Mentors

SIP was founded by UCSC Astronomy Professor Raja GuhaThakurta 2009 with the recognition that immersion in a university research project could be a transformational experience for bright and motivated high-school students and that such experiences accelerate student development toward becoming effective problem solvers and critical thinkers in all aspects of their lives. Raja brought three high school students to join his lab in 2009. As of 2025, SIP has served roughly 2,400 Interns from around the world and now offers research projects across all five academic divisions of UCSC (Arts, Engineering, Humanities, Physical & Biological Sciences, and Social Sciences).

Being a SIP Mentor means involving three to five high-school students (SIP Interns) in your active UCSC research. SIP does not offer coursework or pre-scripted end-to-end research. While you may need to adjust the work assigned to your Interns to match their interests and skillset, your Interns should actively contribute to this research in one form or another, at your discretion.

Yes! We have long since outgrown our name (Science Internship Program) and offer research to Interns across all 5 academic divisions of the UCSC campus (Arts, Engineering, Humanities, Physical & Biological Sciences, and Social Sciences). To date, SIP has offered research in 28 different subject areas and we are always looking to expand:

Arts

1. AES
2. DANM
3. FILM
4. MUSC

Engineering

1. BME
2. CMPM
3. CSE
4. ECE

Humanities

1. HIS
2. HISC
3. LING
4. LIT
5. PHIL

Sciences

1. ASTR
2. CHEM
3. EART
4. BIOE
5. METX
6. BIOL
7. OCEA
8. PHYS

Social Sciences

1. ANTH
2. ECON
3. EDUC
4. ENVS
5. LALS
6. PSYC
7. SOCY

Yes! Mentors benefit by making forward progress on their research over the summer while simultaneously honing their mentorship skills – an important skillset for anyone looking to pursue research or academia long term. Additionally, SIP Mentors are provided a financial stipend to support their work over the summer (see next question for details).

SIP Interns benefit from the experience of being immersed in university-level research and learning relevant or advances research techniques, understanding the broader context of their project within the overall discipline, and, most importantly, demystifying the nature of collaborative research. Mentors support their Interns’ critical thinking, research skill acquisition, sense of belonging in academia, and passion for their respective research field, thereby developing the world’s future researchers. 

SIP hires Mentors on By Agreement (BYA) status, and provides a stipend for successful completion of their contract/agreement. This is a 30% BYA opportunity with Mentors expected to work 15 hours per week. Mentorship training and in-program support is available.

2026 Stipends:

• Mentor Advisors (Graduate Students): $5,250
• Graduate Student Mentors: $4,750
• Postdocs and Undergraduate Mentors: $2,750 (in lieu of PTO)

Yes, SIP does offer stipends to primary mentors who are graduate students, postdocs, or research staff, but not to faculty. Each research project should list only one primary mentor. The stipend amounts below are for the entire summer and are per primary mentor, independent of how many interns or projects she/he supervises.

Our general framework is SIP will offer each postdoc and research staff a mentor stipend of $2,200 (in lieu of a proportional amount of vacation time) and will offer each graduate student a mentor stipend of $4,000. In terms of appointment percentage, the SIP appointment counts as about 25%, so the remaining GSR and TA appointments for the summer should not exceed 75%.

Yes, Mentors may opt to co-Mentor with one other colleague (up to two Mentors for one single project). In these cases, Mentors will split the total stipend, typically 50/50. If you plan to co-Mentor, you must both submit a Mentor Application with the matching project information.

Mentors must be:

• Engaged in active, open-ended research at UCSC, with a UCSC Faculty Advisor
• Available in person for the length of program: June 15- August 8, 2026
• Work in person with Interns at minimum 3 days per week
• Host 3-5 high school Interns in their research
• Supply Interns with 30 hours of assigned work per week
• Attend Presentation Day: Aug. 8

Mentors are responsible for creating a workable meeting and Office Hours schedule for their Interns. Interns are generally available from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm Monday through Friday.

Your BYA contract will outline specific working hours and scheduling requirements.

SIP is most impactful as an in-person program, even if your research can be conducted remotely or asynchronously. This allows Mentors and Interns to be fully immersed in the university and research setting together, and creates natural avenues for collaboration and network building.

SIP will not accept any research projects that are remote or even hybrid in nature, except in extreme circumstances (ex. 2025 Intern travel restrictions).

The very first week of SIP, however, is remote. This allows Mentors a week to engage their Interns remotely, begin to build relationships and familiarity with one another, provide background/foundational.skills practice assignments, ensure Interns have all necessary research materials or software, and prepare for any required lab or safety trainings for week 2 of program. Interns will move onto campus the weekend between weeks one and two when housing becomes available.

Mentors can have a physical meeting location on Main Campus, Westside Research Park, Coastal Campus, and/or Silicon Valley Extension (UNEX). Transportation will be arranged for Interns leaving Main Campus for their research at one of these other locations.

