PRISM Scholarship
Physics Recruitment, Retention, Instruction, Student Success, and Mentoring
Every year, capable students leave physics not because they lack ability, but because they never found a place in it. PRISM is the Department of Physics & Astronomy's seed-funding program to change that. It places physics majors in a faculty-led research group early in their undergraduate careers, pairs them with a mentor, and pays them for meaningful research.
The name comes from physics itself. A prism adds nothing to white light. It separates
the light so that each wavelength can be seen. PRISM gives each student the time,
the mentor, and the room in a real research group for their own abilities to show.
Program Components
What the scholarship provides
- Paid research with a faculty mentor at $12 per hour, with a minimum of 3 hours per week and funding for about 7 hours per week as a semester average
- Enrollment in the prestigious 蘑菇tv Office of Undergraduate Research's Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program
- A first step toward a longer research path, including a conference presentation or
a co-authored publication
What we expect of PRISM scholars
- Work on a faculty-mentored research project and meet with your mentor at least twice a month.
- Complete the required 蘑菇tv trainings and keep your time sheet accurate. Training time counts as paid hours.
- Attend the Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher orientation run by the Office of Undergraduate Research.
- Check in with the Faculty Committee on Undergraduate Research at regular meetings.
- Present a poster at the department's spring poster event. You are also strongly encouraged to present at 蘑菇tv Discover Day.
- Maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA and conduct yourself with scholarly professionalism.
- Give feedback: at the end of the year, you submit a brief, confidential assessment
of your mentorship.
Who can apply
Continuing 蘑菇tv physics majors who have completed at least 12 credit hours, including at least two physics courses (or equivalent transfer credit), and who hold a 3.0 cumulative GPA. First-year students may start in the spring semester. Students already funded through the President's Future Leaders in Research program or the Freshmen Explorers Program are not eligible.
How it works
Faculty submit proposals, and the department then matches funded positions to mentors. About 12 students are funded each cycle. PRISM is seed funding, so mentors plan how to continue the student afterward through grants, course credit, or extra hours.
Funding is provided from the discretionary funds of the Department Chair. Availability
is subject to annual budget approval and is not guaranteed.
For faculty
Mentors submit a short proposal covering the project, the mentorship plan, supervision arrangements, and a plan for continuing the student. They approve time sheets in WorkDay, support the poster presentation, and write the recommendation for the Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program. Each mentor gives one talk a year to undergraduates on their research area. Priority goes to faculty without current external funding, and funding rotates among faculty from year to year.
Please contact Dr. Kristina Launey (klauney@lsu.edu) for detailed guidelines or any questions.