Marsha-Kay Hutchinson, Howard University student, studying breast cancer in Dr. Marion Sewer's Pharmacology lab
Joy Rosa Jackson, Howard University Student, conducting cardiovascular research in Dr. Kelly Frazer’s genetics lab
Present your research at the UC San Diego Summer Research Conference
Learn about the UC San Diego graduate school application process from distinguished faculty
Attend workshops and lectures about graduate school at UC San Diego
Work hard and have fun in beautiful San Diego
Meet other HBCU students
Improve your scores with a GRE preparation course
Make new friends while building trust at the UC San Diego Challenge Course
Make new friends from all over the country and world
Frequently Asked Questions
Program Participation
- How many students are accepted every year?
- How do I select a project to work on?
- Will I be guaranteed to work with the faculty member I select?
- What are some of the benefits of participating?
- How does the application fee waiver work?
UC San Diego
UC-HBCU Initiative
Summer Training Academy for Research Success (STARS)
- What is STARS?
- Where will I live?
- What are the program dates?
- Can my family visit me during the program?
How many students are accepted every year?
- 10-15 students will be accepted each year.
How do I select a project to work on?
- Please review the Research Project Descriptions on the STARS website to learn more about the faculty, departments, and projects you might be interested in.
Will I be guaranteed to work with the faculty member I select?
- If the project or faculty mentor you select is not available, you will be assigned to a faculty mentor in a similar area.
What are some of the benefits of participating?
Benefits include:
- An 8-week mentored summer research experience at UC San Diego
- Preferential enrollment in the UCSD Howard Partnership for a second year
- Faculty mentored research
- Waiver of the graduate application fee
- If admitted to a Ph.D. program at any UC campus, UCSD Howard participants will receive financial support coordinated between the UC Office of the President and the UC campus.
How does the application fee waiver work?
- The application fee will be waived automatically once you submit your application. The fee waiver will be associated with your record of participation in the UCSD Howard Partnership for Graduate Success.
- UC San Diego is located in Southern California in the city of La Jolla.
What graduate programs and degrees are offered?
- UC San Diego has a wide variety of graduate opportunities available. Please see the UCSD website or the Graduate Department Directory to learn more about graduate programs at UC San Diego.
Why is the HBCU-Initiative important?
- The University of California recognizes the unique and important contributions that Historically Black Colleges and Universities make to the academy, our nation and the world. By recruiting students from HBCUs, the University of California will be strengthened, enriched, and better able to complete our mission of teaching, research and public service.
- STARS is an 8-week summer research program administered by the Graduate Division at UC San Diego. Participants of the UCSD Howard Partnership will attend many of the STARS activities as well as activities designed specifically for the UCSD Howard Partnership.
- All STARS students will live in housing facilities located on the UC San Diego campus.
- Program dates change from year to year, but generally begins in late June/early July and ends in August.
Can my family visit me during the program?
- Guests are permitted to visit given that research and programmatic obligations have been met.
Eligibility
UC San Diego and Howard University have together developed eligibility criteria for students’ participation in the UC San Diego Howard Partnership for Graduate Success. Each student-participant must:
- be enrolled and in good standing at HU;
- seriously interested in pursuing doctoral study;
- be a sophomore or junior;
- have a GPA of 3.0 or higher
Procedures
Applications will be reviewed and selections made by the UCSD Howard Partnership PI, co-PI, and associated UC San Diego and Howard University faculty mentors. Applications will be due on November 19, 2017 with selections made by December 1.
In addition to completing the online application, please upload the following documents:
- Personal Statement (500 words) addressing the following points:
- How did you become interested in your field of study?
- What are your educational and career goals?
- What experiences have contributed toward your preparation for your educational and career goals?
- What are your research interests?
- Why are you applying to the UC San Diego Howard Partnership Program?
- How are you a “match” for the UC San Diego Howard Partnership Program?
- Optional: Describe background characteristics that may have placed you at an educational disadvantage (English language learner, family economic history, lack of educational opportunity, disability, etc.)
- CV/Resume
- A copy of current Academic Transcripts (unofficial are OK)
- Letters of Recommendation can be from a counselor, faculty member, research mentor, or principal investigator. The letter should address the following questions:
- What is your relationship to the applicant? Please include information on how long you have known the applicant and the extent of your interactions.
- What is the applicant’s current research topic? If not actively involved in research, what are the applicant’s interests?
- Please comment on the applicant’s academic merit including his/her aptitude for pursuing a Ph.D.
- In your opinion, why and how would the applicant benefit from participating in the UC San Diego Howard Partnership Program?
- What is it about the applicant that leads you to recommend him/her for the UC San Diego Howard Partnership Program?
A second summer of participation is strongly encouraged to deepen the participant's research experience in a particular lab, with the aim of becoming a co-author on a publication and increasing their competitiveness for graduate admissions. In the event that a participant is applying for a second summer at UC San Diego one of the two letters of recommendation must be from the UC San Diego faculty mentor from the previous summer.
Participants
A total of 10 undergraduates from Howard University will join the UC San Diego Partnership for Graduate Success each year, starting with the initial cohort for 2013-2014. We are proud to showcase the immense talent from Howard University and look forward to the opportunity of hosting them as future graduate students at UC San Diego.
- 2013-2014 Participants
- 2014-2015 Participants
- 2015-2016 Participants
- 2016-2017 Participants
