Acton Research Internship

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Wish to work with the best professors and research professionals? Want to boost your learning as you undertake online research programs for high school students? Want to put your academic career in the right orbit? We bet you have come to the right place. At Acton Scholars we give the right perspective to your career by offering you with the best internship opportunities. Our Research Internship Program enriches your knowledge in the subject and also its practical application in the industry. As a platform committed to online research programs for high school students we are committed to improve the outreach for young scholars and facilitating the flow of information and new ideas in young minds.

We take pride in the fact that we have been able to help hundreds of young minds excel with their high school research through our internship program. These programs are across different domains and cater to the masses. Irrespective of the specialization you will be able to enroll into a program of your choice. We focus on research for high school students and help students in gaining practical skills and develop collaborative networks working with the best minds across several fields and learning from some of the best mentors in the field of academics. These programs have been designed to serve as a source of academic enrichment and help those undertaking research for high school students.

We follow a strict selection process for our Research Internship program which is meant to ensure the best minds get through into internships. This not only helps students acquire practical skills across different subject areas but also build acquaintances that helps them in their future career and academic pursuit. Our Internship program is reviewed regularly to keep it aligned to the fast changing world of academics. These serve as a stepping stone of success for the future and further strengthen online research programs for high school students.

Boost Your Career With Research Internship

A unique opportunity to work with academic professionals in a research environment similar to The Concord Review. Acton Research Interns (ARI) will help professors and research professionals review and select high school research papers and articles, format and edit research papers and operations for the high school journal, and outreach for the Acton Journals. Applications for the ten open positions will begin on March 1 for the academic competition. Two internship positions will be awarded for each of the Acton Journals. Applications are on a rolling basis, meaning positions will be filled as we receive applications of qualified candidates. We also welcome research associated with the STEM Olympiads, e.g. Science Olympiad, Physics Olympiad, Math Olympiad. Many of our top published students have gone on to earn QuestBridge awards and a QuestBridge scholarship as well as Ivy League submission acceptances.

Over the years, Acton Scholars have received hundreds of inquiries on how to write an influential research paper. We have put together a list of what constitutes a good research paper to help you get started.  

1. Submerge yourself into the research process. After choosing your subject, you may find yourself overwhelmed with the amount of information you encounter. This is all part of the process. Our advice is to allow yourself to casually read about your subject without putting too much stress on what your direct line of action should be. Pay attention to what personally interests you and jot it down. If the subject does not hold your interest, you will have difficulty maintaining your audience’s attention. This is a good time for you to start formulating your thesis. Remember to keep track of your resources and take advantage of sites such as Google Scholar or online encyclopedias, almanacs, and databases. This will all be used in your bibliography later. 
2. Your organizational skills are critical. We suggest while you discover new things about your subject, you use a spreadsheet to organize your idea neatly. Your jumbled thoughts will look much less daunting if you can see them in front of you. This will also help build your thesis statement. It’s important to have a strong thesis before you start writing. Think of it as your anchoring point to come back to if you feel like your paper is running away from you. Now it is time to start making an outline. This does not have to be set in stone. Your outline will most likely change as you begin to understand more about your subject. This is actually a good thing. It shows that you are learning and not stubborn in your ways. When creating the outline, use only the main points—no need to waste time getting too deeply involved yet. After you finished, run through it one more time to trim off the fat. Ask yourself is this necessary to put in my paper, or am I just trying to fill up space (trust us, we will be able to tell).  
3. Now it’s time to jump in the thicket. Luckily the most challenging part is done. Now you can let yourself roam free with your ideas within each section. First, start with the introduction. The introduction is similar to your thesis, but with one significant difference, it explains WHY you are writing the paper. While the thesis tells your reader what the paper is about, the introduction will let them know what is the point of writing it. Make sure you start with an interesting opening sentence. We understand that this is an academic paper; however, that does not mean it needs to be dry and dull. With the rest of the introduction, you may choose to explain how you organized your approach. Also, you should let them know if this is an argumentative paper or an informative one. 
4. Now it’s time for the body of the essay. This is where your outline will come in handy. Remember, you don’t need to stay married to it. It’s more of a guiding light for you, but sometimes those hidden dark hallways are where the most exciting things are discovered. You have probably collected a lot of sources in the beginning, but don’t let that control your paper. You don’t need to use all of them if they do not fit well. Trust your instinct; if it doesn’t feel right, it probably doesn’t belong. It also might help to remember the “rule of three” when writing your body. A lot of effective papers use this to support the point they are trying to get across. This technique has various usages centered around backing your points up with three facts or how to build up an argument. You could also think of how standup comedians write their jokes (set up, build the audience’s anticipation, punch line). 
5. You have reached the end, and it’s time for the conclusion. Perhaps it all seems a bit chaotic and might feel like you have led your reader astray. This is your chance to check if that is true. Remember, everything comes down to the thesis. For the conclusion, briefly summarize your main points from each section of your body. You should then briefly explain why you believe these points. If you can’t, there must be something wrong, and you need to go back to your body and make some adjustments. 
6. Reviewing, editing, and asking for help. We cannot advise enough how vital these last three steps are. We receive so many papers each year that are fantastic, but the authors did not do the proper citings or grammar checks. This will hurt your paper a lot because it looks like you don’t care that much. Use the many online tools available like Grammarly to help you. You might think that your paper looks perfect, but I guarantee there are mistakes that you missed. Think about it like going to a museum and seeing a million-dollar painting hung crooked on the wall. Also, show your paper to as many people as possible. Ask them for help no matter who it is. Every little bit helps. Teachers, friends, family, or any online community can help squeeze out all the holes you don’t see. Don’t get your feelings hurt when they tell you some parts don’t make sense. It’s all part of the process. Good luck! 

Why do it?

Acton Scholars was created to make the arcane world of academic journals to open, accessible and friendly to high school students across the world. The Acton Research Internship Program was created to give students first-hand experience working with professional researchers in the area of academic journals, a big part of what professors spend their time working on.

Benefits to Acton Research Interns

• Unique, invaluable experience – research internships are difficult positions to come by
• College application activity – top US colleges are looking for students who have unique and strong academic activities
• Join a community of scholars – many ARIs have gone on to MIT, Caltech, Stanford, Harvard, Princeton and many other top schools
• A few ARIs will have the opportunity to work 1on1 w/ journal editors to finish up, beef up or work on original research papers

Who are we looking for?

• Current high school juniors or seniors w/ strong GPAs and SAT scores
• We prefer students who have exceled in academic competitions in their field, e.g. Olympiads for STEM, Scholastic for the arts, National History Day for social sciences
• We prefer students who are currently working on or completed original research papers or projects, e.g. Intel/Regeneron, local science fairs, National History Day

Internship Responsibilities

• All work is conducted online via our project management platform and zoom
• Work w/ editors and staff of journal and Acton staff assisting them w/ paperwork, editing, reviewing and commenting on research papers and articles, writing summaries, assisting w/ marketing content and organization, liaising w/ nonprofit partners and contacting student researchers
• ARIs will contribute 2-3 hours a week

Lend Wings To Your Career

Research Internships are a unique opportunity to lend wings to your career. By signing up for our Internship Program, you will be able to develop your professional aptitude, know your strengths, and iron out your weaknesses. You will make yourself aware of the hundreds of opportunities that await you after your graduation. We have constantly focused on offering the most enriching learning experiences to students by letting them work under the best professors’ expert supervision. Sign up today and give shape to a successful career in the future.