Research Opportunities
Hopkins Internships - Summer Undergraduate Research Funds
(HI-SURF)
Applications for the 2025 summer cycle are now closed. Thank you for applying!
Submission Deadline: February 14, 2025 by 11:59 pm PST.
At Hopkins Marine Station, we encourage Stanford undergraduates to get a taste of our world-class research—early and often. You can collaborate with grad students, post docs, and faculty on a wide range of research activities during the academic year and over the summer.
Summer
All HI-SURF projects take place Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula, two hours from main campus.
Students will have the opportunity to work directly with faculty, postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and research staff on ongoing faculty research projects. Laboratory research often involves long hours at the bench and a great attention to detail. Learn the details of each project from the descriptions below and consider talking to the research sponsors to decide if it is right for you. Internships are open only to current Stanford undergraduates.
Eligibility
- Must be enrolled as an undergraduate the following Fall 2025 Quarter.
- Students must be in the undergraduate (not graduate) tuition group while using grant funding.
- Coterm students should read this Registrar webpage for details on when you are switched to graduate tuition.
- Students may not be serving a suspension or on a Leave of Absence (LOA)
For full eligibility requirements, please visit VPUE's student eligibility requirements web page.
Restrictions
HI-SURF interns are not permitted to engage in another full-time internship, job, or volunteer opportunity (whether funded by Stanford or otherwise). Students may not receive both academic credit and stipend for any single project activity. Students receiving full-time summer stipends may not register for more than 5 units of coursework, nor may they work for more than 10 hours per week outside of their project experience. Rising seniors who are conducting Honors research should apply for a Major Grant directly from Undergraduate Advising and Research (UAR).
Support
Stipend Amounts
The stipend for summer 2025 is $8,000 for 9 weeks of full-time effort.
Need-Based Supplements
Students are eligible for an additional need-based supplement of up to $1,500, per VPUE's and the Office of Financial Aid's determination (FAO). Students who wish to be considered for the need-based supplement must give VPUE permission to ask FAO for an assessment of their financial needs. No actual financial information is revealed to VPUE or to the Department of Oceans, and students do not need to contact FAO directly. Students who do NOT sign a contract and waiver form will not be considered for a financial need-based supplement.
Belden Housing at Hopkins
The Stanford Hopkins Residences in beautiful Monterey, CA are available to students enrolled in courses and in the HI-SURF program. This residence is located in the heart of Monterey, seven blocks from the Hopkins Marine Station, convenient to amenities and services.
Important Dates and Commitments
- Completed application no later than Friday, February 14, 2025, by 11:59 pm PST.
- The full-time nine-week commitment to the program is from June 23rd to August 22nd, 2025.
- HI-SURF poster symposium takes place the final week of the program (week nine).
Apply:
Application Form
Please review all of the program details and requirements above before applying.
Summer Projects
Block Lab
Animal Biometrics for Re-Identification of White Sharks
This student will work in the Block Lab at Hopkins Marine Station on white shark biometrics, specifically the re-identification of individual animals from underwater footage. The student will work with a team to analyze and match shark fins across various locations and years, providing essential data for population modeling. The student will also investigate alternative methods for identifying white sharks, particularly within juvenile populations, where dorsal fins undergo changes as sharks mature. There will be a field work component of this internship contributing to field efforts studying juvenile white sharks in Monterey Bay. Experience with major programming languages (Python, Matlab, or R) and computer vision techniques preferred.
Suggested skills/ interest/ background for project: Programming experience, boat experience, enthusiasm for biological research!
Contact: Alexandra DiGiacomo (alexandra.digiacomo@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://www.stanfordblocklab.org/
Block Lab
Surveying white shark genetic variation from environmental DNA
This student will work in the Block Lab at Hopkins Marine Station on environmental DNA (eDNA) provides a novel way to detect the presence of rare, elusive predators like white sharks. Compared to other methods like tagging and observation, eDNA can be a cheaper and easier way to reliably monitor white sharks. Simply collect water from the ocean, extract the DNA, and assay for white shark-specific DNA. However, eDNA has primarily been used to detect whether a shark is present in the sampling location or not. It has not been expanded to answer questions such as which white shark was detected, what type of white shark was detected, or how many white sharks were detected. This project will test different white shark DNA primers and develop a multiplex PCR assay to answer such questions by capturing population genetic variation from eDNA. The student will learn how to filter water from white shark aggregation sites in the Monterey Bay, extract the eDNA, design and test primers, amplify white shark DNA, and bioinformatically analyze DNA sequences. The ideal student will have some basic lab experience (i.e. pipetting) and some familiarity with the command line. The project can also be tailored to develop specific skills the student is interested in, including science communication.
Suggested skills/ interest/ background for project: Molecular biology lab experience, command line programming
Contact: Raksha Shree Doddabele (rakshad@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://www.stanfordblocklab.org/
De Leo Lab
Democratizing the understanding of fundamental ecological principles through the development of interactive apps Shinyiny Apps
Goal: We are embarking on an exciting research project that focuses on developing interactive learning tools to increase ecological knowledge and population ecology literacy. The goal of this internship is to investigate how to transform complex ecological concepts into accessible, engaging, and interactive learning modules for undergraduate students interested in understanding the fundamental principles of conservation and management of renewable resources.
