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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><b><font face="Helvetica">TL;DR — The UROP office is currently considering reforms to further improve student experiences. If you’ve ever had a poor UROP experiences, or have other ideas
on changes that can be made to the system, let us know anonymously </font></b><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcaWXvNTnGzUzFe6mTuDHEQIbXPoHLdjD_43Yv2WGzyeMbmQ/viewform?usp=sf_link"><b><font face="Helvetica"></font></b><font face="Helvetica"><b></b></font></a><font face="Helvetica"><b><a href="https://forms.gle/JtFpfbXeMAe28vms6">here</a></b></font><font face="Helvetica"><b>.
R</b></font><font face="Helvetica"><b>ead and add suggestions to </b></font><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z5XChrr3h_TJij-u__WueZNu5W5uYFxeXWYut5LIihM/edit?usp=sharing"><b><font face="Helvetica">UAPA’s [Draft] Final Report on UROPs</font></b></a><font face="Helvetica"><b>,
which compiles everything we’ve learned about issues students have reported, reforms our Committee’s considered endorsing, and discussions around supervisor/student incentives and tradeoffs regarding the UROP program. </b></font></p>
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</b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica"><b>[+ Happy end of semester + It’s been fun serving as UAPA chair the last two years</b></font><font face="Helvetica"><b> + congratulations to everyone graduating
:-)]</b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font color="#000000" size="3" face="Helvetica"><span style="color: rgb(32, 32, 32); font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br>
Hi everyone,<br>
<br>
As someone who’s UROP'ed every semester of my entire undergrad, I don’t think the value of the MIT’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) is any secret. While the vast majority of UROP experiences are overwhelmingly positive, we recognize that
there are an alarming number of reports of serious offenses that undermine the dignity of our student workers and volunteers. </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">We’ve compiled everything we’ve learned about UROPs this semester in </font><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z5XChrr3h_TJij-u__WueZNu5W5uYFxeXWYut5LIihM/edit?usp=sharing"><font face="Helvetica">UAPA’s
[Draft] Final Report on the MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program</font></a><font face="Helvetica">. But we want to make sure our views are representative of all experiences and perspectives on the matter. We are therefore asking that you share
your thoughts and experiences in </font><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcaWXvNTnGzUzFe6mTuDHEQIbXPoHLdjD_43Yv2WGzyeMbmQ/viewform?usp=sf_link"><font face="Helvetica"></font></a><a href="https://forms.gle/uhs1XmLavDxFT3vk6"><font face="Helvetica">this
anonymous form</font></a><font face="Helvetica">, add suggestions to the </font><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z5XChrr3h_TJij-u__WueZNu5W5uYFxeXWYut5LIihM/edit?usp=sharing"><font face="Helvetica">UAPA Final Report doc</font></a><font face="Helvetica">,
and/or reach out to <a href="mailto:ua-publicaffairs-chairs@mit.edu">ua-publicaffairs-chairs@mit.edu</a>.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica"><br>
</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">In particular, we want to know if you’ve had any experiences with:</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">1) Being pressured to not log hours worked;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">2) Potentially hazardous/toxic working conditions;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">3) Being asked to do substantial assignment unpaid as part of the interview/application process, especially those that directly the employer/lab and are used without
proper accreditation;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">4) Supervisors meddling in students’ academics;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">5) Being asked about past salary/compensation in determining employment offers;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">6) Not being notified that of revoked funding / delayed notice of funding decision;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">7) Being pressured to not apply for direct funding;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">8) Any other experience that undermine the respectful treatment of student workers and volunteers</font></p>
