The Spring 2026 Undergraduate Research Fair will be held on Thursday, January 22 from 3:00-5:30 pm in the Hearst Memorial Mining Building Lobby.
The Spring 2026 research fair will be co-sponsored by the MPS Scholars Program and will include representation from Physics, Earth & Planetary Sciences, and Math.
Note: The Spring 2026 Fair will not include participation from Astrophysics and will primarily focus on representation from research groups. Pi2 and ULAB will also be present. The FALL fair typically includes the additional programming listed below.
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For Fall Research Fairs
Learn more about:
- Opportunities for Summer Research
- Strategies to Land your First Research Position
- Possible openings for research in Physics/Astrophysics/EPS labs and groups
And meet Physics/Astrophysics/EPS/Math faculty researchers, postdoctoral scholars and graduate students so you can learn more about their science.
Taking place at the Fair: Check out the MPS Scholars and the Pi2 Poster Sessions!
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Here is a recording of the first half-hour portion of the SP23 fair where we presented tips and reminders for undergraduates seeking experience in research. The URAP website is the other structured means by which you can learn about formal physics research opportunities available. If you were unable to attend the fair and/or if you do not obtain a position this semester, we recommend that you:
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Explore our Physics Research and Faculty website to learn more about faculty areas of research and the kind of science you might be interested in. Consider cold emailing faculty, postdocs, and/or grad students from a particular lab to see if there are any research positions available this spring or fall. (Tips for how to cold-email can be found here (Cal workshop), and through online resources (example 1, example 2).
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Explore our Physics Undergraduate Research webpage and Physics Research Opportunities Board to learn more about research wisdom and opportunities from the physics community.
More about our physics research fairs:
Since 2020, on the first Thursday after the start of classes each semester, the Physics Department has been hosting an undergraduate research fair. The Physics Undergraduate Research Fair has been organized by student leaders in the department with support from department staff.
This fair is targeted at undergraduates from all years looking to join a physics research group or who might be just looking to learn more about physics research generally. Students who have never done research are particularly encouraged to attend. At the fair, there will be faculty researchers, postdoctoral scholars and graduate students available to answer questions about their research.
After the event, students can apply to available research positions via URAP and/or GoogleForm application that will be sent to all research fair participants.
Stay tuned in early August and in December/January each year for information on how to attend the next Physics Undergraduate Research Fair!