LSU Beckman Scholars Program
The LSU Beckman Scholars program is a 15-month paid immersive leadership and research program within the College of Science. In addition to research experience, Beckman Scholars receive comprehensive professional development opportunities including personalized mentoring; team building; expert guidance in science communication; leadership development; and community engagement.
Two students will be selected per year for this prestigious program. Those selected will receive a stipend of $18,200 broken down as follows:
- First Summer — $6,800
- Academic Year — $4,600
- Second Summer — $6,800
Note: This opportunity involves a full-time summer commitment beginning in summer 2025 and including summer 2026.
Minimum Criteria
- Good academic standing
- Completion of at least one semester with a declared major in biochemistry, biological sciences, chemistry, or microbiology
- Full-time undergraduate student
- Citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. or its possessions
- Strong verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills
- Plans to pursue a PhD, MD, MD/PhD, or another scientific career path
Note: The selection committee will implement a holistic review of applicants.
Application Requirements
- Completion of the following online application. The application includes three essay questions. It may be useful to download the following pdf of the application before you start.
- Resume (uploaded with application)
- Unofficial Transcript (uploaded with application)
- Two Letters of Recommendation: You will be asked to provide the names and emails of your recommenders on the online application. We will reach out to them for the letters.
Application Deadline: Monday, March 3, 2025.
Program Expectations
- Pursue an undergraduate research project developed with and under the direction of a Beckman approved Mentor.
- Participate fully in all activities associated with the SCI Lead Leadership Learning Laboratory including assessments and workshops focused on understanding leadership styles, conflict management, and a January retreat for professional development.
- Participate in the LSU Discover Program for the duration of the award including the summer research program orientation, LSU Discover summer workshops, end-of-summer symposium (SURF), and LSU Discover Day.
- Attend annual Beckman Symposium in each of the two summers of the award term.
- Comply with Beckman reporting requirements and LSU employee trainings.
Mentor Research Areas
Beckman scholars will be matched with an individual mentor from biological sciences, chemistry, or medical physics. Specific mentor research areas are as follows:
- Dr. Prosanta Chakrabarty - Ichthyology/Evolution: Evolution and biogeography of freshwater and marine fishes.
- Dr. SeYeon Chung - Mechanisms of organ formation during embryogenesis using Drosophila.
- Dr. Patrick DiMario - Molecular-Cell Biology: Using Drosophila melanogaster to study nucleolar stress - when cells (especially neuroblasts) fail to produce sufficient ribosomes needed for protein synthesis.
- Dr. Bret Elderd - Disease ecology and evolution, quantitative ecology: We examine how disease outbreaks and environmental variation influence populations focusing on host-pathogen interactions and population viability.
- Dr. Noemie Elgrishi - Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Electrochemistry: Addressing challenges in environmental chemistry such as water purification, adsorption of contaminants and separation, energy storage, and solar fuels production and catalysis.
- Dr. Rendy Kartika - Synthetic Organic Chemistry: Synthesis of complex molecules with diverse structural architectures that are suitable for high-throughput screening in drug discovery research.
- Dr. Morgan Kelly - Marine physiology and ecology, evolutionary responses to climate change.
- Dr. Christine Lattin - Neuroendocrinology and Behavior: Understanding how different neurotransmitters and hormones help wild animals successfully cope with challenges from predators to disease.
- Dr. Victor Garcia-Lopez - Organic Chemistry and Chemical Biology: Design and synthesis of artificial molecular machines to control cell function with light to treat diseases such as cancer and development of new photocatalysts.
- Dr. Fatima Rivas - Medicinal Chemistry/Chemical Biology: Using natural products as probes to delineate mechanisms underlying metabolic processes relevant to human disease.
- Dr. Graca Vicente - Organic Chemistry: research involves the total synthesis of organic molecules that are colorful, the study of their spectroscopic properties, and their conjugation with biomolecules, such as proteins. These conjugates have potential applications in the detection and treatment of various cancers.
- Dr. David Vinyard - Biochemistry: Investigating the chemical mechanisms used by plants and some microbes to convert solar energy to chemical energy through photosynthesis.
For further information about the LSU Beckman Scholars Program, please contact Valerie Stampley at vderou1@lsu.edu.
The LSU Beckman Scholars Program is supported by
To learn more about the Arnold & Mable Beckman Foundation, visit:
https://www.beckman-foundation.org/about-foundation/mission-philosophy/.