Participant Benefits

Financial Arrangements

Stipend: $7,000

Housing and Meal Allowance*: $2,000

Travel Allowance: $1,000

Two-week Primer: To better prepare participants for research experiences, the participants will partake in an intensive two-week primer (mini-course) lead-taught by the faculty mentors with specific modules/topics (depending on the research project domain knowledgebase). For example, embedded systems, open radio access network (O-RAN), 5G, software-defined radios (SDR), low-power communications, Internet of Things (IoT), Zigbee, federated machine learning, information theory, sensory processing, wave propagation, antennae, machine learning, operating and distributed systems (edge computing).

Experiences: Besides the excellent exposure to the research and development of cutting-edge solutions to various research problems, the students will complete multiple training modules (include but are not limited to) (a) Responsible Conduct of Research (includes Research Ethics), (b) Sexual Harassment Awareness, Response, and Prevention (SHARP) training, (c) Collaboration and Mentorship Ethics and Best Practices, (d) Contemporary Ethical Issues in Research: Social Responsibility in the Research Process, and (e)Collaborative Research: Tips for Success and Advice for Overcoming Obstacles.

The participants will also showcase their findings to the University community during the undergraduate research days. Funds have been set aside to send the participants to present their findings at conferences should their work be accepted.

One of the most appealing benefits is that the prototypes developed (hardware/software) by the participants can be brought back to their home institutions to continue their work with their home institution professors or work remotely with their mentors.

* We have secured subsidized housing through University Housing. The City of Starkville operates a free bus service connecting all significant businesses, the University, and the Airport. The student meal plans are also very affordable.