Short-Term STEM Project Idea Advisor for Two Grade 8 Students

We are seeking an experienced STEM professional to help two advanced Grade 8 students identify strong project ideas for a student research mentorship application.

This is a short-term idea-development assignment. The students need to select preliminary project concepts and be able to explain what they want to investigate or develop. They will receive separate long-term mentorship if accepted into the program.

The project ideas may fall within areas such as:

• Environmental science and climate change
• Health and wellness
• Disease and illness
• Digital technology, coding or artificial intelligence
• Engineering and product innovation
• Energy and natural resources
• Agriculture, food production or food science
• Aerospace or space science
• Another suitable area of science or technology

Each idea may involve either a scientific investigation or the development and testing of an innovation.

The advisor will:

• Speak with each student about their individual interests and strengths.
• Suggest suitable and engaging areas of investigation.
• Help each student choose an original, focused and realistic preliminary idea.
• Help the students determine whether their ideas would be better suited to a scientific investigation or an innovation.
• Ensure that each idea includes something the student could investigate, measure, compare or test.
• Help each student clearly explain the proposed idea, its purpose and why she is interested in exploring it.
• Ensure that the students are ready to discuss their proposed ideas with their science teachers and describe them in their mentorship applications.

The advisor is not being hired to complete the projects, conduct the research or prepare the full experimental plans. The purpose of this assignment is to help the students identify suitable ideas and prepare for the application process. All final decisions and application responses must remain the students’ own.

The ideal candidate will have:

• A university degree or current graduate-level study in science, engineering, health sciences, computer science, environmental science or a related field.
• Experience helping students generate science fair, innovation or research project ideas.
• The ability to identify ideas that are original, measurable, safe, ethical and manageable for Grade 8 students.
• Experience working with academically advanced middle or high school students.
• The ability to explain scientific and technical concepts clearly

This is an urgent assignment. Applicants must be available for one or two virtual sessions between September 11 and September 16, 2026.

Applicants should submit a résumé and a brief message describing their relevant research, science fair or student mentoring experience. Please confirm your availability when applying.

Location: Remote

Time commitment: Approximately two to three hours

Compensation: $50 to $80 per hour, depending on qualifications and experience

Pay: $50.00-$80.00 per hour

Expected hours: 2.0 per week

Work Location: Remote