VIP - FAQs 

Short answer, typically none! In some instances specific teams might prefer previous research experience or specific coursework. This, however, is an exception that proves a rule.

If you have questions about whether specific teams require prior experience, first look at profile of the team you'd like to join. If questions remain, its more than appropriate to reach out to a team's faculty mentor/PI.

You betcha! In fact, a defining feature of a nearly all VIPs is undergraduate researcher's ability to earn course credit for participation on a research team.

I hope so! Rice University has no rule preventing an undergraduate researchers from receiving course credit and financial compensation simultaneously.

There are, however, individual departments with statutes precluding individuals from receiving both course credit and payment for the same gig. The best way to answer specific situations, please feel more than encouraged to ask your VIP faculty lead once you landed a post on their team.

Additionally, OURI has resources available to students who qualify for work-study and have already been accepted to VIP team. For more information, reach out to Danny Gibboney (dg115@rice.edu).

So glad you asked. Yes, there is an application.

Joining a VIP team is actually quite simple. After looking over the profiles of active VIP teams, send off off an application, and then reach out to the team's faculty lead for next steps (or wait to hear back! Either works!).

You can. But...its not necessarily recommended.

A defining feature of a VIP is the opportunity for long-term participation on a team. This affords undergraduate researchers with an opportunity for a multiple year mentored apprenticeship.

Skipping from one team to another would significantly curtail the benefits an individual could gain when compared to staying on the same team for a while.

That said, there are circumstances when its appropriate (and even advisable) to resign from a team after a short time. If you have specific questions about leaving a team or hopping onto another, don't hesitate to contact Danny Gibboney (dg115@rice.edu).

Yes. This is not only a possibility, it is strongly encouraged.

There are many benefits associated with long-term participation on a single team. Multi-year participation on a VIP team allows individual undergraduate researchers to receive substantial mentorship, grow into greater leadership roles, actively participate in team maintenance, and accrue confidence on their academic journey. The VIP model's commitment to interdisciplinarity uniquely allows research faculty to engage with students from a diverse range of academic commitments and with a range of perspectives.

Nope. More times than not, VIP teams are both open to and strongly encouraging of applications from individuals with majors and academic interests outside of the faculty/projects academic home.