BU Students Hone Research Skills Through 2023 CISS Summer Internships
For some, summer brings time for relaxation and fun in the sun. At CISS, students are using the time to develop valuable work experience, expand their research skills, and strengthen their resume. CISS is excited to support an exceptional group of student research interns this summer through our 2023 Summer Mini-Grant Program. These grants are awarded to BU faculty, postdocs and doctoral students through a competitive process. The grantees then hire students, with the assistance of CISS, to work on the research projects. The program also enables PhD students and postdoctoral fellows the opportunity to develop their research project management skills. The students come from various CAS departments including Computer Science, Economics, Mathematics, Sociology, and International Relations and bring a wealth of interests and skills to the table. Meet just a few of them:
Ashley Carhee (CAS, ’25) is a double major studying International Relations and Sociology with a concentration on International Systems in the United States, Middle East, and Africa. She is interested in exploring career paths in international relations, transnational migration, human rights, research, health, and developmental policy. Through her CISS research internship, mentored by doctoral student Olivia Britton (GRS, Political Science), Ashley is conducting textual analysis for Olivia’s dissertation research on refugee integration in Southern European countries. With Ashley’s interest in human rights and transnational migration, this internship allows her to explore her passion for sociology on a global scale while building on her qualitative research skills.
Sora Heo (CAS, ’24) is finishing up her final year studying International Relations with concentrations in Foreign Policy, Security Studies and Asia. Sora is passionate about inclusive, sustainable economic development. Through her CISS research internship, mentored by assistant professor of international relations Zachary Mondesire (Pardee School of Global Studies), Sora is analyzing a collection of speeches dating back from the former Agha Khan, an Ismaili Muslim religious leader and businessman. Outside of CISS, Sora also conducts research with UROP and has completed a number of think tank and government internships.
Eve Kleiber (CAS, ’25) is majoring in Psychological & Brain Sciences and minoring in English while focusing on developmental psychology and creative writing. She is interested in how people in a child’s microsystem (parents, teachers, peers) may influence cognitive and social development, including mindset, family systems, attachment, and school performance. Through her CISS research internship, mentored by postdoctoral researcher Léa Tân Combette (CAS, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences), Eve will be a research assistant at BU’s Child Cognition Lab (CCL), working on the Evolving Minds project, directed by PBS professor and CISS affiliate Deborah Kelemen. Eve will be finalizing the data coding for the CCL’s scientific curriculum aimed at teaching natural selection to 3rd graders and helping investigate how a teacher’s mindset may produce differences in the curriculum’s efficacy.
To learn more about the CISS Research Intern program or other summer 2023 interns, visit our Research Intern page. Faculty and postdoctoral scholars are encouraged to apply for funding for our academic year 2023-24 undergraduate research internship program.