Apply to the Summer Research Program
Who Can Apply
The Summer Research Program is for students who have completed Grade 11 and are heading into Grade 12 the next school year.
- We accept applications from young women and gender-diverse students interested in science, engineering, and technology fields.
- Students from anywhere in Alberta can apply.
- Out-of-province students are welcome to apply provided they meet the equivalent eligibility requirements. Please email wisest@ualberta.ca if you have questions.
- Students must have a Canadian Social Insurance Number in order to be eligible for the program.
How to Apply
- Speak with two teachers (science and/or math) who agree to be your references. Provide their contact details in this form.
- Fill in the online application. This will include some personal details, some questions about placement preferences, short answer questions to help our adjudicators get to know you better, and a place to upload your personal response and grades.
- Complete your personal response and upload it to the online application form. See below for further details about the personal response requirements.
- Submit your grades to the online application form. See below for further details about what can be submitted for grades and how eligibility is calculated.
Transcript Details
Please provide us with both of the following to meet your transcript requirements:
- A transcript
that shows all of your high school grades. This could be:- A Detailed Academic Report from the Government of Alberta, or
- Official Transcript from MyPass
- A dated screenshot of your school's grade portal with your most up-to-date interim marks.
Interim grades can be submitted until April 5, 2023, if your teachers have not updated your grades prior to then. Transcripts must still be submitted along with the rest of your application by March 24. Please indicate in your application if you are submitting your interim grades after the application deadline.
Application Deadline
The deadline to apply to the Summer Research Program, including submitting all supporting documents, is 11:59 pm, MST, March 24, 2023. Applications submitted before the deadline are appreciated. Interim marks may be submitted up to April 5 if your teachers haven’t updated their marks, but please submit transcripts by March 24.
Teacher Reference Contact Form
VIEW THE 2023 APPLICATION CHECKLIST
Selection Process
- Grade 11 Mathematics 20-1 grade
- Top two Grade 11 (20-level) science grades
***If you have taken Mathematics 30-1 or a 30-level science course and that grade is higher than your 20-level grade in a given subject, you may submit the 30-level grade and we will use that grade in the calculation of your average.
Applicants must be willing to fully commit to the entire 6 weeks of the program (no holidays or conflicting commitments).
Due to the intensive nature of the 6-week program, we highly discourage students from working other part-time jobs or having other involvements (volunteer, sports, summer school, etc) that demand more than 10 hours a week.
A personal response must be submitted to WISEST (through the online application form).
- You can choose to submit a response in written essay form between 500-700 words, typed in 12-
point Calibri font or, - through other media ie) video (.mp4) or podcast (.mp3) no longer than 3.5 minutes in length. Ensure you submit an appropriate media file, if we can’t open the file we cannot review it. These media will only be used for screening applications.
What does the response need to address? Choose 2-3 of the following to respond to:
- What topic in science or math do you currently find the most interesting and why? When and how did you become aware of this topic and how have you explored it on your own since?
- What inspired your love of STEM? You can talk about a STEM memory, a class you have taken, a topic you’re interested in, a problem you want to solve, etc.
- Please tell us what you not only hope to get out of this program but also what you hope to bring to the program.
- What are your career goals and aspirations and how do you see the SRP impacting them?
- How do you imagine your grade 12 self will be different after participating in the program?
- What does success in the program look like to you?
- How do your personal values align with the WISEST values?
- What can you do today that you did not think you could do a year ago? Please reflect on what it looked like to learn and develop this skill and if anyone helped you. How do you encourage yourself when you are trying something new?
While answering 2-3 of the above questions, make sure you are also showing your:
- Personality! We want to get to know you, be sure to answer these questions using your authentic voice vs. saying what you think we want to hear
- Passion for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)
- Alignment with WISEST’s values
- Openness to exploring a variety of STEM fields
- Interest in STEM fields underrepresented by women and gender-diverse people
Each student must submit two letters of reference from their science or math teachers.
Please fill in this Teacher Reference Contact Form. This form will send the reference form to the emails you provide for your teacher references. Please double-check the accuracy of the emails you submit.
We strongly recommend you fill in this form before March 10th, 2023 to ensure your teachers have sufficient time to provide you with a strong reference.
It is your responsibility to ensure your teachers receive the information. Some school districts' email filters are set too high for these emails to be successfully delivered. Please ensure you not only ask your teacher's permission to use them as a reference but also check to ensure they receive the form.
The form teacher references are asked to fill out is also found here.
This is an extremely important evaluation
Please note, WISEST does not provide medical placements.