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</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">Further, we want to know if you have any thoughts on:</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">1) Expanding Super-UROP opportunities into other fields/courses;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">2) Phasing-out volunteer UROP positions, in lieu of academic credit or pay only;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">3) Setting a maximum number of hours a volunteer UROP can work;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">4) Pushing the direct funding deadlines sooner, so every student will know whether they’re funded before they start their UROP;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">5) Mandatory know-your-worker-rights training module for first-time UROPs;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">6) Increasing UROP wages on number of hours worked with lab to incentivize investment/mentorship in UROPs from lab retention;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">7) Increasing UROP wages on class year / units taken to reflect the increase in UROP skills/marginal productivity;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">8) UROP Supervisor/PI Evaluations <i>Public</i> to MIT Students, similar to subject evaluations;</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">9) Increasing time-sheet enforcement in exchange for higher UROP wages or more UROPs funded</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">10) Any other changes you think that could improve student experiences in UROPs</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica"><br>
</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">Some of these changes may require tradeoffs, which is why your input is invaluable as we navigate these issues. We look forward to advancing this discussion as to
how we can optimize student working experiences.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica"><br>
</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">On a separate, more personal, note, this will be my last e-mail as UA Public Affairs Chair. UAPA has scored some huge wins, including expanding financial aid, hosting
(with partners) coordinated efforts around voting and taxes, and preliminary low-hanging changes to the UROP system already. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">But above all, I hope my two years here has showcased the need to fight for respectful treatment of <i>all</i> workers, including young ones, especially as a tool
to economically uplift our communities. The last few decades, young workers have been boned by a system of labor that we’ve been hesitant to change. Alongside our partner universities in the Boston Intercollegiate Government, but with the backbone of </font><font face="Helvetica"><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nlL4F3zzJRUMVM_cQnJjXL56OPVy8G7dtRj0YnFEuYE/edit?usp=sharing">UAPA’s
Unpaid Internship Proposal</a>,</font><font face="Helvetica"> we’ve led some of the strongest efforts in Massachusetts to improve young workers’ conditions: Our conversations we had with legislative and executive offices were the first times they heard about
the legal gray-zone and lack of basic protections for unpaid/volunteer workers, exploitative interviews, and wage-fixing for internship programs— all stemming from unchecked employer-worker power imbalances. Further, we have begun some of the groundwork to
expand employment opportunities in areas of, for instance, public service and sustainability that we hope to continue building on. We have got to, and will, keep pushing to maintain the dignity of all young workers, one conversation at a time.</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">For any questions, comments, or experiences regarding UROPs or any of UAPA’s other initiatives, please email me at <a href="mailto:pirvine@mit.edu">pirvine@mit.edu</a> or
the (new!) UA Public Affairs Chairs at <a href="mailto:ua-publicaffairs-chairs@mit.edu">ua-publicaffairs-chairs@mit.edu</a>. If you’re graduating this semester— Congratulations! If you’re not— look out for Fall recruitment next semester and UAPA’s initiatives
next year! The new Chairs are hungry to see change ;) </font></p>
<font face="Helvetica"><span style="color: rgb(32, 33, 36); font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><br>
</span></font>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">Paul Irvine<br>
UA Chair of Public Affairs</font></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">In case the hyper-links corrupt, here’s the full url’s for all the links:</font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">Anonymous UROP experience form: </font><font face="Helvetica"><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcaWXvNTnGzUzFe6mTuDHEQIbXPoHLdjD_43Yv2WGzyeMbmQ/viewform?usp=sf_link">https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcaWXvNTnGzUzFe6mTuDHEQIbXPoHLdjD_43Yv2WGzyeMbmQ/viewform?usp=sf_link</a></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 7.5pt; line-height: 24px;"><font face="Helvetica">UAPA’s [Draft] Final Report on UROPs:</font><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z5XChrr3h_TJij-u__WueZNu5W5uYFxeXWYut5LIihM/edit"> <font face="Helvetica">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z5XChrr3h_TJij-u__WueZNu5W5uYFxeXWYut5LIihM/edit</font></a></p>
<font face="Helvetica">UAPA’s Unpaid Internship Proposal: </font><font face="Helvetica"><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nlL4F3zzJRUMVM_cQnJjXL56OPVy8G7dtRj0YnFEuYE/edit?usp=sharing">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nlL4F3zzJRUMVM_cQnJjXL56OPVy8G7dtRj0YnFEuYE/edit?usp=sharing </a></font></td>
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