Frank Zhou

SyBBURE is a research and design playground where uniquely different people gather to do cool stuff. We fund undergraduate students at Vanderbilt University to explore any aspect of STEM that interests them through independent research and team-based design projects. We provide individualized mentorship and training to promote student personal and professional development within and extraordinary and inclusive community. A generous gift from Gideon Searle, a Vanderbilt alumnus, makes available this distinctive opportunity to explore science at promising and exciting frontiers! The gift supports participation by undergraduate students in research projects under the advisement of some of Vanderbilt University’s leading research and teaching faculty. We partner with the faculty, post-doctoral fellows, and graduate students within these labs to provide students with tailored, mentored immersion experiences in advanced scientific investigation. Students engage in team-based design projects with other SyBBURE students to further explore their interests and solve real-world problems. To establish our program culture, we create a scaffold of high expectations coupled with a dynamic, fluid, and fun environment. The philosophy of the SyBBURE Searle program exists around a “maximum effort for maximum return” ideology. Through this year-round research and design experience, students develop and expand their skill sets, are encouraged to explore their passions and ideas, and receive personalized mentorship from their faculty research advisor, as well as the SyBBURE Searle team.