OCE Research Experiences for Undergraduates Sites (OCE REU Sites)

The REU Sites program in the Division of Ocean Sciences is part of an NSF-wide program under a single solicitation administered individually by each NSF Directorate and/or Division. In the Geosciences Directorate, each Division administers the program. An REU Site should provide research opportunities with a coherent intellectual theme and may be based in a single discipline or academic department or be interdisciplinary and multi-departmental.

The NSF-wide Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) solicitation governs the overall competition. The following clarifications/explanations are specifically for REU Site proposals submitted to the Division of Ocean Sciences.

• Three years is typically the maximum project duration for OCE REU Sites. Longer durations may be considered, but discussion with the cognizant Program Officer prior to submission is encouraged.
• Usually, at least 80% or more of OCE REU participants come from outside the host institution.
• OCE REU Sites usually host 10 students per year; however, Sites that are located at small field stations or remote locations with limited faculty members sometimes host fewer students. Sites with large numbers of faculty may host more than 10 students. Discussion with the cognizant Program Officer is encouraged prior to submission of the proposal.
• OCE REU mentors normally supervise one REU student. Including additional supervision by postdoctoral fellows or graduate students is encouraged.
• A typical budget in the OCE REU program supports 1 month of summer salary per year for program management by the PI. Sites may distribute this FTE as needed to the PI, co-PI, research mentors, and other student assistants or program assistants. Evaluation costs are considered separate.
• OCE REU Site budgets at remote field stations tend to be above the $1,300 per student per week guideline in the REU solicitation. Budgets in excess of the guideline may also be justified for extraordinary circumstances such as international sites, support for student cohorts with unusual needs, or dispersed sites.

Interested PIs are advised to explore the Online Directory of OCE REU Sites to determine the scope and breadth of fields funded under our program.

NOTE: All OCE REU Site applicants should submit their proposals to the NSF-wide REU solicitation and choose "OCE - GEO/OCE - Education/Human Resources, OCE" (Directorate: Directorate for Geosciences [GEO]; Division: Division of Ocean Sciences [OCE]) as the appropriate Unit of Consideration.