Jobs & Career
2025-26 Part-Time Research Fellowship: Urban Growth in the Colombian Amazon (Stanford University)
Engage in Groundbreaking Research & Earn While Studying
Stanford University’s King Center on Global Development is offering an exciting Academic-Year Part-Time Undergraduate Research Fellowship for 2025-26. If you are a full-time undergraduate student passionate about ecology, public health, or sustainability, this opportunity lets you contribute to real-world research, get paid, and build your profile for graduate studies.
📍 What the Fellowship Involves
- Project Title: Urban Growth in the Colombian Amazon
- Mentor: Valeria Ramirez Castaneda (Postdoctoral Research Fellow, King Center)
- Location: Leticia, Colombia (fieldwork & data collection) + remote components
- Commitment: 8-10 hours per week during each academic quarter (Autumn, Winter, Spring)
- Compensation: US$19 per hour
- Eligibility: Must be a full-time undergraduate student in good standing at Stanford; co-term undergrads are eligible; students planning to study abroad during the AY are not eligible.
🌱 Research Focus & Duties
The fellowship explores how rapid urban expansion in Leticia, a tri-border city in the Amazon, affects ecology, human-wildlife interactions, and mosquito-borne disease risks. Key areas include:
- Ecological fieldwork and participatory research with local communities
- Collecting and cleaning ecological & survey data
- Statistical analyses and chart generation using software like Excel or R
- Archival work: reviewing maps, photographs, policy documents
- Lab work: assisting with DNA extraction and PCR analysis
- Communication tasks: drafting outreach content, developing consent forms, preparing workshop materials
✅ Required Skills & Qualifications
Applicants should have:
- Full-time undergraduate status at Stanford
- Fluent Spanish (reading & writing)
- Basic skills in R (or willingness to learn) and/or familiarity with Python are desirable
- Strong interest in ecology, environmental science, public health, or related fields
- Good organizational and data-management skills
All majors are encouraged to apply, particularly those interested in environmental justice, urban studies, ecology, epidemiology, or global health.
📬 Application Materials & How to Apply
Submit the following:
- A cover letter explaining your interest in the project, language proficiencies, coding/analysis experience, and previous work or research experience.
- A resume or CV showing relevant coursework, volunteer or research experience.
- An unofficial Stanford transcript (first-quarter freshmen may be exempt for certain terms).
Applications are reviewed as they arrive; early submission is recommended.
🔑 Why This Fellowship is a Big Deal
- Gain hands-on experience in environmental health and urban ecology with community-driven research
- Build skills in fieldwork, lab analysis, data cleaning, and statistical software
- Earn while contributing to meaningful sustainability and public health research
- Enhance your profile for future fellowships or graduate school
- Be part of multidisciplinary work tackling under-studied issues in rapidly urbanizing Amazonian cities
🏁 Final Thoughts
If you are a motivated Stanford undergraduate who wants to combine environmental science, ecology, and public health with community engagement, this fellowship is tailor-made for you. Working part time (8-10 hrs/week), you’ll earn while you learn, making a real impact in Amazonian urban settings. Prepare your documents and apply early for the 2025-26 academic year — this could be the springboard to your future in research.
