Plant Science Summer Schools for Undergraduate Students
The Gatsby Plant Science Education Programme runs two exciting bioscience summer schools for undergraduate bioscience students from 30 universities around the UK:
- Gatsby Plant Science Summer School (GPSSS) for the curious who haven't yet explored plants
- Rootstock for plant enthusiasts to take a deeper dive into plant science
Both schools are free to attend thanks to generous funding from the Gatsby Charitable Foundation. The summer schools are a unique opportunity for first year (or second year in Scotland) students studying at the below UK universities, to discover the challenge and opportunities of studying plant science, through talks from leading scientists, careers sessions, eye-opening workshops and thought-provoking discussions with researchers and peers.
How to apply
You can apply for either school via your Gatsby Mentor.
Gatsby Plant Science Summer School 2025
Discover the World of Plant Science
For undergraduate bioscience students who haven’t explored the world of plant science but are curious about it. Join us for an immersive experience that will spark your interest in the green world. The 2025 GPSSS will take place at the end of June, beginning of July.
What to expect at the 2025 GPSSS
The summer school is a fun, relaxed and social week-long programme incorporating lectures, tutorials, practicals and careers information.
- Hear from the UK's top scientists on global challenges and science’s biggest questions
- Develop your skills for research, study and work
- Get inspiration and insight into future careers
The Gatsby Plant Science Summer School (GPSSS) is now in it's 21st year. It was established by the University of Leeds in 2005 and is now part of the Gatsby Plant Science Education Programme (GPSEP) at the University of Cambridge (since 2014).
“GPSSS is a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn more about plant science and gain new perspectives about academia”,
GPSSS 2024 student attendee
Past GPSSS lectures
You can view lectures from past years on the Gatsby Plant Science Education Programme YouTube channel.
More information
For more details download the 2024 GPSSS information for students and programme (PDF 164KB)
Rootstock 2025
The Rootstock summer school was established by GPSEP in 2022. Rootstock is designed for plant enthusiastic bioscience students to delve deeper into the fascinating realm of plant science. For more details download the 2024 Rootstock information for students (PDF, 1.3MB). The 2025 Rootstock will take place in mid July.
Help promote the plant science summer schools at your university
We have created a poster with information about the two summer schools (PDF saved on Google Drive, 11.7MB) that can be used to help promote the two summer schools at the universities listed below.
Contacts
The co-founder for the GPSSS is Dr Celia Knight. For both GPSSS and Rootstock the project manager is Claire Pennycuick, and the project coordinator is Yulia Lapko. If you have any additional questions about the GPSSS or Rootstock, please contact Yulia via email at gpsep@botanic.cam.ac.uk.
Recruiting students to join the summer programmes
The recruitment of students for GPSSS and Rootstock is aided by Gatsby Mentors working in the participating Universities. A full list of the mentors is provided below. Students can find out more about the summer schools by contacting the Gatsby Mentor at their university.
Gatsby Mentors
Professor John Doonan (Aberystwyth University)
Professor Jim Murray (Cardiff University)
Dr Miguel De Lucas (Durham University)
Dr Tolga Bozkurt (Imperial College London)
Dr Mike Roberts (Lancaster University)
Dr Patricia Lopez-Calcago (Newcastle University)
Dr Verena Kriechbaumer (Oxford Brookes University)
Professor Alessandra Devoto (Royal Holloway University of London)
Dr Gareth Norton (University of Aberdeen)
Dr Paula Kover (University of Bath)
Dr Daniel Gibbs (University of Birmingham)
Professor Jill Harrison (University of Bristol)
Professor Julian M. Hibberd (University of Cambridge)
Dr Piers Hemsley (University of Dundee)
Dr Ben Miller (University of East Anglia)
Dr Andrea Paterlini (University of Edinburgh)
Dr Pallavi Singh (University of Essex)
Dr Mike Deeks (University of Exeter)
Dr Eirini Kaiserli (University of Glasgow)
Dr Stefan Kepinski (University of Leeds)
Dr Sinéad Drea (University of Leicester)
Dr James Hartwell (University of Liverpool)
Dr Jon Pittman (University of Manchester)
Professor Zoe Wilson (University of Nottingham)
Dr Francesco Licausi (University of Oxford)
Dr Jonathan Mitchley (University of Reading)
Professor Katie Field (University of Sheffield)
Professor Matthew Terry (University of Southampton)
Professor Alex Jones (University of Warwick)
Dr Liz Rylott (University of York)