First- and Second-year Research Placement Program

This program provides first- and second-year students the opportunity to apply for paid research positions that will start in Spring 2026.  In its first year, the program will be administered through the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards, which will work with students to apply to research positions at UT San Antonio and beyond. Students can apply to up to 3 research positions, with final match determination made by the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards and participating faculty. 

Selected students will commit to spending 10 weeks in a research project at 10-15 hours per week. Students will earn $1000 for participating in the program, paid either as a scholarship (beginning and end of term) or as an hourly wage by the department. Students may have the option for continuing in the research experience after the program ends, either as volunteers or through other funding sources by the academic department.    

The goals of this program are to:

  • introduce new students to undergraduate research.
  • mentor students on how to find and apply to research opportunities both at UT San Antonio, nationally, and internationally.
  • mentor students in their first semester of research on how to continue their reseach as an undergraduate and beyond. 

Please contact onca@utsa.edu with questions.

Eligibility

  • Students must be in their first or second year at UT San Antonio OR in their first year in the Honors College. 
  • Students cannot have prior research background at UT San Antonio. 
  • If receiving funding, students must be eligible to work at UT San Antonio or receive a scholarship.
  • Students must attend a "How to get involved in Undergraduate Research" info-session and have a 15 minute consultation to review application before submitting (see "How to apply"). 

Available Positions for Spring 2026

For Spring 2026, there are 10 positions available. 

Research Area Faculty  Link
Neuroscience (chemotherapy/radiation treatment on the taste system; connectivity and plasticity of gustatory innervation to mammalian taste buds; Investigating the innervation and function of trigeminal sensory neurons in the temporomandibular joint)

Lindsey MacPherson, Ph.D.

 Faculty website; requirements (see faculty tab).
Neuroscience (Unifying neuronal simulation environments in Python; Computational and experimental neuroscience of the cerebellum) Fidel Santamaria, Ph.D. Faculty website, requirements
Physics, Molecular biophysics Lorenzo Brancaleon, Ph.D.

Professor website, lab website
Chemistry, Biochemistry Oleg Larionov, Ph.D. Faculty website; lab website
Aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, pollution, invertebrates, and botany Jeffrey Hutchinson, Ph.D. lab website
Electrical and Computer Engineering: Internet of Things Security; Healthcare Security; Blockchain Technology; Autonomic Computing and Self-Protection Systems Guenevere Chen, Ph.D., Stacy Wilson, Ph.D. faculty website; lab website
Biophotonics and nanotechnology: Optical imaging and biosensing for various biomedical applications Jingyong Ye, Ph.D. faculty website; lab website 

   Students can learn more about research programs through the links above. If applying for the program, please do not contact participating faculty about the match process.  

Timeline 

November 2025: students will be mentored on how to identify research positions, create a resume. draft a cover letter, and how to contact faculty.  

December 4: application due date. Students will submit resume and cover letter(s), applying to up to 3 positions.

December 15-January 5: students will be told of placement opportunities. Students may be contacted by faculty for a Zoom interview or additional questions.

January 5: students will work with Honors College / UTSA to fill out employment paperwork.

Jan 20: first day of classes and research experiences begin.

Post-submission requirements

Students accepted to the program are required to:

  1. fulfill their work in the research group for the duration of the Spring semester. 
  2. participate in a 1-hour meeting on Friday, once a month (4 total). These meetings will provide additional professional training related to research. 
  3.  present their research at the Honors College Experiential Learning Fair within 1-year of participation. 

How to apply:

Students must attend a "How to get involved in Undergradaute Research Workshop", hosted throughout November in the Honors College and online.  Students must also attend a 15 minute consult meeting to go over their resume/cover letter before submission. 

Info session times:

1. Tuesday, November  11 (10-11am): Zoom link

2. Wednesday, November 12 (1-2pm): Zoom link

3. Tuesday, November 18 (12-1pm): Zoom link

4. Monday, November 24 (11-12pm): Zoom link

Required documents:

  • Resume Template
  • Cover Letter Template

Students will submit applications to onca@utsa.edu as an attachment.

Application documents will be sent to students who attend required info session.

Additional Research Opportunities

In addition to applying to this program, students should consider applying to the following additional research opportunities. As part of the Research Match program, we will mentor students to apply to these opportunities at the same time as applying to UT San Antonio positions.  Students can also view the Office of Nationally Competitive Awards guide: advice on applying to REUs.

 

 

UTSA Honors College graphic

Opportunities within the Honors College

The Honors College offers students the opportunity to participate in a number of different programs to further expand knowledge, especially in the realms of professional development, leadership development, and public service. Special programs are fully integrated into the Honors College curriculum, making credit transfer simple and ensuring that students are working toward Honors requirements.

Find out more about our programs