The 2025 Biomedical Sciences Enrichment Program (BISEP) is a two-week summer program that prepares rising sophomores for upper division coursework and undergraduate research in the biomedical sciences. The goal of this program is to increase the number of students pursuing research-based careers. The 2025 program will be offered fully remotely and in a hybrid format. The program includes a bioinformatics project, a journal club which instructs students on reading scientific literature, and career development workshops.
Overview
PROGRAM DATES
BISEP 2025 will be held Tuesday, September 2 – Friday, September 12. Meeting days are weekdays, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. No meetings will be held on university holidays.
ELIGIBILITY
- PEERS students entering their sophomore year in 2025-2026
- 3.0 GPA minimum
- Life Science majors, including Biochemistry and Computational and Systems Biology
- Interested in biomedical research
- Interested in pursuing a graduate degree (e.g. Masters, PhD, MD-PhD, etc.)
- No prior research experience preferred
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
- Attend all meetings throughout the full six-week program, including:
- Journal Club Meetings
- Academic & Professional Development Workshops
- Complete the bioinformatics project and present your work at the culminating Poster Session
- Participate in the Lab Networking Event at the end of the program
- Complete all writing assignments including composing a Curriculum Vitae (CV), cover letter, abstract, and personal statement
- Complete one pre-program survey, one exit survey, and three post-program surveys throughout the 2026-2026 academic year
SCHOLARSHIP/FUNDING
BISEP does not provide funding to program participants. There is also no application fee or fee to participate in the program.
CONTACT
Abby Warner
Program Representative
awarner@college.ucla.edu
Application
APPLICATION PERIOD
- March 3 – May 8, 2025
- The application can be accessed as a Survey on MyUCLA under the “Campus Life” tab during the application period.
- You may begin the application in advance using the prompts below. The online application is due by 11:59 PM. Any applications in progress at this time cannot be submitted.
GUIDELINES
- Prepare your responses in advance using a word processing application
- All character limits include spaces
- Most special formatting will be lost after submission. Do not use:
- Special indentations, spacing, or headers
- Boldface, underlining, or italicization
- Bullet points or lists
- Super-or subscripts
- Tables or images
- All responses should be formatted as a single block of text.
PROMPTS
- List any relevant awards, honors, or recognition you have received within the last two years. 1500 characters max, including spaces.
- List any relevant extracurricular or community activities you have participated in within the last two years. 1500 characters max, including spaces.
- Describe any previous research experiences you have participated in, if any. List location, dates, supervisor, and a brief description of the project. Write “N/A” if you have no previous experiences to report. Lack of research experience will not disqualify applicants from consideration. 1500 characters max, including spaces.
- What does “research” mean to you? 1500 characters max, including spaces.
- Describe an academic or socioeconomic hardship you have faced and how you overcame or are overcoming it. 2000 characters max, including spaces.
- How do you expect BISEP will contribute to your academic and professional goals? 2500 characters max, including spaces.
