listed below.
If you need assistance contacting individuals or organizations, please reach out! We are more than happy to help you connect with potential opportunities.
Projects Seeking Undergraduate Participation
New listings are posted when received.
Contact: Lynda McGilvary
Geophysical Institute, Communications Director
Email: lmmcgilvary@alaska.edu
For this grant-funded position, we would leverage the student’s area of expertise and their future career goals to provide opportunities for the student to gain workforce experience and build their CV. Students with STEM content knowledge could assist in conceptualizing and developing curricula and videos that are used by teachers across Alaska and beyond. In addition to that work, the students may be asked to assist in planning and staffing education and outreach events, performing administrative tasks, and field-testing activities designed for K-12 students. There are opportunities for rural Alaska travel associated with the position (depending on student’s availability around their academic schedule).
Requirements: Strong background/interest in STEM or K-12 education, multicultural background or interest, strong computer skills, strong communications skills including grammar, spelling, punctuation. Preference will be given to anyone with a background living or working in rural Alaska communities or anyone with a career interest in K-12 education.
Compensation: Salary is DOE, from $16.15 to $18.18/hr.
Deadline to Contact: This position will remain open until filled.
Contact: Sarah Stanley
Faculty, English Department
Email: sstanley2@alaska.edu
Phone: (907) 474-7335
The InsideOut StoryLab is starting to receive submissions from prisoners for a Boundaries and Bridges Story Collection. The InsideOut StoryLab: Boundaries and Bridges is a story collection from both incarcerated and unconfined writers to be distributed by portable story dispensers inside and outside of carceral settings in Alaska.
- Type up handwritten submissions
- Write response letters submissions
- Evaluate submissions
- Work with a submission database
We are always in process with collections. This is a chance to get involved with community publishing from the ground up. Sarah (your mentor) is an excellent letter writer for a recommendation. Reach out and get involved!
This position listing is looking for up to 3 students (Freshman-Senior Standing).
Prerequisites: None
Compensation: We can work on writing a grant for this--let us know your interest. Open to mentoring
students who apply for funding through URSA or other campus entities (especially a
student that wants to put together a Community-Engaged Learning award for our next
collection).
Contact: Thomas Kelly
Phone: 774-238-0779
Email: tbkelly@alaska.edu
Looking for four students (Freshman-Senior standing).
Alaska's marine resources are among our most valuable for in both commercial and cultural value. With AMDOC we seek to better understand the marine environment use state of the art satellite tools. First, we will merge field data with satellites to provide better estimates of biomass and productivity in Alaskan waters. Next, our improved measurements will be integrated into fishery forecasting models to allow for more accurate predictions and new insights into how fisheries (and the ecosystem) are changing.
Prerequisites: A passion to learn new skills and share the results of the work with peers and the Alaskan public. Familiarity to computers and excel would be helpful, but everything can be learned "on the job."
Time Commitment: Hours, duration, and starting dates are completely flexible. Opportunities for at-sea field work are available as well to committed students.
Funding: Paid fellowship opportunities are available.
Mentorship Opportunities: Yes, mentorship for URSA projects available.
Contact: Richard Collins
Faculty, Geophysical Institute & Atmospheric Sciences
Director, Graduate School
Email: rlcollins@alaska.edu
In search of 1 student of any year of study (Freshman through Senior status).
UAF researchers have been studying Earth's highest clouds since the 1990's. These
clouds, called noctilucent (night shining, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Additional Position Information: This job involves working with an archive of tapes that is unique. Students can learn more about noctilucent clouds at the following links.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Noctilucent_cloud - https://www.space.com/
noctilucent-clouds - https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/
weather/learn-about/weather/ types-of-weather/clouds/other- clouds/noctilucent - https://earthsky.org/earth/
night-shining-clouds- noctilucent-clouds-how-they- form-how-to-see-them/
Prerequisites: Student should have basic tech skills be able to manage data files, maintain spreadsheets of information, and have ability and interest to learn media skills.
Time Commitment: Start as soon as possible, running through Fall and Spring. Up to 20 hours a week, with total hours ~200-300 hours. The schedule would depend on access to library tape digitizing equipment, but is otherwise flexible.
Compensation: Student Assistant Grade 2, Step 14: $14.67 an hour
Contact: Simon Zwieback
Faculty, Geosciences
Email: szwieback@alaska.edu.
Contact: Tristan Goers
GIS Technician | Digital Services | Fairbanks North Star Borough
Email: tristan.goers@fnsb.gov
Phone: (907) 459-1477
The Fairbanks North Star Borough is offering an internship opportunity georeferencing imagery for course credit to an undergraduate student. This opportunity involves mosaicking and georeferencing scanned historical imagery of the FNSB and may also involve scripting. This work will be completed over the 2022 spring semester with the final deliverables being (1) georeferenced image tiles, (2) a georeferenced, mosaicked, image, and (3) an image tile index. The final product will be an invaluable resource not only for the Fairbanks North Star Borough but also the public at-large. You will be expected to give, at a minimum, weekly progress reports detailing the work completed, any challenges encountered, and any questions you may have.
Prerequisite: Prior exposure to remote sensing or GIS
Pay: This could be a paid internship, an unpaid project for credit, or both.
Please reach out to us to discuss further details.
Benefits: Valuable real-world experience and skills that are in great demand on the job market.
