Jmbhockey5

This program sounds extremely worthwhile, and I'd love to maybe submit an application for the program. That said, my primary interest lies within the field of music, and after perusing the website found that since at least 1999, there were no individuals conducting musically related research. (I could be wrong, though.) Would it be feasible to tie another scientific field of research with music (biology, physics, or even bilingual education)?

proletariat2

I don't really know, but I wouldn't recommend that. There may not be any faculty members at Texas Tech whose research is remotely related to that, so you may be placed in something you don't really like. (Take my advice with a grain of salt, though, as I don't really know how this works.) The first thing I would do if I was in your place is email Dr. San Francisco, whose contact info is on the Clark Scholars website. He heads the program and he'll be able to tell you whatever you need. I don't think there'll be any problems with being the first music Clark Scholar since at least 1999, since we had our first law Clark Scholar this year, and that went perfectly fine. I'm guessing that be music, they probably mean theory/analysis, but I'm not completely sure. I'm sure the music faculty at Texas Tech are great, and since less specialized equipment is necessary for music, there are fewer limitations.

Oh, and by the way, Texas Tech has quite a nice music library, especially if you're into high modernist music. Schnebel, Stockhausen, Holliger...you name it!

wombatsoup

This sounds like an excellent program. I plan on applying. No idea what I want to research though...

tsubomi1993

Would you say it would be a good idea to check Texas Tech's current research online to see if it includes something along the lines of what you're interested in before you write about it?

proletariat2

Hmmm, you could try it. I didn't do it, and I don't know anyone who did. Some professors won't mind if you're doing something that's not very related to what the rest of the lab is doing, as long as they have the equipment; others will give you a topic very closely related to the lab's overall direction. Some mentors will practically assign you a topic (so you should somehow specify to them that you want more independence), while others will allow you to basically design your project by yourself. Even if there isn't a faculty member in the exact field you specify, they can usually match you with a mentor under whom you will enjoy conducting research. For example, I wrote about a specific topic in plant evolutionary biology/ecology; I ended up being placed in herpetological evolution, and I loved it. Doing research in something mostly unrelated to my previous research, but still within my main interests, ended up being a good experience for me. Nirvanatear wrote about a certain topic (game theory, was it?) and ended up doing research regarding inverse limits under a mentor whose research was in pseudoarcs. So, you know, it really isn't that important that there be a Texas Tech faculty member in that specific field, as long as there's someone you can be matched with and the equipment is there. However, if you want to do that, go ahead. It may give you that much more control over your research.

tsubomi1993

^Thanks for the help proletariat2! I'm really interested in this one area, so I think I'm going to write about that anyways. :]

proletariat2

Exactly, I suggest you not worry about it too much and write about what you're interested in. Chances are it'll sound more genuine, too.

nirvanatear

I agree with proletariat. I wrote about my passion about game theory and blah, and they simply saw me as strong in math, and matched me with the only math mentor.

sephora2

I'm considering applying to the program for this summer but I'm more interested in social sciences research - can anyone give me some information on the non-science/math/engineering based experience?
Additionally I haven't really done any formal prior research in the social sciences...is that a problem?

proletariat2

There were two Clark Scholars in the social sciences this year. One was in law and didn't really do research, per se; the other was in psychology and studied executive function in rats. The psychology Clark Scholar (Cido on CC) spent a lot of time training her rats, and I think she really liked her project. Try talking to her for more information about that. There was a Clark Scholar in history last year, too, but I don't know how you could contact him.

A lack of prior research experiences may lower your chances of admission, but it's not really a problem if you think you'll be able to catch on quickly. There were Clark Scholars this year who had never done research before.

By the way, two Clark Scholars were named Siemens Semifinalists today, out of five who applied - Torcher and one other person.

Gwen2310

Can internationals apply for this?

Torcher

^ Yes. (Nirvanatear was an international).

proletariat2

Nirvanatear is a Canadian, and last year I believe there were two girls from Turkey who were accepted.

proletariat2

Hey guys, I suggest you read some of the advice of alumni on past Clark Scholars threads. It's generally pretty good!

Posted by danng on the Clark Scholars 2009 thread today:

Well, our experiences are described in the preceding couple pages, so I'll just summarize: Clark Scholars was absolutely amazing. We did awesome research, often under some of the most important scientists in our field yet still very much independent; we got to meet extremely interesting people (like nirvanatear, Torcher, m.sides, Cido, and blueducky on CC) with whom we spent late nights talking about the most random topics; we also got to explore the fascinating city of Lubbock, Texas!

Unfortunately, nobody did business research this summer; however, I believe two people did it the summer before, so it's not unheard of. Dr. San Francisco and Ms. Durham are really good at finding interesting opportunities for people in all fields.

danng

Thank you so much proletariat2.

You have been so helpful in explaining the Clark Scholars program. I can't thank you enough!