CIDER brings together diverse students, researchers, and industry partners from a variety of sectors to fuel research and innovation, and develop a diverse drone workforce.

The UCSC CITRIS Initiative for Drone Education and Research (CIDER) offers educational training and research support for the development and use of drone technology across all academic disciplines and many industry sectors. Students benefit from career-enhancing experiential learning opportunities, hands-on field research, flight time, and FAA licensure.

Faculty gain access to licensed student and staff pilots who can conduct flights for research and teaching purposes, plus access to program-maintained drone equipment for research support. Industry partnerships and drone services contracts provide internships and field training opportunities for students, and collaborative research opportunities for faculty. Our program values diversity and encourages students from backgrounds underrepresented in STEM to participate in our program.