Mentors working at UNEX should plan to host their Interns at UNEX on Mondays and Fridays, and make arrangements to meet their Interns on Main Campus on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday of each week.

Mentors can request between 3-5 Interns. This is important for several reasons: based on Mentors’ experiences over the past 17 years, 1) this offers the Interns an intimate/small group format for mentorship and instruction, 2) gives Interns a team of peers to collaborate with, and 3) reduces the chances of isolating the minor Intern with an adult during their time on campus. If one Intern is absent, there are still at least two Interns still working with each Mentor.

Interns in lab-based research projects must be supervised at all times when they are in a lab. SIP is bound by UC policy to supervise minors (Interns) 100% of the time. From 9:00am-4:00pm Mentors should know where their Interns are at all times: in the lab, at the library, at lunch, in a designated study area, or another location. Mentors will be asked to track Intern attendance for each of their project meetings, and report any missing Interns immediately. After 4:00pm, Intern supervision becomes the responsibility of the SIP residential team or their parents/guardians.

Mentors should encourage their Interns to follow the Rule of 3: Interns should travel in groups of three at minimum (Interns, staff, or a combination).

In 2025, SIP will be hiring Application Evaluators who are familiar with SIP academic and residential programming. After selecting our Intern pool, Interns will be invited to participate in a placement process, currently scheduled for April 2025. If you are an active (hired) Mentor at this time and would like to review the Interns requesting your research project, please coordinate with the SIP team at hr-crest@ucsc.edu.

The official end date of the 2026 SIP program will be Saturday, August 8th, Final Presentation Day. Mentors have no obligation to continue working with their Interns beyond Presentation Day, although it is our hope you remain part of that Intern’s professional network (if, for example, they would like to ask you for a letter of recommendation, etc.).

Several Mentors choose to continue working with their Interns beyond the dates of SIP. You are welcome to do so at your own discretion. If you need your Interns to keep access to their sundry accounts, please work with the SIP team to transfer ownership of that account to a staff or faculty member in your research group.

Interns must have explicit consent from their Mentors to utilize any aspect of their SIP research for competitions, publications, etc. The research is your (Mentor’s) intellectual property, and Interns are not entitled to any data, materials, resources, etc. outside of the dates of SIP. Please make sure you are explicit with your Interns about what you will and will not allow.

Sometimes, Mentors choose to include their Interns as co-authors or contributors to their research on their own publications or presentations. Results from SIP projects are often worthy of publication as a poster in a scientific conference (e.g., American Astronomical Society or American Geophysical Union meeting) and/or as a journal article. SIP to not hold an expectation for Mentors to publish or present alongside their Interns.

Additionally, SIP Interns who will be rising seniors during the summer typically ask their primary mentor for letters of recommendation for college applications. They may end up including details of their SIP experience in their personal statements.

SIP is open to all high schools worldwide. While the majority of our Interns reside in the U.S. (with the majority coming from California), we have Interns from all over the country and the world participate in research each year.

Intern backgrounds and experiences vary widely. For example,

• Interns attend public, private, charter, boarding, and homeschools
• Many Interns are first-generation college aspirants, over 30% in 2025
• Vary widely in terms of academic and extracurricular interests – we have a lot of athletes, artists, etc. each year
• Roughly 30-35% of our Interns come from low-income households
• Have a racial, ethnic, or gender identity that is historically underrepresented in higher education or research

The SIP program usually attracts very motivated, curious, and focused students. Nevertheless, there are many aspects of working with high school students that the Mentor may want to consider:

• SIP interns are high-school students, not college students, and while SIP allows our Interns to exercise quite a bit of independence, please keep in mind that they are still minors.
  • Interns will need to comply with any lab safety procedures followed in the Mentor’s lab. If the project involves field work, lab work, or sensitive content, Mentors should contact SIP staff to ensure that their safety and oversight measures are appropriate for high-school students.
  • Mentors should follow the Rule of 3: Interns should travel in groups of three at minimum (Interns, staff, or a combination).
• Interns do not always feel comfortable asking you questions or being ‘incorrect’. Set a research environment where you are leaving room for questions, anticipating questions they may have, or are checking with them for understanding of any content or assignments you have covered. It helps to set time for community building throughout the program to build trust within and beyond your research.
• They may need more frequent (gentle) redirection and/or regular breaks than you or your research team are accustomed to.
• Interns in this age group are generally mature, proactive, and easy to communicate with. However, some Interns may need some help communicating and interacting with adults. This SIP FAQ page outlines expectations for Interns to check email regularly and communicate with their Mentor about scheduling, meetings, etc. If you feel an Intern is having trouble with time management or is not communicating effectively, please let the SIP staff know as soon as possible.
• While they are still young, we have found our Interns are more than capable of engaging meaningfully in university-level research. Interns appreciate challenge, recognition, and vulnerability from their Mentors.