Join the Program
How to Apply
You can apply to ASRP in the spring of 9th grade. The application consists of 5 parts.
- Attending WESEF Practice Night for Perspectives Students and Families meeting.
- Writing reflections on 2 projects viewed at practice night.
- A series of essays showcasing your identity, your thinking, and your aptitude and interest in STEM.
- A mini research slide presentation of a popular science article.
- Teacher recommendations and, finally, an in-person interview.
Recommendations from your science and mathematics teachers are strongly considered, but students from a wide range of ability levels and academic achievements are considered as long as they demonstrate determination, readiness, maturity, and strong personal responsibility.
Once accepted, you will choose a tentative STEM area of interest (or a few) and complete 2-3 summer assignments before being able to enroll in Science Research I during your sophomore year.
Over the summer, in July, you will read and summarize 10+ science articles on your topic(s), from popular science journals, magazines, and books. This will help you to explore new areas and begin developing questions that appeal to you, and which may later turn into potential research projects!
If you are already certain about your interest in a certain topic, you will be given the opportunity to go deeper into learning about that topic by reading review articles and other college-level material, filling in the gaps along the way.
In August, accepted students will choose 1-2 topics of interest and do a broad territory and feasibility analysis of the research being conducted in their field(s) of interest. Based on the July readings (in most cases), students will deeply analyze who the leading researchers are in their field and where said research is being conducted. This will help students and families assess the feasibility and likelihood of finding a mentor and lab in their subject area of interest.
Students are encouraged to focus primarily on exploring labs in and around the greater NYC metropolitan area for logistical ease and access to labs, however, students can and have traveled all over the world to work with their mentors either in-person or virtually.