Uintah Basin Student Research Internship Program

Undergraduate Research Program

Join a team of researchers this summer at USU Uintah Basin as they explore exciting research questions.

Students have the opportunity to work in with a faculty member at USU Uintah Basin for an eight-week, paid summer internship. During that time students will make new discoveries and meet senior researchers from across the state of Utah. 

Five students are selected for the program. Students choose a mentor for a summer project and are paid to work with them. Students design a summer project with their mentor and the program culminates when students present their work to the USU Uintah Basin research community.

2024 Program

Wednesday, June 5 - Thursday, August 1


2024 UBRI Application >>

*You will be prompted to select your program preference on your application. Please rank from 1 to 5, with one being your first choice.

Dates & Deadlines:

Applications Open: Wed., February 21
Applications Due: Wed., March 20 by 5pm
Applicants Accepted: Fri., April 5

For more information, contact Shana at shana.geffeney@usu.edu or call (435) 722-1784.

Research Program Options

Wildlife Ecology

Advisor: Mark Chynoweth

Join USUUB researchers and biologists from federal and state agencies to help monitor wildlife species across the Uinta Basin. Student researchers will learn how to set up remote camera traps (game cameras) in the field, manage a complex database of photos, and interpret data to help biologists manage wildlife.

Evolution and/or Ecology of Reptiles and Amphibians

Advisor: Charles Hanifin

Students working in my lab will have the opportunity to work on projects related to the evolution and ecology of regional reptiles and amphibians. The primary focus of my research in 2024 will be projects associated with the amphibian and reptile diversity at four national parks located in Utah and Colorado. Students working on these projects will have the opportunity to do extensive field work and learn basic tools associated with field studies of reptiles.

Ecology Projects

Advisor: Becky Williams

Students in the Williams lab have different project options. They might study the chemical ecology of blue-lined octopuses, which possess the potent neurotoxin, tetrodotoxin (TTX). Students could use high performance liquid chromatography to quantify TTX in this octopus species and investigate why TTX levels vary between sexes and over ontogeny. Alternatively, students may work with Dr. Williams and federal Wildlife Biologists to study spatial ecology. For example, students may survey and tag pollinators of conservation interest, such as Monarch Butterflies, or establish an automated hummingbird tracking station. Projects will be determined in consultation with the student intern.

Nervous System Evolution

Advisor: Shana Geffeney

Students will use various techniques, including protein modeling and electrophysiology, to learn how evolutionary change occurs in the nervous system. We will use a “protein time-machine” approach to model the structure of an ancient snake ion channel, as well as express the channel protein and record its activity. The goals of the project are to understand how this protein evolved resistance to a neurotoxin by comparing the ancient protein to modern forms of the channel.

Local History, Cultural Heritage, and Federal Government

Advisor: Amanda Katz

Students working in the Katz history lab will learn how to apply historical methods for the purposes of constructing a well-informed historical narrative. Specifically, this research project will include reading, organizing, cataloging, and interpreting federal archival documents that pertain to the two local federal Indian Boarding Schools in the Uintah Basin. Students will also have opportunities to explore the use of digital history tools and local archives to assist them in their historical interpretations.