The RNA Bioscience Initiative (RBI) Summer Internship Program is a 10-week hands-on, mentored research opportunity for undergraduates who want to gain real-world laboratory experience in RNA biology, chemistry, biochemistry, genomics, and bioinformatics.
The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is located in the Denver metro area. Interns are mentored by faculty from the biomedical research departments at CU Anschutz, including researchers studying fundamental aspects of biology and the molecular bases of cancer, developmental biology, autoimmunity, and infectious disease. Please visit our Faculty page for a complete list of possibilities.
Undergraduate students with a strong interest in RNA research are encouraged to apply for this program. The program is especially intended for undergrads wishing to gain research experience in advance of applying to graduate school. Applicants may designate three preferred potential mentors from the RBI-faculty, or they may contact an RBI faculty member ahead of applying to pre-arrange an internship match (please note this on the application). All matches are made only after selection from the entire applicant pool.
The RNA Bioscience Initiative was started in January 2016 with $20 million in funding from the Dean’s Office of the University of Colorado School of Medicine. The mission of the RBI is to cultivate a vibrant center of discovery and innovation in RNA biology, informatics, diagnostics, and therapy. Our goal is to provide a fluid pipeline from basic to clinical RNA research on our campus and beyond, and to train the next generation of researchers.
Application Deadline: February 15, 2022
*Please note activities may be revised due to COVID safety restrictions
The RNA Bioscience Initiative Summer Internship Program (RBISIP) offers internships to provide research experience and an opportunity for undergraduate students to explore and apply academic theory in a biomedical research lab.
Application Information
A committee of RBI faculty will select highly qualified undergraduates for RBISIP 2022 positions. Demonstrated interest of the applicant in RNA Bioscience in the application essay will factor strongly.
Applicants will be contacted by email starting the week of February 21, 2022, continuing until all slots are filled. Applicants will have seven days to accept the internship offer and will be asked to sign a letter of acceptance agreeing to complete the program requirements. If the applicant needs to make a decision on another offer for a summer program before being contacted by the RBISIP, they may contact the RBI to request an expedited decision. Please note that RBISIP is a full-time training program that spans 10 weeks. Therefore, fellows may not combine their research work with any other daytime commitments.
Eligibility and Requirements
All college undergraduates who will be re-enrolling Fall 2022 are eligible to apply. RBISIP can only accept U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Interns are required to attend orientation and weekly lectures given by RBI researchers and/or mentors. Applicants whose institution is in session into June may request approval for a late start date. Interns must present their work at the end of the internship to members of the RBI. Any publications, patents, posters, talks or projects that result from an intern's participation in RBISIP must credit the program by including the funding acknowledgement.
Application
The application deadline for Summer 2022 is February 15, 2022.
You must complete the application in program portal. Application components include:
Stipend and Housing
Interns will be paid a stipend of $4,000 via direct deposit in three installments. Housing is included, for those interns who require it. In addition, for those traveling from some distance, the flight to/from Denver to begin and end the program will be arranged by the Program at no cost to the intern.
Important Dates:
Applications Due: | February 15, 2022 |
Applicants will be contacted starting: | February 21, 2022 |
Start of Internship: | June 1, 2022 |
End of Internship: | August 5, 2022 |
Mentor: Craig Jordan; Maria Amaya
Project: The Effect of SF3B1 Dysregulation on Energy Metabolism in Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS)
Mentor: Allison Porman Swain
Project: Investigating RME2 and IME4 in Candida albicans
Mentor: Matthew Taliaferro
Project: Understanding the Mechanisms of mRNA Localization in Mouse Neuronal Cell Lines
Mentor: Neel Mukherjee
Project: Localization of MSI2 in Human Adrenocortical Cells
Mentor: David Bentley
Project: Constructing Lentivirus Expression Vectors for Wild-type and Mutant Versions of the Conserved Transcription Elongation Factor Rtf1
Mentor: Olivia Rissland
Project: The Effect of 2A Sequences on Peptide Bond Formation in Giardia lamblia
Mentor: Aaron Johnson
Project: Investigating the Role of R-Loops in PRC2 Regulated Gene Silencing
Mentor: Beat Vogeli
Project: Investigating a Unique Role for Z-RNA Conformations in Cell Necroptosis and Viral Infection
Mentor: Traci Lyons
Project: CSTF2 and Polyadenylation
Mentor: Suja Jagannathan
Project: Elucidating the Role of DUX4-Induced Splicing Factor SRSF8 in SRSF3 Splicing
Mentor: Linda van Dyk
Project: Characterization of RNA-Mango as an RNA Tag for Isolation and Imaging of Viral ncRNAs