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Undergraduate Research

 

Pathway to Undergraduate Research Credit:

 

At least 1 semester of NEUR 2994 (P/F or A/F grading) 🡪 NEUR 4994 (A-F grading)

Please enroll in NEUR 2994 credit if your work pertains to one or more of the following:

  • Assisting in study recruitment
  • Assisting in data collection
  • Assisting in data preparation and analysis
  • Engaging in extensive reading (e.g. literature review) that results in written submission (e.g. annotated bibliography)

Please enroll in NEUR 4994 credit if your work pertains to one or more of the following:

  • Giving a formal presentation to your lab/research group
  • Giving a presentation talk or poster at a research meeting and/or conference
  • Writing a paper on the project that is submitted to the instructor/supervisor
  • Contributing to a manuscript for publication

Some faculty may request that you volunteer in their lab first before receiving academic credit, but volunteering is not a mandated requirement by the School of Neuroscience. Please sign and submit the completed volunteer letter to your assigned academic advisor if applicable.

 

 

 

 

For Students New to Research

To be eligible to register for NEUR 2994 (P/F), students must:

To eligible for register for NEUR 4994 (A-F), students must:

 
*Please note that up to 3 credits of NEUR 4994 can count towards restricted elective credit in the neuroscience majors. NEUR 2994 will only count as free elective credit.

Plan to look for research opportunities prior to registering for the following semester because it may take multiple attempts to find a lab. Most labs require a minimum of 10-12 hours per week, so plan your schedule accordingly.

Explore the Core and Affiliated Faculty areas of the website to learn about the research interests of our faculty.  Once you find a faculty member whose interest areas align with your own, you are ready to get started.  The steps below provide an outline for how to get involved:

1. Contact the faculty member whose research lab interests you.  We recommend requesting an in-person meeting via e-mail along with the following items:

  • Your name
  • Your Graduating Class year (Example: Class of Spring 2021)
  • Your overall GPA as well as your in-major GPA
  • A statement of interest
    Statement of Interest: Read the description of the research on the faculty’s website. You may want to read a few papers that the lab published. This may be too technical for you to understand but you should try to get a basic understanding of what the lab does. The more you know about the research, the more the professor is likely to take you seriously. Your statement of interest should explain why the research interests you and why you want to join this particular lab.
  • Your Resume

2. Complete the trainings within the Student Research Training Checklist. These safety training courses are required for most wet labs.  These courses take up to two weeks to complete, so planning ahead is key.  Note that some faculty may ask you to have these trainings completed before meeting with you in person.   

3. Complete the College of Science Experiential Learning form for research/independent study credit. Complete the Volunteer Letter if the research is to be completed for no credit.  

  • Deadline to submit Experiential Learning Form is the last day for students to add classes each semester (see academic calendar)

For Students Returning to Research

1. To return to the same lab for research, discuss with your professor around course request time to secure a position for the following semester.

2. To switch your research lab, email the professor you want to work with to discuss the opportunity. Be sure to do this early enough to complete training courses if you have not already done so.

3. Complete the College of Science Experiential Learning form for research/independent study credit.

  • Deadline to submit Experiential Learning Form is the last day for students to add classes each semester (see academic calendar)