Undergraduate research and the smart grid: REU-Site: Engineering the Grid

Undergraduate students participate in a ten-week long program engaged on research related to energy topics. The program includes coordinated professional development seminars on responsible professional conduct for engineers and research ethics, diversity awareness, as well as the graduate school application process. Along with their graduate mentors the participants also become role models in a system of “each one-mentor-one”, interacting with high school teachers and students from a rural, underserved school district. Assessment results from program surveys indicate positive impact of mentorship, higher post-graduation career choices, and coordinated activities. Specifically by interacting with mentors female participants indicated that they gained more self-confidence as researchers than their male counterparts.