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Undergraduate Research Symposium

2023 Undergraduate Research Symposium

The Penn State Lehigh Valley Undergraduate Research Symposium is scheduled for April 6, 2023. Student posters will be displayed in Center Hall beginning on April 3, 2023.

Keynote Speaker

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Michael Mfarej, (former PSULV student) will be our keynote speaker for the symposium. The title of Dr. Mfarej's talk will be "We Dream and the Market Decides: A Message for Young Scholars".

Michael Mfarej, Ph.D. is an intellectual property practitioner who works with university, start-up, and large pharmaceutical company clients to develop patent portfolios. With deep knowledge in biochemistry, molecular cell biology, and chemical biology, he works as a scientific advisor for inventors and attorneys delivering expertise in areas including recombinant adeno-associated viruses, gene-editing platforms, genetically modified microorganisms and human tissue grafts, protein engineering, therapeutic uses of modified nucleic acids, biomolecular diagnostics, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. In 2024, Dr. Mfarej will begin his J.D. studies at Fordham University in order to become a licensed patent attorney. After completing his undergraduate education at Penn State Lehigh Valley and Berks campuses, Dr. Mfarej published broadly on cell signaling mechanisms involved in DNA damage repair, oxidative stress, and chromosome segregation and their roles in the disease etiology of developmental disorders and cancer. Additionally, Dr. Mfarej’s expertise in CRISPR/Cas9 technology and gene expression analyses has led to publications focused on signaling pathways involved in heart development. Dr. Mfarej is also passionate about undergraduate education. Over the last 10 years, Dr. Mfarej has served various roles across several colleges as a teaching assistant, guest lecturer, and adjunct instructor. Outside of his professional life, Dr. Mfarej is an avid runner who enjoys road races from the 5k to the marathon.

Register online

The deadline to register is February 28, 2023.

More details about judging criteria and poster preparation, as well as links to judging rubrics, can be found on the Undergraduate Research Symposium Judging Criteria webpage.

NOTE: Students are welcome to author/co-author multiple posters. However, in order for judging to be effective and fair, each poster must have at least one designated student present during the Q & A session assigned to them. Therefore, each student can submit only one solo-authored poster and be designated as primary presenter for only one poster. Students may co-author additional posters, but other students must be listed as primary presenters for those posters.

Winners and exceptional runners-up will be invited to participate in the Regional Undergraduate Research Symposium held this year on April 22 at the Penn State York campus. 

Questions about the Symposium?

Contact a member of the Undergraduate Research Symposium Planning Team:

Dr. Jacqueline McLaughlin ([email protected])
Dr. Todd Retzlaff ([email protected])
Dr. Elizabeth Flaherty ([email protected]) 
Dr. Andjela Kaur([email protected])

 

 

Undergraduate Research Symposium

  • Undergraduate Research Symposium Judging Criteria
  • Past Undergraduate Research Symposium Speakers
  • Undergraduate Research Symposium Winner Archive
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Penn State Lehigh Valley

Part of the historically rich and economically vibrant Lehigh Valley for more than 100 years, Penn State Lehigh Valley allows students to pursue a globally known degree in a small, close-knit campus setting. Recently enhanced by a multi-million-dollar expansion project, PSU-LV boasts first-rate facilities and faculty, diverse extracurricular programming, and access to 275 Penn State degrees, 10 of which can be completed entirely at the campus.  
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