UK Centre for Materials Education
Working with you to enhance the student experience
Working with you to enhance the student experience
This case study ("UROP International exchange programmes") was presented at ICEM 2008. Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programs (UROP) have been in place at Imperial College, London since 1989.
Initially a means of providing summer placements (in industry, or with local employers like the Victoria and Albert Museum) for Undergraduate students, it has now become a more formalised scheme involving exchange programmes with overseas partner institutions, most notably in North America and Australia. These placements are usually taken by students at the end of their first or second years and are not for credit, though a final report is mandatory.
The students have the opportunity to gain experience in research, but without the accompanying pressure of marks or credits, gain overseas experience and enhance their CV. The placements rely on self selection, and it has usually been observed that ambitious and enterprising students choose this opportunity to enhance their careers. It is therefore difficult to quantify the benefits of this scheme, as there is no perceptible difference in performance and marks of the students before and after the UROP placement. However, anecdotal evidence points towards the immense benefits of this scheme. Placement students have reported improved motivation, and in many cases, the placement experience has led to the choice of a research career in the future.
A description of the scheme has been presented at the IUMRS-ICEM 2008 conference, and a retrospective discussion of the same will be disseminated through a journal publication.
