FIRE: The First-Year Innovation & Research Experience

INFORMATION ABOUT JOINING FIRE

Information to help students and families understand the FIRE program at UMD.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

We will host information sessions during each of UMD's Admitted Student Open Houses.

If you are unable to attend the FIRE information session at the Open House, we will also host information sessions via Zoom. FIRE Students will also be on hand to talk more about their experiences and answer your questions at these extra events:

Thursday, March 27, at 5:00 pm ET (Zoom registration)

Monday, April 21, at 5:00 pm ET (Zoom registration)

Questions can also be sent to FIRE's Assistant Program Director, Dr. Carol Vieira (fire-office@umd.edu).

Two - Application

HOW TO JOIN

There are three different pathways to joining FIRE for Fall 2025.

One - Invitation

Your letter of admission to UMD may have contained an invitation to join FIRE.

You must use Terps Application Portal to confirm your invitation by May 1, 2025.

Please note the following:

accepting your invitation to FIRE is a separate process from confirming your enrollment at UMD.
accepting your FIRE invitation does not complete your confirmation to UMD.
completing your UMD confirmation does not accept your invitation to FIRE.

Two - Application

If you did not receive an invitation with your letter of admission to UMD you can still apply to join FIRE.

We kept the application short - you just need to submit your name, your UID number (communicated in your admission letter), and a valid email address. No essay questions and no letters of recommendation.

Please note:

Applying to FIRE does not complete your confirmation to UMD.
We are unable to reply to or act on applications until after UMD's enrollment confirmation date (May 1, 2025).
The sooner your apply, the better your chances are.
You may apply to FIRE before confirming to UMD.
We expect to communicate decisions before Summer Orientations start.

Three - Freshmen Connection

If you are a part of Freshmen Connection, you have a different opportunity to join FIRE.

When scheduling your fall semester, enroll in a section of FIRE Semester 1 dedicated to Freshmen Connection students.

Please note:

The specific section is FIRE120-FC01.
Once this section fills, we are unable to admit additional Freshmen Connection students.
We are unable to consider applications to the FIRE program from Freshmen Connection students.

Apply to Join FIRE

FAQs

ABOUT FIRE

I missed the FIRE information sessions. Where can I learn more?

Can I be in [specific] stream?

Read more about FIRE Stream Preferencing.

Does FIRE offer scholarships or other financial assistance?

FIRE does not provide scholarships or any other type of financial assistance.

APPLICATIONS

When will you release application decisions? Can you tell me sooner? What are my chances of getting in?

We will email all applicants who confirmed with UMD in mid-May. We are not able to make exceptions. The chances of getting in depend on how many students accept their FIRE invitation and how many students apply. We do our best to accommodate as many students as possible from our application pool. We will admit additional students throughout the Summer and through the first week of Fall classes.

Did you receive my application to FIRE?

The application form will email you a copy of your responses (subject: Application to join FIRE in 2025). If you find that email, we have your application. If you do not find it, please apply again.

FRESHMEN CONNECTION

The Freshmen Connection section is full. Will there be additional sections? Other options?

We will not be able to add additional sections or seats for Freshmen Connection (FC) students. You are encouraged to waitlist the section so we have a way to communicate with students who are interested in joining FIRE.

You could also consider joining OURS100: Entering Research (OURS100-FCW1) as another gateway to getting involved in undergraduate research. If you later get a spot in FIRE, you should drop this course.

FC students who are not able to get a spot in FIRE in the Fall will be eligible to apply to join FIRE in Spring 2026. Applications will open on our website in November 2025.

The Office of Undergraduate Research has additional resources for all UMD students to get involved in research. Of particular interest, FIRE Faculty Leaders operate summer research groups as part of the Immersive Research Internship Experience (IRIE).

SUMMER ORIENTATION

Do I need to register for FIRE summer orientation?

You are welcome to register for any summer orientation that is available to you and that works with your schedule. All FIRE students will receive an email before their orientation with FIRE Semester 1 registration instructions.

MORE INFORMATION

How do FIRE classes work?

FIRE is structured so that you earn course credit during each semester of program participation. Classes only meet once a week in a classroom setting. You will spend the majority of your FIRE time in the research environment dedicated to the research stream that you join.

FIRE courses do not utilize exams to measure how students are learning - we instead ask you to commit to training and research engagement.

You can read more about our courses here.

Does FIRE have a stream for my major?

When considering our research streams, we encourage you to think about which streams might interest you.

Guidance we provide students includes:

the research focus.
the research skills you will gain
opportunities to build your skills and research awareness both inside and outside your major.
opportunities to engage broad societal challenges that interest you.

When and how do I join a stream?

All FIRE students take FIRE Semester 1 during their first fall semester at UMD.

During this course we take a number of steps to help students in this process:

We lead students through an exploration of FIRE research streams.
We also host an event called FIRE Fall Welcome to give all new FIRE students the chance to meet FIRE leaders, faculty, and students who are completing the program.

While we are not able to guarantee students spots in specific streams, we find that >90% of FIRE students join one of their top 2 choices.

Can international & transfer students be a part of FIRE?

Yes - as long as Fall 2025 will be your first semester on campus.

If admitted, can I wait until next year?

Only first-year students are eligible for FIRE. You cannot defer participation in FIRE.

Why was I invited to FIRE?

We recruit students whom we hope will benefit from and enjoy an authentic, hands-on research experience. We work in close partnership with other first-year programs at UMD to select students invited to FIRE.