The rationale: A large fraction of marine stocks is overexploited and several species of conservation interests – from leatherback turtles to whales – are at risk of extinction. Why are some species more vulnerable to extinction than others? How can current rates of individual survival and reproduction be projected into the future? Why open access renewable resources are systematic overexploited in the absence of regulation, enforcement and cooperative agreement? Population ecology is the study of these and other questions about what factors affect population and how and why a population changes over time. Population ecology has its deepest historic roots, and its richest development, in the study of population growth, regulation, and dynamics, or demography. Despite being a pillar of marine ecology conservation, the mathematical formalism underlying ecological theory of resource management and extinction risk has been a huge roadblock to increase ocean literacy. A central question remains on how we can improve understanding of the fundamental demographic principles driving the dynamics of population of conservation or commercial interest.
Your Role: As a research assistant in the De Leo lab, you will play a pivotal role in this project by developing interactive Shiny Apps. This application will be based on existing R scripts used in courses related to population dynamics, disease ecology, and fishery management, taught by Professor De Leo. Your task will be investigate with the PI how to create an intuitive and user-friendly platform that allows users with minimal or no programming experience to run simulations, explore the impact of various hypotheses on model parameters, and conduct simple sensitivity analyses. This tool will be an invaluable asset in teaching and understanding complex ecological systems, with a particular focus on fishery management in the context of disease ecology and population dynamics.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: Documented experience in R programming and proficiency in ggplot2. Documented experience in developing Shiny Apps is welcome but not necessary. It is desirable a keen interest in ecology, education, and data visualization.
Contact: Giulio De Leo (deleo@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://deleolab.stanford.edu/
De Leo Lab
Improving k-12 education in parasite ecology and diseases of poverty in sub-Saharan Africa
Did you know over 40% of species are parasitic, making it Earth's most prevalent lifestyle? Parasites are crucial for biodiversity and ecosystem health, showcasing extraordinary survival strategies, including host control for their benefit. They play roles in food webs and impact agriculture, aquaculture, and animal production economically. Globally, parasites significantly affect human health, with over 3 billion people suffering from diseases caused by nematodes, cestodes, and flukes, particularly in low-income tropical and subtropical regions, but also in the USA. Despite their importance, parasitism is virtually absence in k-12 education. I am looking forward to working this early summer with a highly motivated and independent student interested in codeveloping with the me and our partners in Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Madagascar and Brazil learning modules focused on parasite ecology and environmental drivers of parasitic diseases of poverty, with a specific focus on schistosomiasis In this internship, the student will acquire knowledge of parasite biodiversity/taxonomy, how parasitism differs from predations, parasites’ life history strategies, and we will try to understand how accelerating climate change combined with changes in land-use, poverty, lack of access to affordable health care, might affect abundance and distribution of parasitic diseases of poverty.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: A background (and keen interest) in education will be highly welcome. Likewise, French fluency will be highly valued (but not necessary) as we mostly work in francophone countries.
Contact: Giulio De Leo (deleo@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://deleolab.stanford.edu/
Micheli Lab
Assessing Conservation Status of Kelp Species in North America
The IUCN Seaweed Specialist Group is working to assess and improve the conservation status of seaweeds, build networks and partnerships, and communicate the importance of seaweed species. Seaweeds (macroalgae) are found in all oceans and seas, with more than 10,000 known marine species. However, climate change and other anthropogenic stressors threaten many seaweeds globally, including iconic habitat-forming species such as kelps. The IUCN Seaweed Specialist Group initially prioritizes conservation assessment for the Laminarian kelp species that compromise ~120 species. Kelps are the dominant habitat-forming species along over 30% of the world's coastlines. They support thriving ecosystems and local livelihoods and provide various benefits to people. Yet, they are one of the most threatened ecosystems by climate change and human impacts. The proposed project will be part of the newly established IUCN Seaweed Specialist Group in June 2023, which Dr. Nur Arafeh Dalmau co-founded and co-chairs. The group has begun the Red List Assessment for Kelp species in Australia and will work on the 29 species of North America in 2025. The student will join the group's efforts by supporting the Red List of Threatened Species assessments in North America. The student's main tasks will be to help in data gathering (literature review for kelp species), assessments, and reporting. They will also interact with other scientists outside of Stanford who are members of the IUCN Seaweed group and receive online training on the Red List assessments.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: Marine conservation and ecology data skills.
