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The Faculty of Science and Engineering has launched its Summer Research Bursary Programmes that will support 45 undergraduate students research activities from May to the end of August.

The Science and Engineering (S&E) Summer Bursary Programme and the Undergraduate Programme of Summer Training and Research Track (UPSTaRT), aim to provide valuable opportunities for students to engage in cutting-edge research and enhance their academic and professional development.

The S&E Summer Bursary, now in its 11^th year, is designed to support students from second year onwards. The programme offers students the chance to engage in research projects or develop ideas that will strengthen their future grant applications for prestigious Irish Research Council (IRC) PhD grants.

The UPSTaRT Programme is open to all first year undergraduate students within the Faculty of Science and Engineering. The primary objective of this programme is to identify talented students early in their academic journey and give them the opportunity to work closely with faculty mentors in a world-class research environment.

Commenting on the launch of the programmes, Professor Sean Arkins, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering said: "The UPSTaRT and Summer Bursary Research Programmes provide students with valuable insights and hands-on experience into the world of research. These opportunities enable our students to explore their scientific passions, develop critical thinking skills, and contribute to ground-breaking research in our laboratories. We are excited to see the outstanding outcomes they will achieve."

Fourth-year Bioscience student Brian Gleeson will be spending his summer researching before graduating this September: "I am delighted to be participating in the Summer Bursary this year. My project involves researching an inflammatory protein called NLRP3 in cancer cells, and I'm really looking forward to working with Dr Elizabeth Ryan in her laboratory in the Department of Biological Sciences.”

This year will see students across all disciplines in the Faculty participate in the summer bursary programmes from Design to Industrial Biochemistry. In order to qualify, students must have a QCA of 3.20 or above.

For more information, see the Faculty of Science and Engineering summer bursary programmes web page.