Rolling Deadline- please contact the opportunity provider listed above for more information.
Contact: Michael Roddewig
Assistant Professor, Geophysical Institute
Phone: 907-474-5936
Email: mrroddewig@alaska.edu
My research is focused on the development and deployment of optical instruments (lidars, cameras, etc.) for remote sensing of the atmosphere and optical oceanography. See https://lrlpfrr.community.uaf.edu/research/ for details on the type of work we do. The ideal candidate would enjoy building neat scientific instruments and also working outdoors. Undergraduates in my lab do not do busy work; they build and deploy real hardware and participate in the deciding the direction of the research.
Position Details:
- Prerequisites: I am not seeking any specific majors. My main prerequisite is a willingness to learn. I also expect a commitment to spend time in the lab and work independently, with supervision as required.
- Time Commitment: 10 hours per week during the semester, full time (40 hours per week) during the summer. These projects are on-going multi-year efforts and I would prefer students who plan to work for multiple years, especially during the summer.
- Pay?: All students in my lab are paid. Some projects have funding available and for others we would seek funding through Alaska Space Grant or students may apply for URSA.
- Deadline to Contact: No deadline. Projects are ongoing and I am happy to accept students at any time.
Contact: Simon Zwieback
Professor Geosciences
Phone: (907) 474-5549
Email: szwieback@alaska.edu
The project seeks to characterize permafrost landscape dynamics following temperature
extremes and a bark beetle outbreak. It combines fieldwork in Alaska, soil analysis
in the lab, and remote sensing data analyses.
You will collect field measurements under supervision of experienced researchers.
Laboratory work will include sample preparation and analysis, and data compilation.
Remote sensing analyses may comprise processing and classification of multispectral
and radar remote sensing imagery, and predictive modeling using machine learning.
How long: 10 to 20 h / week during the semester, up to 40 h / week in summer.
Pay: Yes. Salary is negotiable.
Other benefits: Gain field experience in Northern Alaska, potential for research-based credits.
Contact: Dr. Javier Fochesatto
Phone: 907-474-7602
317 Akasofu Building
Email: gjfochesatto@alaska.edu
Implementation of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) solver oriented to unmanned aircraft systems development. CFD codes are used to numerically solve the fluid the around wings and aircraft body to compute lifting, drag and momentum in dynamic flying conditions and control. Familiarity with C language and Python is preferred.
Contact: Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization
Phone: 907-474-2605
Email: uaf-oipc@alaska.edu
UAF’s office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization (OIPC) works to identify university innovations, analyze such technologies for marketability and patentability, protect the technologies as intellectual property, and market and license the technologies for the benefit of the public, the university, and our community."
Seeking 2 students, any year of study, willing to learn and work on GIS, climate and
wildlife data.
This project provides opportunities for students to explore and work-up specific forestry
and climate GIS data for birds and habitats in Interior Alaska.
Students will gain experience in learning geographic information systems (GIS, ArcGIS or QGIS), insights into landscape ecology, bird, habitat and climate management issues, and digital data skills for Alaska. Office space, hardware and software provided.
Experience required: R skills would ideal, or at least a willingness to learn
Funding: None provided. Students would need to seek funding from URSA Project application or find another source if they require funding. Project coordinator would help with the process.
Deadline: Ongoing
Opportunities for Students at UAF
UAF organizations that regularly offer opportunities
for funding and/or project support.
Alaska NSF EPSCoR improves Alaska's scientific capacity by engaging in research projects supported through National Science Foundation and state funds. The organization is engaged in a five-year project entitled "Fire & Ice," which examines climate-driven changes to Alaskan wildfire regimes and coastal ecosystems.
Undergraduate Scholarships of up to $1,000 will be awarded through a competitive process. Scholarships are open to new and continuing undergraduate students majoring in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics (STEM). Students receiving awards in past competitions may apply and receive awards for subsequent competitions.
The Biomedical Learning and Student Training program invites undergraduates at UAS, UAF, and Ilisagvik College to submit proposals for summer undergraduate research. Up to $6,000 will be awarded to students who have identified a project and mentor in biomedical or health research.
The overarching goal of BLaST is to enhance undergraduate training and mentoring in biomedical research through increased diversity of students, increased integration of research and teaching, and enhanced integration of rural campuses into a cohesive biomedical community in Alaska. BLaST is one of ten Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) initiatives funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH).
For more information or if you need help identifying a project and/or finding a mentor visit the BLaST Website.
The Alaska Center for Innovation, Commercialization, and Entrepreneurship (Center ICE) is the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Innovation Hub. Through our Innovation Accelerator, we draw from the University of Alaska’s best research to support its development, launch it as a real world solution, and help it scale up. Center ICE also offers the Students2Startups program to place the next generation of leaders at the center of innovation now.
One of the main goals of the Alaska INBRE Network continues to be to increase education and research opportunities for University of Alaska undergraduate and graduate students to guide them into programs and advanced training in the biomedical sciences and to enhance the biomedical infrastructure in Alaska.
Undergraduate Research Training Initiative for Student Enhancement (URISE) program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks is a scholarship program funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The goal of the URISE program is to increase the number of well-prepared underrepresented (UR) students who matriculate into high caliber Ph.D. or combined M.D.-Ph.D. programs in the biomedical sciences and eventually go on to research careers.
Visit the website.