Applications are now closed for Summer 2023

The current COVID-19 pandemic is an evolving and unpredictable situation that is limiting travel worldwide. Part of our planning for the 2023 Ph-IRES program includes adhering to ever changing requirements set by participating academic institutions and governmental agencies of the US and the Republic of the Philippines as these respond to the pandemic. The safety of students, faculty, and staff is paramount in this process. Depending on existing guidelines at TAMUCC, ODU, and/or the Republic of the Philippines, vaccination for COVID-19 may be a requirement of program participation.

A student must meet the following eligibility requirements:

• Must be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States or its possessions.
• Must be a registered student at an institution of higher education accredited by an accrediting agencies recognized by the U. S. Department of Education.  We regret that we cannot accept students from Arizona State University, Old Dominion University, Rutgers University, or Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi.  We highly encourage these students to apply to our partner program the Philippines PIRE Project https://sites.wp.odu.edu/PIRE/educational-initiatives/reu/.
• Must be in good academic standing.  Students on academic probation, warning or any other form of institutional sanction are not able to participate.
• Must be a full-time rising sophomore, rising junior, or rising senior majoring in biological sciences (marine biology, genetics, or related field desirable).  Transfer students accepted to the institution that would start in the fall are eligible to apply.  May/June graduates of the participating year are not eligible to apply. 
• Students from groups underrepresented in STEM fields are particularly encouraged to apply.

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Form Instructions (FILE UPLOADS ARE REQUIRED; PLEASE READ CAREFULLY BELOW):

This program is ONLY FOR FULL TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS THAT DO NOT ATTEND Arizona State University, Old Dominion University, Rutgers University, or Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi. Students from these aforementioned institutions should apply to our sister program, Philippines PIRE REU: https://sites.wp.odu.edu/PIRE/reu/

Requirements for a complete application:

1. Completely fill in the mandatory sections of this form and click submit at the end. Mandatory questions are noted by a red asterisk. We recommend completing the optional questions as well. You will not be able to save your work in progress. You will need to answer all mandatory questions as well as submit items 2-3 below to complete the application.
   
2. Be prepared to upload the following documents with this form; scanned or electronic versions are acceptable. Ensure you have them ready for upload prior to continuing. Only .doc and .pdf files will be accepted.
   
   a) College transcripts for all accredited institutions attended (required). Unofficial transcripts are accepted.
   They must be submitted in a single document.
   
   b) A resume or Curriculum Vitae (required). Name your files as follows: YourLastName_YourFirstName_DocumentType.extension example: Bird_Chris_resume.pdf
   
3. Arrange for at least two individuals who can provide you with a written and/or telephone reference. The most effective references are those who can speak about your potential for the IRES program (i.e. field scientific research). Usually, these will be college professors or other mentors. Academic references are preferred. At least one reference must be of doctoral (PhD) level. Reference forms are to be filled out directly by the references, not by the applicant. Provide the contact information for your references below, and we will reach out to them. We highly recommend that you speak to your references and obtain their approval before listing their contact information on this application.

This program requires participants to travel to the Republic of the Philippines. A passport is required to participate. Passports must be valid for at least six months after the date of return to the US set by the program. A passport is not required to apply for the program.

Questions about the application process should be sent to philippines.phires@gmail.com. Other methods of application are not valid and will result in an unprocessed application. Application documents must be received by the program application deadline: December 31, 2022.

The Ph-IRES program encourages application by students from groups underrepresented in STEM fields.