Clark Atlanta University PhD candidate Allea Campbell was looking for a place where she could network job opportunities, meet peers, and brainstorm possible applications for her research into covalent organic frameworks.

So she went to CAMPS.

“This seemed like a place where I can connect with other people who have different ideas that I can bring to my research,” she said.

The student-led Conference Across MRSEC-PREM Schools (CAMPS) is held each year at a different university affiliated with two National Science Foundation (NSF) programs – Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSEC), which supports interdisciplinary research on materials science, and Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM), which is designed to enhance diversity in materials research and education. The NSF funds the yearly event.

“There is a lot of science, but there are also a lot of networking opportunities,” said UChicago PME PhD candidate Elina Ghimire, lead organizer for CAMPS 2024.

UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering hosted CAMPS 2024 from Aug. 2-3 to help build the next generation of leaders’ research, academic, and professional skills.

“MRSEC’s mission is nurturing the next generation of materials science researchers and improving diversity through successful student training at all levels,” said UChicago PME Prof. Stuart Rowan, the director of UChicago’s MRSEC. “CAMPS is a key part of this. The students themselves design each year’s conference, engineering each one to address issues their peers identified and create opportunities their peers need.”

^{UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering / Year60 Photography}

This event welcomed participants from all backgrounds and attendance was open to all from participating MRSECs and PREM institutes.

“At CAMPS, we intend to have a friendly and welcoming atmosphere,” Ghimire said. “Our goal is to encourage attendees from underrepresented communities to ask questions, feel comfortable, and build connections, while networking and exploring potential career opportunities in industry, academia, and national labs.”

^{PhD candidates from Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSEC) and Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) institutions across the nation came to the UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering for CAMPS 2024, a student-led conference promoting research collaboration and networking in materials science. (UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering / Year60 Photography)}

The conference has no registration fees. Travel costs and housing are also covered, removing one of the barriers that can prevent students taking part in the opportunity. Organizers said this is part of the collaborative spirit that MRSEC and PREM seek to build in their members.

University of Tennessee, Knoxville nuclear engineering PhD candidate Sydney Copp said she attended to see how better to expand MRSEC at her university. Their program started in 2023.

“We’re just about approaching our one-year mark,” Copp said. “Having an opportunity like this, to be able to meet other students at other schools who have had MRSEC or have also started them and see what everyone else is doing, is really valuable.”

The conference fills a gap facing materials science researchers, said UChicago MRSEC Administrator Tracy Walker.

“Students from various backgrounds of education within these STEM programs are able to come to this conference and speak to professionals in the industry, as well as different key, high-profile faculty that are working in their research area, and they know this is focusing on the material side of research,” Walker said.

— Learn how UChicago PME engineers Materials Systems for Sustainability and Health