Physics REU sites: What works? How do we know? How do we improve?

The NSF Physics REU Leadership Group (NPRLG) is an organization of Physics NSF REU site directors and others committed to enhancing undergraduate student research experiences through cooperative engagement of the Physics REU site directors. The Executive Committee (EC) of the NPRLG is leading efforts to further the goals of the NPRLG through advocacy, data gathering and information sharing. We strive to improve the effectiveness of REU programs by facilitating communication across disciplines and within the physics community. While there is no single model of the ideal REU site, we identify examples of successful sites and share those examples with the Physics community. Several studies have tried to identify the costs and benefits of undergraduate research experiences to the students and faculty mentors. The NPRLG EC strives to keep their members informed of these studies and encourages them to take advantage of the information. The NPRLG EC is working to identify ways to make more undergraduate physics majors and faculty mentors aware of the benefits of participating in undergraduate research. Current initiatives as well as future plans will be shared.