The main goal of Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) is to enhance diversity in materials research and education by stimulating the development of formal, long-term, collaborative research and education partnerships between minority-serving colleges and universities and the NSF Division of Materials Research (DMR)-supported centers and facilities—NSF

Xavier and the NYU MRSEC enter a Partnership for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) to develop a strong materials science research core at Xavier – the #1 school in the nation in graduating African-American chemists, physicists and biologists – and an undergraduate materials science educational program (MSEP) that will introduce a materials science track within the ACS-certified Chemistry program at Xavier. The research core will be catalyzed by four Xavier-NYU collaborative research projects that will enhance Xavier’s research infrastructure and lead to advances in the field of nanoscale imaging, including materials for (a) energy, (b) magnetic assemblies, (c) imaging force measurements, and  (d) polymorphic materials. As the program progresses, the MSEP will develop courses such as Fundamentals of Materials Science and Materials Characterization. The research core and the MSEP combined will assure that Xavier’s undergraduate students receive the necessary research and educational skills to be successful in a material science graduate program at any research-oriented university while creating a pipeline of underrepresented undergraduates prepared for careers in STEM disciplines. Through PREM fellowships, undergraduate students will be exposed to research at Xavier as early as their freshman year to stimulate their interests in materials science, with continuing fellowships offered in later years to promote their retention. During summers, undergraduates will have the opportunity to perform research at NYU with an accompanying Xavier faculty member as members of Faculty-Student Team. The Xavier-NYU PREM will increase the number of minority students who pursue graduate degrees in materials science by focusing on both the undergraduate level and by engaging high school students through Xavier’s nationally recognized summer science academies.