REU Site: Research Internships in Ocean Sciences (RIOS)

The Research Internships in Ocean Science (RIOS) program will bring ten undergraduates to Rutgers each summer for three years. Participating undergraduates will be immersed in a ten-week summer research experience that includes professional development activities and career mentoring. RIOS interns work directly with internationally recognized faculty mentors, in high caliber facilities, at multiple coastal sites. Students will conduct research at one of two locations; the New Brunswick main campus or the Haskin Shellfish Research Lab, a field station located on the NJ coast. Through independent projects and team research experiences, students focus on process-oriented concepts applicable in marine systems. Independent research projects are embedded within ongoing programs, focused on the continental shelf, adjacent estuaries, polar regions, and advanced ocean observing. Students write research proposals, participate in cruises, conduct laboratory and field research, analyze data, and communicate their results throughout the program. A poster designed for display at a national scientific meeting communicates their hypotheses tested, approach taken, and knowledge gained. The RIOS program is designed to support outcomes that go beyond the research that students and mentors advance year after year. RIOS leverages highly successful faculty research programs and departmental research assets, college and undergraduate networks, and proven mentoring support frameworks to provide a meaningful and transformative research experience for its participants. The program attracts undergraduates that would otherwise have limited access to hands-on oceanographic research opportunities. The program design helps participants engage with, and be retained in, science-related fields, and bolsters networks and partnerships between academics, government agencies, private companies, and other places that the RIOS alumni progress to in their future paths. The research topics undertaken by RIOS interns are varied and cutting edge. Students can select projects that utilize ocean observing system data collected using technologies such as ocean gliders, satellites, coastal-ocean dynamics applications radar, or underwater video. More field-focused projects could include hands-on research in local bays, estuaries, and on the continental shelf off New Jersey. Laboratory based projects have access to molecular facilities for studying marine viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, as well as organic or inorganic analyses for the purpose of paleoceanographic or eutrophication studies. During their internship, guided by their faculty mentors, RIOS interns craft rigorous research projects of scientific and societal importance. 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.