Fancy a lab in a warmer climate?

Student experience Welcome to Materials 15th February 2018

We have some pretty exciting news to share! The School of Materials is happy to announce an opportunity is available to volunteer for a summer project in India. The idea (as you can see from the attached Live-in-Labs brochure) is to use an aspect of your materials science; organisational; business or design skills to help some of the poorest communities in the world.

The centre for the visit is Kerala province in the south of the country, which is a very beautiful destination. However, as last year’s students will attest, this is not a holiday. You would be working in a remote village, often with no power, no internet and no phone coverage. Two months without Instagram – imagine! However, to make up for the technology severance you would be very warmly, safely and carefully looked after by our Indian friends and you would not be working alone. We are sending 10 students this year and you will work in pairs at the very least, in addition to working alongside local students. Individual project teams can be between five and 10 students.

The project will run from the beginning of July to the end of August. It counts towards UoM’s schemes for Stellify and the Manchester Leadership Award. The School will sponsor the successful students with a £700 bursary. Your accommodation will be organised for you either on campus or locally in a village, and will not cost much.

The centre of activities are in Coimbatore or Cochin, but the project locations vary and can be anywhere in India. Last year, the team used the University’s Crowdfunding platform to raise the rest of the funds.

Sound like your dream opportunity? What are you waiting for! To apply, follow this link to the Live in Labs Amrita application form (no more than two pages please) and send it to Robert Cernik at r.cernik@manchester.ac.uk . We’d like to hear why you want to go? What do you have to give? How might you contribute? What would the experience mean to you? Which of the highlighted projects interests you and why?

Please bear in mind that this list is developing and the active projects this summer may well differ. You could be assigned to any project so our volunteers must have a relaxed and flexible attitude and be prepared to go with the flow.

Deadline for the finished forms will be the end of February. A small panel will judge the applications and let you know by the first or second week of March. Then you will have a short Skype interview with our Indian hosts and the final decision will be made towards the end of March. That leaves you plenty of time to sort out your visas and travel. Remember, please don’t apply unless you can spend July and August in India (when it will be hot hot hot and then some more hot – although Kerala has a pleasant climate).

Any student can apply from any year of Materials study, even if you applied or went last year. In the case of a tie, we would have to choose a new applicant over someone who has been before. If you have accessibility needs, please come to speak to Robert Cernik directly. Any questions, please ask.

To get a taste of what could be to come, check out this blog from last year’s students, which includes some really helpful information about preparing for your arrival https://uomliveinlabsweb.wordpress.com/about/

We look forward to reading your applications.

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