McNair Program

University of Louisiana at Lafayette is one of 178 colleges / universities nationwide funded for McNair Program. The program is designed to prepare students who meet certain eligibility requirements for graduate school.

We encourage students to pursue graduate studies by providing opportunities to define goals, to engage in research, and to develop the skills and student/faculty mentor relationship critical to success at the doctoral level. We also assists talented students for acceptance into the graduate programs and helps them with preparation for, admission to, and securance of funding to finance graduate education leading to the doctorate degree.

The McNair Scholars Program was founded in 1986 in memory of Dr. Ronald E. McNair, the physicist/astronaut, who died aboard the Challenger space shuttle. The UL Lafayette McNair Scholars Program began on campus in 1993. Since then 225 scholars have participated and 65% have gone on to graduate study.

Services

The Ronald E. McNair Program at UL Lafayette is an exciting new effort designed to prepare students for graduate study. It is the only program at UL Lafayette that offers so many services designed to help students make their dream of graduate study a reality.

Research Internship Program

The McNair Research Internship Program provides a nine-week summer or eighteen-week semester research internship experience. The student will be paired up with a UL Lafayette graduate faculty member whose research interest matches with that of the student and under the direction of this mentor, the student will participate in a research project. A $2800 stipend is provided for the internship period.

Highlight of services

• Assistance with defining goals and creating plans to achieve them
• Individualized seminars on research skills, the graduate school application process, and preparation for Graduate Record Examination
• Workshops on types of financial support available to graduate students
• Cultural and recreational activities on campus and in the area to enhance an understanding of the graduate school activities
• Access to research and computing facilities
• Opportunities to interact with successful role models who have earned terminal degrees including attending national conferences with the faculty mentors