USC Upstate receives $50,000 award to prepare students for careers

SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – The University of South Carolina Upstate received a $50,000 award from Power:Ed to prepare students for careers in the life sciences.

According to Power:Ed, the funds will support the summer research program ER(Up)T, short for Engaged Research and Training at Upstate. 

ER(Up)T provides USC Upstate students an opportunity to engage in faculty-mentored research in the biomedical sciences, to be paid $3,800 for their full-time eight-week summer research internship, to participate in career development workshops, and to present their research at local and regional conferences.

“The goal of this summer research is to improve degree completion and create STEM career pathways that offer social mobility and quality employment opportunities for USC Upstate students,” said Claire Gibbons, director of Power:Ed, a philanthropy of SC Student Loan.

ER(Up)T program director Josh Ruppel, Ph.D., who serves as director of research and a professor of chemistry at USC Upstate, said the Power:Ed funding will create additional paid research experiences for students.