Student Selection
Application Review & Interviews
Timeline: Late-February, Early-March
MPower will email each mentor an Excel spreadsheet and zip file containing application materials for all students who applied to their project. This will include:
- Student Project Ranking of Mentor’s project. Students were asked to rank their top three project choices (e.g. 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice). Mentors will receive a list of applicants to their project, along with how each student ranked their project and other projects.
- Statement of interest.
- Resume or CV.
- Applicant Contact Info (e.g. First and Last Name, Email Address, Phone Number).
Mentors should carefully review application materials to assess student fit for project.
To help ensure a good match, mentors are asked to interview 3–5 students. Interviews may be conducted by phone, video, or in person.
During the interview mentors should discuss:
Attendance & Schedule:
- Clarify your anticipated weekly schedule and availability.
- Reinforce the full-time commitment: 400-hours over 10-weeks.
- Explain standard working hours (e.g. Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM).
- Mentors are expected to provide the same full-time commitment (10-weeks, 400- hours) expected of students. If mentors anticipate planned time away during the program period, please communicate your schedule with your student(s) and MPower.
- Students’ summer schedules should be discussed to ensure understanding of commitment and to proactively identify any planned time away.
- Flexibilities to hours and schedule may be considered on a case-by-case basis, and the research period may be extended with your approval, but the stipend will not change.
Project Format & Delivery
- Discuss the details for project delivery: in-person or hybrid expectations, campus location, frequency, etc.
- Ensure students understand expectations for communication and engagement.
**MPower promotes and strongly encourages that students will travel to the opposite campus to support this project and to meet with their mentor, other members of the research team and other students, and to experience the campus.**
Mentor Rankings
Timeline: Mid-March
Mentors should:
- Email Adrianne Arthur a list of the students interviewed, ranked in order 1-5 with 1 being your top selection. If you interviewed more than the ranked students, please share a complete list.
- If you are interested in, or able to support more than 1 student for your project, please communicate this in the email, and indicate your top choices noting #1, #2, etc.
- Mentors are under no obligation to take a student if it is not a good fit.
**Students frequently apply to multiple projects, so rankings for all projects must be in hand before we can start offering projects to students.**
Student Award Notification
Timeline: Late-March
MPower will notify selected students based on ranking submitted by mentors and make the offer.
**Historically, we have found that many of the same students are top ranked across multiple projects. If a student is top ranked on multiple projects, they will need to make a choice before we can begin offering a position to the next student in your ranking.**
Student Placement
Timeline: Early-April
Student-Mentor Agreements
Once a student confirms their placement, MPower will initiate the formal agreement process using DocuSign to outline the terms of the upcoming summer research experience. This agreement includes key details such as project expectations, timeline, format and delivery, roles and responsibilities to ensure that MPower, the student and the mentor have a shared understanding.
The agreement will be first sent to the student; after the student signs, the agreement will automatically go to the mentor for review and signature and then will be returned to MPower.
Notes for Onboarding
Timeline: Mid-May
To ensure your student is ready to begin their research on May 26, 2026, mentors should coordinate onboarding and access needs in advance.
Mentors are encouraged to:
- Work with your department’s business or operations officer to help your student gain access to:
- UMB, UMCP, or MDH Building and/or Lab access.
- Files, and other necessary systems or equipment.