In late 2020 the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a plan for a pilot program to provide $3 million for research traineeships to broaden and diversify the nuclear physics research community.  Later, the RENEW program was started, of which the nuclear physics trainee funding is now also part.

The funding supports training and research experiences for undergraduates, with the goal of increasing the likelihood that participants from underrepresented populations will choose to pursue a graduate degree in nuclear physics or another science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) related field.

The nuclear physics group at FIU was funded for two years (2021-2023) in the pilot program, was subsequently also granted a RENEW award for five years (2023-2028). We use part of these funds for four undergraduate traineeships in the group each year.

The internships are natural extensions of the current research program of the nuclear group and cover a range of physics topics in both experiment and theory, with resulting training in skills ranging from hardware assembly to coding for data analysis and theoretical physics studies. These internships include possible research stays at Jefferson Lab. See Research Project Descriptions for more information.

In addition to the training of core skills useful in nuclear physics research, these internships will also focus on the wider picture. Participants will have opportunities to present their results in local and national meetings, will interact and engage with a large nuclear physics network and be exposed to the broad range of nuclear physics career options, both inside and outside of academia. Special attention will be paid to the sense of belonging of minorities at the FIU physics department through a climate survey. Participants will engage with the wider community through outreach components at their former high schools and FIU events, increasing the exposure of nuclear physics as a field and career path.