ABOUT HHMI-BRIDGES

Furman University’s HHMI-BRIDGES initiative, funded by a generous $1.2M grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute through 2012, supports a variety of undergraduate and outreach opportunities in science, math and computer science that are designed to create a transformative student experience.

• Furman is nationally recognized for the success of its undergraduate science research programs, and HHMI-BRIDGES provides opportunities for Furman students to begin up to 15-month paid research experiences in the summer following their freshman year through the HHMI Undergraduate Fellows Program. Students also have opportunity to travel internationally in “semester plus” research abroad programs at the University of Florida, Leloir Institute in Argentina, or the Pasteur Institutes in France.
• A second emphasis of HHMI-BRIDGES is a series of curricular initiatives in quantitative and computer science directed at life science applications, bolstered by the Hughes Seminar course conducted jointly with the University of Florida and through four interdisciplinary, linked courses in math, physics, biology and chemistry during the sophomore year.  Together, these courses comprise the HHMI Undergraduate Scholars Program.
• Additional curricular opportunities include the development of a Quantitative Science Concentration and a Science Education Concentration, both of which incorporate several new introductory and advanced course offerings.
• The impacts of HHMI-BRIDGES extend to math/science education in the community, through summer research activities for high school students, service-learning opportunities for Furman students in the local Greenville County School system and programs specifically designed for secondary math/science teachers.