Volunteer and Work Opportunities
High School Students
Summer 2025 Internship Application:
If you are interested in a summer internship, please email candle@usc.edu.
Research & Engineering Apprenticeship Program (REAP) offers summer research apprenticeships at area colleges and universities for students historically underserved in STEM. For more information, visit https://www.usaeop.com/program/reap/
Undergraduate Students
Research Assistant (RA) Position
Applications Closed….Look for more opportunities Spring and Summer 2025
The USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning and Education (CANDLE) is recruiting USC undergraduate research assistants for an upcoming project, Documenting Innovative Secondary Teaching for Students’ Transcendent Thinking, which will investigate the processes involved in innovative secondary teaching and learning. The DIST study will be ongoing through the 2024-2025 academic year, and examine teacher mindsets, knowledge and skills, as well as students’ intellectual growth and development. It will employ qualitative methods, such as interviews and observations, and quantitative methods, such as surveys. Research assistants will work closely and collaboratively with the lead PhD student researcher and other students, and receive training for qualitative data preparation and analyses. Eligible USC undergraduate research assistants will be expected to work 8-10 hours per week and may receive up to $500 per semester. Interested research assistants can submit a short one-paragraph description of why they are interested in the DIST study and their relevant experience in the Research Assistant Application form by September 2nd at 5 pm.
If you would like the opportunity to be considered for an RA position at CANDLE, please fill out the application form and we will reach out to you regarding your interest.
Funding Opportunities available for Undergraduate Students
The SOAR program provides funding to Dornsife undergraduates for participation as a research assistant in a faculty member’s project during the fall and spring semesters of the academic year. For more information, visit https://dornsife.usc.edu/soar
SURF is an opportunity for USC Dornsife students to pursue research in conjunction with Dornsife faculty members, either on or off campus during the summer semester. For more information, visit https://dornsife.usc.edu/surf-shure/
The Office of the Provost will provide a limited number of fellowships for undergraduate research each academic year in the fall, spring and summer terms. For more information, visit https://undergrad.usc.edu/experience/research/undergrad_research/
The Undergraduate Research Associates Program is administered by the USC Office of Undergraduate Programs. The goal of this program is to provide resources that enable faculty to integrate undergraduates into their scholarly and professional activities. For more information, visit https://undergrad.usc.edu/faculty/urap/
Graduate and Post-Doctoral Students
Mary Helen admits students through these programs:
- USC Neuroscience Graduate Program: https://ngp.usc.edu/
- USC Rossier School of Education’s Urban Education Policy program: https://rossier.usc.edu/programs/doctoral/urban-ed-policy/
- USC Dornsife Department of Psychology’s Brain and Cognitive Science program: https://dornsife.usc.edu/psyc/brain-and-cognitive-science/
For more information, visit the Accepting Applications document. Feel free to contact Mary Helen at immordin@usc.edu if you are interested in applying.