Summer
Internship Program
Pennebaker
Lab, 2009
Each
summer, the Pennebaker lab takes in 2-5 students to help out with ongoing
research projects. The goal is to give people
a broad experience of psychology research in a way that can help them
appreciate the world of a graduate student.
Research topics. Each summer, the research projects
differ. In addition, the research
studies that are ongoing now may well change by June. It is a safe bet that we will be studying
features of language use and their links to people’s psychological states. Likely projects this summer will include:
|
Topic |
Supervising Graduate
Student |
|
Tracking
the daily lives of people who are depressed and not depressed |
|
|
How
CEO and other executives talk to analysts and share holders |
|
|
How
characters in literature reflect their authors |
|
|
How
groups change in the ways they interact and perform over time. |
|
|
The
language of dieters as they discuss their lives in their blogs; Language issues associated with
translations to and from Arabic |
Most interns will work on multiple
projects over the summer. We also encourage students to formulate their own
ideas. It is not uncommon for interns to
eventually run their own research projects by the end of the summer. If you would like to know more about each of
these projects, you can contact the supervising graduate students
directly. You should also check out the
various research projects that we have recently completed by going to:
Summer pay. Most internships are
on a volunteer basis. In some cases, grant money may become available. If so,
the pay is generally minimum wage. At the current time, assume no money will
become available. This may change depending on some pending grant applications.
Your daily life. We expect our summer interns to take the
research experience seriously. Some of
the work will be tedious, other work will be broad and
exciting. Everyone is expected to come
to the weekly research meeting where new ideas and ongoing projects are
discussed. Interns generally work
closely with one or more graduate students and will meet periodically with Dr.
Pennebaker. Work hours are flexible
although it is assumed that students will spend as much time as possible in the
lab.
Interns will be housed in the
Pennebaker research area which will include office space, a computer, and
whatever else you need to get work done.
You will also get a UT ID card which will give you access to the library
and other university facilities. It is
hoped that you will spend time talking with the grad students and other
interns. This should be a fun and fulfilling
experience.
Work schedule. The graduate students and Dr. Pennebaker will
be around most of the summer. Everyone
tends to leave for a week or two at different times for vacation. Classes at UT end the first week of May and
graduation is May 17. Students are
encouraged to begin whenever they can.
Generally, the summer ends around August 20. Note that some students only work for 2-3
weeks whereas others work the entire summer.
We also know that some students hold down a regular paying job and consequently
can only devote 10-20 hours per week to research. We can work with complicated schedules. In
our experience, the more time people work, the more they get out of it.
Living arrangements. You are on your own about finding a place to
live. The good news is that many students sign 12-month leases and are
desperate to rent out their apartments over the summer. Check the UT website
for places to live.
Selection process. If you are interested in becoming a summer
intern, please contact one of the graduate students listed above whose
research topics match most closely to your own.
In your email, describe your background, what you would like to
accomplish, and when you would like to begin.