Undergraduate Research Scholars Program
Join us in shaping our interplanetary future! The Interplanetary Initiative Undergraduate Research Scholars Program (IIURSP) connects current ASU undergraduate students to interdisciplinary research opportunities with an emphasis on our society’s future in space.
We invite current ASU undergraduate students from *all majors and levels* to apply to work on one of the Interplanetary Initiative’s interdisciplinary research projects each fall and spring semester. Selected students can participate in the program for credit (3 credits of IPI 499) or as a volunteer. Scholarships are also available.
How do I apply?
Applications for our Fall 2024 IIURSP cohort will open in July 2024.
This opened my eyes up to the fact that there is so much more to working in space than astronauts.
FAQ
Each semester we will have a different group of Interplanetary Initiative research projects that are seeking support from undergraduate students. You can take a look at our research project portfolio to get a sense of the types of interdisciplinary topics we investigate.
In previous semesters, IIURSP students have contributed to projects like:
- SpaceHACK for Sustainability—How can we involve students in leveraging space technologies to achieve the UN SDGs?
- A Customer Discovery-Led Systematic Analysis Study of the U.S. Space Economy—Who are the customers of the space economy and what are their needs?
- DEIA Service Model Offering—How do we build a JEDI (just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive) space for all of humanity?
- Mars on the Field—How do we galvanize public and private support for space exploration, an arena that can seem inaccessible to most people?
As part of this experience, selected students will receive mentoring in key research skills as well as support for their career growth and professional development.
The exact expectations of your work will depend on the research project you join. All selected students are expected to:
- Commit 6–9 hours per week for the 15-week semester.
- Attend regular, synchronous research team meetings (typically held via Zoom).
- Submit a final project deliverable and statement of impact at the end of the research experience.
To be eligible to participate in this program, you must:
- Be enrolled in an ASU undergraduate degree program during the application term
- Be in good academic standing (i.e. not on academic probation)
This program was seed funded through a grant from The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences OURS program.