The calendar
The one timeline on the site. Competitions, summer program deadlines, conference abstracts, and the university's own cycles, by month. Every date must be confirmed each year against its source.
On this pageCheck each September and January
Nothing else on this site is tied to a date. This page is, because the outside world has deadlines that do not care what phase you are in. Applications for summer programs close in winter; competition teams form in fall; abstracts are due months before conferences. Missing one costs a year. Check this page in September and again in January, and confirm every date against the source, because they move.
| When (verify yearly) | What | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Deadline in early February | Amgen Scholars Funded summer research at host universities for undergraduates in biotech-related fields. | |
| Abstracts due in winter, meeting in late spring or summer of even years | BCI Society meeting The field's own conference; student membership is $80 a year and the meeting is small enough to talk to anyone. | |
| September to October | Bench to Bedside team formation Teams form and register in early fall; kickoff events and mentor matching follow. Final competition in April. | Any University of Utah student |
| Fall | BioUtah Life Sciences Summit The Utah industry gathering. Student tickets are usually available; go and introduce yourself to three people. | |
| Abstracts due in spring, meeting in October | BMES annual meeting abstracts The biomedical engineering society meeting with a large undergraduate poster session and a student rate. | |
| Submissions due late May or early June | NIH NIBIB DEBUT challenge Undergraduate biomedical design competition with cash prizes; teams submit a report and video. | |
| Papers due in February, meeting in July | IEEE EMBC The other big biomedical engineering conference; short papers are peer reviewed. | |
| March to April | Neuromatch Academy applications Online three-week computational neuroscience school in July; about $566 for a US student who is not reimbursed. Applying is free. The interactive track needs a small time commitment. | |
| Deadline in late February or early March | NIH Summer Internship Program Paid summer research on the NIH campus, including NINDS and NIBIB labs. | |
| Submissions in March or April | RESNA Student Design Competition Assistive technology design competition for student teams, presented at the RESNA conference in summer. | |
| January to February | NSF REU summer program applications Ten-week paid summer research at universities nationwide. Search the NSF REU site for "neural engineering" and "neuroscience." | |
| October to November | UROP application (spring semester funding) Apply with a faculty mentor for a paid spring research position. Summer and fall rounds follow the same pattern a semester ahead. |
The rhythm of a year
- SeptemberEverything formsCompetition teams, club officers, lab openings after graduations. The month with the highest return on showing up.
- OctoberAbstracts and applications openConference abstracts for the spring. Summer program portals open.
- November to DecemberWrite the applicationsREU, NIH SIP, and Amgen essays. Ask for letters six weeks ahead, not two.
- January to FebruaryDeadlines closeMost summer program deadlines land here. This is the month people discover they are three weeks late.
- March to AprilDecisions and postersSummer offers arrive. Undergraduate research symposia and competition finals.
- May to JuneSummer startsPrograms begin. If you have nothing, this is when a local lab most needs hands.
- JulyNeuromatch, and the workThree weeks of it. Also the quietest month for building.
- AugustWrite it upBefore the semester eats the memory of what you did.
September. Bench to Bedside teams form. BMES meeting registration. Join the clubs. Confirm the whole calendar for the year ahead.
October. BMES annual meeting. UROP application for spring funding. BioUtah’s fall events.
November to December. Begin summer program applications; they reuse each other, so write one strong statement and adapt it.
January to February. NSF REU, NIH Summer Internship, and Amgen Scholars deadlines. IEEE EMBC paper deadline. UROP for summer.
March to April. Neuromatch AcademyNeuromatch Academy An online, three-week summer school in computational neuroscience with a large alumni network, on a country-scaled tuition. Glossary entry applications. RESNA student design submission. BMES abstract deadline. Bench to Bedside final.
May to June. NIH DEBUT submission. Summer programs begin.
July. Neuromatch AcademyNeuromatch Academy An online, three-week summer school in computational neuroscience with a large alumni network, on a country-scaled tuition. Glossary entry. EMBC. Summer research.
August. Write the build logs and the reproduction report from the summer before classes start. Update the portfolio.
How to use it
Put every date that applies to you in your own calendar with a reminder two weeks ahead and a second one three days ahead. Draft applications early; recommendation letters need two weeks’ notice and a reminder. Keep the previous year’s application text; most of it reuses.