Contact: Dr. Nur Arafeh Dalmau (nadalmau@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://michelilab.stanford.edu/
Micheli Lab
Quantifying the Seagrass Fish Communities of Palau
In collaboration with Palau International Coral Reef Center (PICRC), the leading marine conservation and ecological research center in The Republic of Palau, we aim to uncover patterns in fish community structure and function related to the health of their intertidal seagrass beds. This big island nation in Micronesia has documented declines in seagrass cover of up to 40% over the past decade. We aim to investigate the impact of these declines on the corresponding fish communities and the role of protected areas in mitigating potential negative outcomes through traditional visual surveys and the deployment of environmental DNA. This project requires an intern to be trained to visually identify several tropical fish species in hours of footage collected on GoPros in Palau. The data compiled from these videos will be utilized to both ground truth eDNA results and to compare against several metrics of seagrass health.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: All that is required is excitement to be involved and a solid work ethic. Detail oriented students will thrive at a task like this. Experience with excel and R are helpful although not required.
Contact: Ceyenna Tillman (cmtillma@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://michelilab.stanford.edu/
Micheli Lab
The Role of Biological Sex of the Purple Sea Urchin in its Grazing and Distribution
This project aims to uncover whether food availability interacts with the biological sex of the purple sea urchin to influence their sex ratios and distribution behaviors in the field. To better understand this concept, we will employ 3 kinds of methods: genomics, lab experiments, and field surveys. First, we aim to create a genetic tool for accurately sexing these urchins by testing and validating genes that have been identified as candidates for sex determination in this species. Secondly, we plan to expose urchins collected from both kelp forest and urchin barren environments to in-lab feeding experiments and respirometry measurements to elucidate potential differences in physiology and nutritional demand based upon sex. Lastly, we plan to look at sex ratios and other relevant data from field surveys of purple urchins, to help us to understand whether sex ratios in the field meet our expectations given the result of lab experiments.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: Experience with running PCRs or DNA extractions would be helpful. Experience dissecting invertebrates could also prove useful. Although neither is required, and an eagerness to learn is plenty workable.
Contact: Ceyenna Tillman (cmtillma@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://michelilab.stanford.edu/
Micheli Lab
Changes in rocky shore communities following mass mortality of a keystone marine predator
Marine habitat-forming species, such as mussels, corals, kelps, and seagrass, increase biodiversity and enhance overall ecosystem function, but are threatened by local and global stressors, from global climate change, fishing pressure, and pollution. Long-term monitoring and research at Hopkins Marine Station has documented a dramatic expansion of mussel beds following the collapse of their main predator, the ochre sea star, from the largest marine epidemic documented to date, the sea star waisting disease (SSWD). However, over the past two years there are signs of mussel decline. This project will build on decades of previous research to investigate the current status and trends in rocky shore communities at Hopkins Marine Station, specifically whether mussel decline may be due to the recovery of their predators or to oceanographic and climate variability and extremes. Research will include fieldwork and data analysis and visualization. The project is based at Hopkins Marine Station.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: Interest in ecology, intertidal fieldwork and data analysis.
Contact: Fiorenza Micheli (micheli@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://michelilab.stanford.edu/
Micheli Lab
A Global Human-wildlife Interaction Database for Ecology and Society
As our world undergoes rapid transformations, human-wildlife interactions are intensifying and diversifying. To date, much research focuses on capturing these complexities as case studies, but they have yet to be synthesized in a manner that is theoretical and predictive. Human-wildlife interactions can stem from a range of social, economic, cultural, behavioral, and ecological conditions that have yet to be comprehensively catalogued. If we are able to predict human-wildlife interactions, policies and management can be more proactive than reactive, and enhance the livelihoods of both humans and wildlife species alike. Join us this summer at beautiful Hopkins Marine Station in Monterey, CA to help make this project happen. We are looking for a student who will help us to compile a database on species traits, locations, protection status, human-wildlife interaction descriptors, and environmental/socioeconomic factors. By the end of the summer, this database will form maps showing human-wildlife interaction archetypes from around the globe, and their common links. The highest preference will be given to someone who is willing and able to sift through documents and open-source datasets to extract relevant information to fill this database. You will work alongside Stanford Science Fellow, Dr. Veronica Frans, who is at the cutting edge of research in human-biodiversity relationships. This will be an ideal opportunity for ambitious students who dream of entering careers as top-level scientists in ecology, conservation, data science, and sustainability.
Required skills/ interest/ background for project: Basic computer skills; can use Excel at minimum; knowledge of R or Python is helpful but not necessary.
Contact: Veronica Frans (vfrans@stanford.edu)
Lab Website: https://michelilab.stanford.edu/
HI-SURF Contact Information
Teri Hankes, Assistant Director of Student Services (thankes@stanford.edu)
Major Grants
For students who want to design their own research projects, grants are available through Stanford's undergraduate Research and Independent Study program; priority is given to juniors. Unlike the VPUE Major grant, where a student joins a pre-existing effort, these grants require students to draw up a research proposal in collaboration with a member of the Hopkins faculty.
Academic Year
While studying at Hopkins, you can also work on a research project under the supervision of one of the Hopkins faculty—and get additional academic credit in BIOHOPK 199 Guided Research. Our faculty is available to help you identify appropriate research opportunities—before you arrive or after you get here.
To see what we are working on, explore our Faculty Research Page.