SJSU MARC

The U-RISE Program at SJSU replaced the MARC program (for those who were familiar with MARC). Please contact  Dr. Cleber Ouverney (cleber.ouverney@sjsu.edu) for more information.

The SJSU MARC U*STAR Program had a successful run for over 33 years, and managing such program required a village. We thank the mentors, the students, the staff, and our collaborators for all the support and for sharing your wonderful stories. We wish the graduates good luck and please, stay in touch.

The U-RISE Program is sponsored by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), a branch of the National Institute of Health (NIH), with the goal to provide support and training for undergraduate students in the biomedical sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Psychology and Biomedical Engineering) in their preparation for competitive graduate training at the Ph.D. level.

• Who is eligible for SJSU U-RISE?

  • All applicants must be US Citizens or legal residents.  Applicants must also be registered, full-time undergraduate students at SJSU majoring in Sciences, Psychology or Engineering with an interest in the biomedical fields. Community college transfers to SJSU can apply prior to starting at SJSU.

    Students who apply to be selected as U-RISE Trainees must be honors students (3.0 GPA or better) who have expressed interest in pursuing postgraduate education leading to the Ph.D., or M.D.-Ph.D. (but NOT only an M.D.).

    The period of appointment to the U-RISE program is a consecutive 24-month period at the final 2 years of undergraduate training, the junior and senior years. Staying in the program requires the student to maintain a productive undergraduate research experience and participate in the goals of the Program.

• What benefits does the U-RISE program offer mentors and students?

  • U-RISE Mentors receive:

    1. $1,500 per year to be used in support of the U-RISE student research project.

    U-RISE students receive:

    1. ~ $1,100.00 a month for 24 months.
    2. Up to 60% of their tuition costs for 2 academic years
    3. Priority registration for 2 years
    4. Presentation, graduation school application and graduate survival skills training.
• If I am selected to be a SJSU U-RISE trainee, what are my obligations?

  • If you are invited to join U-RISE, you will need to:

    - Choose a SJSU faculty research mentor and have that person agree to mentor your research.

    - Keep your GPA at or above 3.0. 

    - Be actively engaged in "meaningful" research, generate data to be presented in poster or talk format at scientific gatherings. Students will spend two full academic years and one full summer in their faculty mentor's research lab at SJSU. Undergraduate research is a core components of the U-RISE program and as such a willingness and commitment to participate in research is required. 

    - Present your research at a research conference. We require the students to present a poster or oral presentation at one or more professional conferences during the second year of their program.

    - The U-RISE cohort will travel together to one, national conference per year (such as ABRCMS or SACNAS).

    - U-RISE trainees *must* go away to a PhD institution during the second summer of their program.

    - U-RISE students must enroll in a 1-unit course for the weekly U-RISE seminar. This course focuses on helping students strengthen their professional skills, better understand the career of a scientist, and prepare applications to their next career steps. Students will also enroll in a 180 course (e.g., Biol 180 or Chem 180) with their research mentor.

    - Enroll and pass a course in Science Ethics (such as Philosophy 133).

• What if I don't have a 3.0 GPA or otherwise don't qualify for U-RISE?

  • You can still join a research lab at SJSU and receive the training in independent research to prepare you for a career in science.

    You could consider the SJSU LSAMP (Louis Stokes Minority Alliance for Minority Participation) program.

    LSAMP aims to help reduce the existing gap in completion of Ph.D. degrees between underrepresented and non-underrepresented students. The LSAMP Program Director is Dr. Karen Singmaster in the Chemistry Department (ksingmaster@jupiter.sjsu.edu).

    All applicants must be US Citizens or legal residents.  Applicants must also be registered, full-time undergraduate students at SJSU majoring in Sciences or Engineering with an interest in the biomedical fields. 

    LSAMP students are also expected to engage in independent research, participate in Academic Excellence Workshops, and Summer Workshops/Preparation Courses if these are still relevant to their current course work.

Please fill out the application form [docx] and ethnicity form [pdf] and give them to either Dr. Ouverney or the U-RISE Program Coordinator (TBD).

Cleber Ouverney, Ph.D.
U-RISE Program Director
Department of Biological Sciences
San Jose State University
One Washington Square
San Jose', CA 95192-0100

Phone: 408-924-4806

Email: cleber.ouverney@sjsu.edu