The SCEC/ACCESS program ended in September 2010.

Applications are no longer being accepted.

Supported by the National Science Foundation Cyberinfrastructure Team

Program Overview

The Southern California Earthquake Center/Advancement of Cyberinfrastructure Careers through Earthquake System Science (SCEC/ACCESS) internship program supports thesis research within certain SCEC research domains, listed below. ACCESS interns will typically be Computer Science/Information Technology (CS/IT) students, or CS-savvy geoscience students. In some cases, students majoring in physics, mathematics, multi-media, or engineering will also be viable ACCESS candidates. ACCESS has two components:

• ACCESS-U (Undergraduate) supports senior thesis research;
• ACCESS-G (Graduate) supports master’s thesis research.

ACCESS research may be within any of these SCEC research domains:

• SCEC's Computational Platforms:
  • Terashake - a highly-scalable earthquake wave propagation simulation platform capable of terascale computations.
  • Cybershake - a computational platform that is applying 3D waveform modeling to the development of the next generation of Probabilistic Seismic Hazard curves.
  • Dynashake - a computational platform for developing dynamic earthquake rupture simulations and kinematic parameterization of earthquake sources that are consistent with dynamic rupture simulations.
  • Earthworks Science Gateway - a computational platform used for on-demand 3D wave propagation simulations and on-demand verification and validation of wave propagation software.
• PetaSHA - The SCEC Petascale Cyberfacility for Physics-based Seismic Hazard Analysis will perform basic seismic hazard research using high-performance computing technologies. PetaSHA encompasses all of the computational platforms listed above, and in addition requires research in:
  • High Performance Computing
  • Scientific Workflows
  • Data Management
  • Visualization.
• CSEP - The W. M. Keck Collaboratory for the Study of Earthquake Predictability has among its goals the development of hardware and software support to allow individual researchers and groups to participate in and update their prediction experiments; to access data and monitoring products; and produce a processing chain that enables complete reproducibility of all CSEP prediction experiments.

To learn more about these research projects and activities, click here.

Program Goals & Funding

Petascale computing applications are not yet a reality but SCEC has become a recognized leader in the international effort to make them so. The National Science Foundation also sees an urgent need to train the next generation of scientists and technologists in the use of such advanced, cyberinfrastructure technologies, and has thus awarded SCEC a large grant to establish the ACCESS internship program.

ACCESS interns will be selected to further these objectives:

• To educate geoscience undergraduates in advanced cyberinfrastructure (CI), and educate CS/IT undergraduates in the system-science areas where CI is rapidly advancing;
• To cross-train CS/IT and geoscience students at the beginning of their graduate careers by supporting entry-level, interdisciplinary research experiences in which they solve interesting system-science problems with advanced CI;
• To increase the numbers of women and underrepresented minorities pursuing CI careers.

Student Requirements

Every ACCESS participant must complete a thesis based on ACCESS research and thus must be pursuing a degree program that accommodates a thesis. Typically, an ACCESS intern will have worked with SCEC to find the right mentor and general project area before beginning the internship.

ACCESS-U interns must be currently enrolled as undergraduates in a bachelors program pertinent to one of SCEC’s research domains as detailed above. Typically, an ACCESS-U intern will conduct research in the summer following junior year, then complete the thesis during senior year.

ACCESS-G interns must be currently enrolled in, or accepted to, a masters program pertinent to one of SCEC's research domains as detailed above (Program Overview section). Typically, early in the first year of the master's program, an ACCESS-G intern will establish a thesis committee and work with mentors to finalize a choice of project.

Currently, applicants who will pursue senior or master's theses at the following SCEC institutions are encouraged to apply to ACCESS:

• University of Southern California
• University of California, San Diego/San Diego Supercomputer Center
• San Diego State University
• Stanford University

Getting an ACCESS internship started is more complicated than in the other SCEC internship programs, because SCEC, the student, the project mentor, and the student's institution must all work together to launch the student in research that is appropriate to SCEC's research needs and the student's interests. Thus the ACCESS application process is less formal and more extended than SCEC's other internship programs.

To apply to ACCESS, download this document and email the completed questionnaire to degroot@usc.edu.

Applications may be submitted at any time during the year, but at least 4 months prior to the desired start of the ACCESS internship. Do not submit supporting materials (test scores, recommendations, official transcripts) until you are asked to do so.

Student Compensation

Stipend
ACCESS-U interns receive a $5000 research stipend. Most is paid during the summer that the research is conducted, with the remainder paid after the thesis is completed.

An ACCESS-G intern receives:

• up to a maximum of 12 consecutive months of support (approximately $2,000/mo) for research and completion of a master's thesis. Stipends are paid monthly at the rate set by the student's institution for a Research Assistant.

Travel
All ACCESS interns will also be funded to attend certain scientific conferences including the SCEC Annual Meeting.

Some ACCESS interns who conduct research away from their institution may be eligible for travel reimbursement.