The University of Notre Dame’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program, which celebrated 35 years in 2021, provides opportunities for undergraduate physics majors to experience hands-on participation in research in many areas of physics. The REU program gives you valuable research experience, to help you decide if physics research is right for you. You will work closely with faculty and graduate students on a variety of current research projects and benefit from a number of activities organized to enrich your experience. These include: weekly seminars, a course on computer programming, a GRE preparation course, ethics workshops, a workshop on applying to graduate schools, field trips to nearby national laboratories, and the REU Symposium where you will present the results of your research. You will also maintain a logbook and write a project report. In addition, a variety of recreational and social activities are organized to make your stay with us “fun”. Basically, this means that if you are a rising junior or senior, you can come to Notre Dame and work on a research project for ten weeks.

Students are granted a stipend, university housing, and assistance with travel.

The program is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and is available only to physics majors who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents. International students are considered only if clear evidence is provided for financial support from other sources. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Students who are in those groups traditionally underrepresented in sciences (women, members of underrepresented minorities, and those with disabilities) are particularly urged to apply.

About University of Notre Dame / Department of Physics & Astronomy

Notre Dame Physics and Astronomy provides an outstanding and distinctive education to our undergraduate and graduate students while maintaining a broad, vibrant research program as we attempt to answer some of the most fundamental questions in nature. Research spans a number of exciting areas including Astrophysics, Biophysics, Condensed Matter, Nuclear, and High Energy Physics. This research is carried out by 45 tenure and tenure-track faculty members members, 19 teaching and research faculty, along with 100+ graduate students, as well as postdoctoral research associates and technical staff. Our research is collaborative, interdisciplinary, and highly international. Notre Dame physicists are active in collaborations around the globe, including particle physics at CERN, nuclear physics in Japan, condensed matter experiments in France and Switzerland, and telescope observing in South America. We also host many visitors from abroad that come to Notre Dame to work with our faculty and take advantage of the Department’s excellent research facilities.

Connections working at University of Notre Dame / Department of Physics & Astronomy