i-REU Site: The UF/France Research Exchange in Chemistry: Advancing Diversity Through International Engagement

This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site award to the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, FL, supports the training of 12 students for 11 weeks during the summers of 2023-2025. This program, funded by the Division of Chemistry, seeks to advance diversity through international engagement. Participants travel to France to engage in collaborative intensive research projects at one of four partner sites: Sorbonne University (Paris), University of Strasbourg, AgroParis Tech (Reims), and University of Toulouse – Paul Sabatier. Participants also take part in mentoring and professional development activities throughout the summer that focus on science communication, developing a portfolio to highlight their laboratory skills, and applying for graduate programs and national fellowships. Through immersion in an international research environment, this site develops students’ self-confidence and awareness of the global aspects of chemistry. The program targets undergraduate students from underrepresented groups in STEM, and for whom summer research abroad will help steer them towards graduate school and a career in STEM, thereby broadening participation in STEM and increasing the diversity of STEM skilled workers to match the global scientific challenges for the next 30-40 years. This international REU program is run as a bidirectional exchange site where domestic students are matched with host groups at each of the partner sites and French institution-funded students are sent to the University of Florida for summer research. Students participate in a pre-departure orientation workshop, then each student is matched with an active research group to conduct individually mentored research projects across all areas of chemistry. Mentoring and professional development activities are included in weekly virtual meetings with the addition of an online journal, introduced to guide scientific self-awareness and to help develop a portfolio highlighting their laboratory skills. A 3-day workshop brings all participants together for a visit to a biorefinery in Pomacle-Bazancourt highlighting green chemistry applications. Upon return to the US, students present their research outcomes at an ACS National Meeting, where they meet with the PIs for a final mentoring session on fellowship applications. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.