Note: The terms Fellow and Trainee are used interchangeably in the CLIMATE-CARE Program (trainee reflects NSF NRT terminology). Penn’s wider Graduate Student and Postdoctoral communities can participate in some of the CLIMATE-CARE Programming without being a formal Fellow-Trainee (e.g., courses, some monthly meetings, Annual Symposium).
Applications to join the CLIMATE-CARE Program starting in January 2025 will be accepted during the Fall 2024 semester.
Eligibility to Apply: Penn graduate students whose research interests align with the general CLIMATE-CARE scientific goal of innovating and translating basic research into climate solutions. Applicants should also be interested in and open to learning about tackling societal issues associated with the products of such research.
Second and third year PhD students who would like to build a substantial part of their research around pursuing cutting-edge research in the modeling, design and fabrication of environmentally friendly materials and composites, and structures for responsive and/or living building components to mitigate the critical challenges of global warming associated with extreme urban environments are especially invited to apply. Students in their fourth year are also welcome to apply.
There are no citizenship restrictions for application. Stipend and/or tuition funded by NSF NRT programs are limited to U.S. citizens, nationals and permanent residents, but there is a limited amount of support available for other citizens.
CLIMATE-CARE Fellow positions will come with access to research, travel and Immersive Experience funding. A selected number of positions will also include funding towards the students’ stipend and tuition. The other CLIMATE-CARE positions depend on departmental or PI-based support of the student’s stipend and tuition (i.e., would be non-NRT funded).
If you are offered a position, details will be clear on your offer letter and available to you and your PI before you decide to accept the offer.
Expectations: CLIMATE-CARE Fellows (and their PIs) should be fully supportive of the overall NSF’s NRT goals and excited to participate and grow the NRT CLIMATE-CARE community at Penn. Please read and explore these NSF NRT pages on Impact and Innovation, including the left side-bar information (About the NRT and Program Building Blocks).
Participation as a Fellow would include some or all of these components, depending on how early or far along a trainee is in their PhD program when they start the CLIMATE-CARE program:
- Completion of the Sustainability Design and Engineering Certificate which includes formal coursework
- Participation in one of three Immersive Experiences – (1) internship at institution external to Penn (e.g. National Labs, Dow, KT, Corning, GBU) (2) undergraduate research mentoring or (3) entrepreneurial immersion (e.g. PCI fellows Program, NSF I-Corps program)
- Completion of Individualized Professional Development (IPD) elements which include IPD seminar participation with soft skill training, completion of an individualized development plan annually, and presentation in the NRT annual symposium
- Workshops and community engagement/other outreach aligned with the NRT CLIMATE-CARE areas held by interdisciplinary centers such as AESOP, The Water Center, and PICS
- Active participation in the evaluation and assessment process of our CLIMATE-CARE program.
Applicants should first discuss the NRT CLIMATE-CARE program and their application with their Penn faculty supervisor(s). Applicants will need the support of their PIs to be competitive in their applications.
Deadline: All materials must be received by 5 pm, December 2, 2024 (Philadelphia time).
Application Components: Applicants should submit the following items to be considered.
- Completed Application Form
- CV (3-page maximum)
- Current Penn Transcript (unofficial is OK)
- Statements (2-page, single space, 11+ point font, maximum each): 1) Research: Provide a brief summary of your current research, broader research interests and how they are relevant to the CLIMATE-CARE Program. 2) Training: Discuss your longer-term professional plans and how joining a NRT could facilitate these plans including how you might use the Immersive Experience component of the program; feel free to include any thoughts about general/current PhD training available to you.
- Letter of support from your primary faculty supervisor (emailed directly from the faculty member to the email below; if you are co-supervised, you can include a letter from 1 or both). Letters that address support and fit of your specific participation, as well as general support for and willingness to engage in the CLIMATE-CARE Program (as a PI) will provide for the strongest applications.
All materials, other than the form, should be directed to Keith Rosenbaum (climate-care@seas.upenn.edu). Please put your “Last name, First name and NRT Application” in the subject line.
Questions can be directed to K. Rosenbaum at the same email address.