TIMESTEP Research Apprenticeship

Applications will be open in April 16 - May 25, 2025 for TIMESTEP's 2025-26 Research Apprenticeship Program.

TIMESTEP’s Research Apprenticeship Program began in 2022 under the leadership of Dr. Gurtina Besla and Dr. Ewan Douglas. The program provides 2nd year UArizona astronomy and physics majors a paid opportunity to build technical and professional skills that are transferable to both research and industry. Through weekly professional development workshops, along with skills-building projects in a research group overseen by a faculty advisor, the program teaches the necessary computing and hardware skills for students to land competitive positions. These skills include:

CORE (completed by all interns) 

  • Reading scientific papers
  • Literature review & NASA Astrophysics Data System
  • Linux Command Line/Terminal
  • Python
  • Data visualization (Numpy & Matplotlib)
  • Data Handling (Numpy, Astropy, Pandas)
  • Version control- Git, GitHub, Git Client
  • Overleaf- LaTeX
  • Debugging (reading error messages/Stack overflow)

ADDITIONAL (project-dependent)

  • SSH/Remote Access & HPC
  • Databases/SQL
  • Computer Vision (Image Processing- e.g. Open CV and some Scikit image processing features)
  • Machine Learning (e.g. PyTorch)/AI/Statistical Methods
  • Drafting (r/t Solidworks, CAD)
  • Basic optics
  • Instrumentation/lab skills- soldering, circuitry, signal generator, 3D printing, Raspberry pi & Arduino
  • And more!

Faculty mentors have included Dr. Ewan Douglas, Dr. Tim Eifler, Dr. Eduardo Rozo, Dr. Dan Marrone, Dr. Erika Hamden, Dr. Carl Fields, and Dr. Eric Pearce.

The posters below are from the 2023-24 Research Apprenticeship cohort, presented at our poster session at Steward Observatory on April 18, 2024. Click on each poster to enlarge it for viewing.

Scientific poster by Diego Torres-Barajas, entitled "Characterizing Polarization with Cost-effective Techniques and Future Directions"
Scientific poster by Philip Klaassen and Rohan Desai-Hunt, entitled "Measuring Modulation Transfer Functions for CMOS Image Sensors"
Scientific poster by Namit Chandak, entitled "Double Lognormal Model to Model Dark Matter"
Scientific poster by Pranav Chiploonkar, entitled "Principal Component Analysis of Baryonic Power Spectra"
Scientific poster by Suhani Surana, entitled "Finding a Focus of a Radio Telescope (Offset Fed Parabolic Dish Antennas"
Scientific poster by Drishikaa Thimmaiah, entitled "Filtering Through the Universe: Investigating Filters for Radio Astronomy Instrumentation"
Research poster by Keenan Fiedler- "Creating a Fast Galaxy Simulation for Cosmological Inference"
Research poster by Grace Gibbins, "Neural Network Emulator for SPHEREx Observables"
pdf attached below
Guidelines for Applications
2024-25 TIMESTEP Research Apprenticeship Program

Eligibility: 

  • All applicants must be enrolled as a UArizona student majoring in astronomy and/or physics
  • Must be in your 2nd/sophomore year, as determined by credits, for the year in which you'll participate
  • Prerequisites (can be transfer credits or high school AP exam credits):
    • One of CSC 110, ECE 175, or an equivalent intro to computer programming in Python. This can be taken in the summer, with a record verifying completion submitted before the program begins.
    • Calculus I (Math 122AB or Math 125) and Calculus II (Math 129)
    • Intro Mechanics (Phys 141 or 161H)
  • International students are eligible to apply

Here are some helpful guidelines to help you prepare your application:

  1. Do NOT rush to apply! Applications are due at midnight on May 25th, 2025. There is no advantage to submitting your application significantly earlier. Take advantage of the supports offered and take the time you need to prepare your materials.
     

  2. Work on your resume. This example tech resume is the required format for this application. Please include all relevant information as shown in the example, including your GPA. View some example undergraduate resumes here from former TIMESTEP interns. Be sure to include research experiences, significant class projects, technical skills (including programming languages & operating systems), and jobs and clubs (including in high school). 


    The College of Science Career Center offers students resume writing support. Book an appointment in Handshake. On the website home page, watch a step-by-step video on how to book an appointment in Handshake with Alex.
     

  3. Get an unofficial transcript from the Office of the Registrar to upload: Instructions for online access 
     
  4. Complete the online application by midnight May 25th, 2025- Application link here. You will be asked to upload your resume and transcript, so have those ready in pdf format.

 

TIMESTEP's Research Apprenticeship is supported by the Office of Societal Impact in UArizona's Research, Innovation, and Impact; and the National Science Foundation.