Rev 5/15/19
Puerto Rico Center
for Environmental Neuroscience
PRCEN
Application for Graduate Students
We are accepting applications from MS. and Ph.D. students in Environmental Neuroscience for fellowships starting:
August 1, 2022, and ending July 31, 2023
Applications should be sent to:
The Admission Committee will examine all complete applications, submitted electronically to the above address and before the deadline
Deadline: June 30, 2022 (Midnight (AST))
All applicants have to be sponsored by a PI from UPR or UMET who is based in Puerto Rico.
Projects performed with one of the PRCEN-participating PIs will get priority for admission.
Projects performed with qualifying but non-participating-PRCEN PIs will be considered and are encouraged if they meet the basic requirements of having (1) an environmental and a neuroscience component and (2) are a good fit for the proposed specific aims (SPAs) of the PRCEN-II grant.
Major evaluation criteria will be:
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Neuroscience and Environmental components of the proposed project
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Fit to the proposed aims of the PRCEN-CREST grant
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Robustness of the proposal
Application instruction and documents needed. Please submit electronically (to prcen.rcm@upr.edu) all the following 7 items (1 to 7):
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Project description (one single page clearly stating: the title's project, background, and significance, 2-3 SPAs, and possible conclusion).
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A letter of recommendation from the sponsoring PI (who will briefly describe his/her commitment to the proposed project). The second letter of recommendation from another Professor/PI. Recommendation letters should be on letterhead, submitted directly by the PI to the program (Dr. Maria A. Sosa), but it remains the applicant’s responsibility to make sure that both letters are submitted on time.
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Biosketch (NSF-Standard), which should contain all necessary administrative information, namely: (1) full name, (2) student number, (3) enrollment status (University/campus/program/year ), and (5) email contact. Please, do not provide the SSN.
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Career objectives Statement (one page, which should clearly describe the short-term and the long-term professional objectives with a timeline, and the intended means to reach them.
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A most up-to-date listing of courses and grades to conduct a preliminary review of compliance with the minimal GPA and GPS of 3.00. It could be a student copy of a transcript, the official transcript, or the data provided by the university student portal, as long as all the course names, codes, numbers of credits, and grades are included. An official transcript needs to be sent to corroborate the preliminary information provided to the following address:
Dr. Maria A. Sosa
Deptment of Anatomy & Neurobiology
Office A561, Main Building
University of Puerto Rico
School of Medicine
PO Box 365067
San Juan P.R. 00936-5067
An application will be considered complete when all 7 documents have been submitted electronically to the proper email address (prcen.rcm@upr.edu).
The Admission Committee will evaluate only complete and submitted on-time applications.
Selected candidates will be invited for interviews with up to 3 different members of the Admission Committee, before final approval.
Upon admission, the graduate research fellow and his/her mentor will sign a binding agreement form certifying that upon accepting the fellowship the student and the PI will follow all guidelines and rules.
Note: Applications for graduate fellowships for the following full academic year (renewal, and new) will be an independent process, that will start during the Summer and be on the webpage, promptly.
All fellows will submit a bi-annual progress report (PR) and the sponsoring PI will submit a written evaluation of the student’s performance. Both will be due no later than May 31, 2023.
Evaluation of the bi-annual Progress Reports will be performed by the Evaluation Committee as an important part of the fellow-initiated application for a one-year fellowship renewal.
No fellowship will be automatically renewed from one academic year to the next.
All applicants (new or renewal) must follow the same rules and deadlines described above.