Documentation:CTLT Resources/Undergraduate Research Resources Characteristics

Undergraduate research carries different connotations in different contexts. Understanding the unique roles and responsibilities involved in undergraduate research – for the students and the professors – enables undergraduate research experiences to be further and better developed as effective tools for teaching and learning.

The list below includes definitions and characteristics of undergraduate research from various groups and institutions.

What is Undergraduate Research?

University of British Columbia

What is Undergraduate Research? What are its Characteristics?

An inquiry; enquiry
Gain new or novel knowledge to understand a phenomenon
A systematic investigation, including a hypothesis, methods, results, data analysis, that adds to a body of knowledge
Engagement in the scholarship of discovery

What Might it Include?

Analysis of literature, text, etc. that adds to a body of knowledge
Field/lab work that supports the scholarship of discovery
Qualitative or quantitative data collection and analysis

Cornell University

What is Research?

research. n. Scholarly or scientific investigation or inquiry. Close, careful study

“Defining research is as difficult as explaining how gravity works…” http://www.research.cornell.edu/undergrad/getting_started.html

Princeton University

What Constitutes “Research” [for undergraduates]?

Princeton Undergraduate Research Experience (PURE) offers some insight in a surprisingly casual way… Check it out:

“Maybe you came up with an exciting idea while taking a course and want to implement/develop it. That could count as “research.” Or maybe you have ideas on how to redesign a computer science course to make it more interesting, and want to work with the professor teaching it. That could also count as “research.” We have no set notions. Surprise us.”

For more details (features of the PURE program and application info – open to undergrads from Princeton and other universities), visit: http://www.cs.princeton.edu/~arora/pure.html

Western Washington University

“Involving Undergraduates in Research” by Thor Hansen

“In the most restrictive sense research is original discovery that creates new knowledge. Most peer-reviewed science papers involve original discovery. The term research is also applied to the rediscovery of existing knowledge. The literature search that we do in preparation for writing a scientific article or “research” for a term paper falls into this category. True research (involving original discovery) is open-ended, i.e. the researcher addresses a question for which there is no generally agreed upon answer.”

See more: http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~dialogue/issue5.html

Why is Undergraduate Research Important?

So you have an idea of what undergraduate research is… but why is it important? Check out some ideas below.

University of Waterloo

Reasons for Undergraduate Research

Shoshin Research Group, The Distributed System Research Group at the Department of Computer Science, University of Waterloo

“There are several reasons for doing research with a professor while pursuing undergraduate studies. A number of these reasons are generic, while some have more specific limitations.

A student can decide if s/he wishes to do a graduate degree
A student can interact with a professor, which is likely necessary for strong letters of reference on graduation (essential for good graduate school and scholarship applications)
A student can work on bleeding-edge research
The skill set necessary for success in industry is the same as the skill set necessary for success in research.

That last comment in particular needs some elaboration. Let me explain, as someone who has spent much of my professional career in industry, and who currently has research relationships with five companies. The comment, simply put, is this: your boss in industry really doesn’t care if you are good at courses, or can write exams well. S/he wants you to innovate products. Innovate? Wow! Sounds like you must do something novel and significant. That’s research! Further, you must be able to describe this innovative idea to your boss, to persuade him/her to fund the idea. Wow! Sounds like you must communicate this idea, likely both orally, in a presentation, and in writing, like a publication. This is the same skill set as you acquire in doing research, even as an undergraduate.”

http://www.shoshin.uwaterloo.ca/~pasward/undergrad.shtml#USRA

How to Effectively Participate in Undergraduate Research

Stanford University

Best Practices in Mentoring Undergraduate Researchers

“Problems or shortcomings in the academic mentor-student relationship often come about because of misunderstandings about the expectations the parties have of one another—expectations about amount of contact, timelines and deadlines for work, what constitutes an adequate draft for submission, what qualifies as an acceptable honors thesis, and so on. Many misunderstandings can be avoided or overcome by following good academic mentoring practices such as those described below. These guidelines were compiled by the Undergraduate Research Programs office from conversations with Stanford faculty and students, the University of Michigan Ann Arbor’s How to Get the Mentoring You Want, and from unpublished resources from Yale University’s McDougal Center for Graduate Student Life.”

Visit http://ual.stanford.edu/FS/ResearchPartnerships.html to view the following categories:

Advice for Mentors
Advice for Students: Choosing a Mentor
Establishing Positive Working Agreements
Organizing Meetings
Setting Expectations
Turning in Your Work

American Mathematical Society/Mathematical Association of America (AMS/MAA) 2002, Joint Meeting

Factors to consider when you assume supervisory duties:

Consider the level and type of the research that is appropriate
Decide on a supervisory style that you are comfortable with
Make your expectations clear and explicit
Learn to identify common problems for research students
Avoid common criticisms of supervisors made by research students
Learn to identify warning indicators for students at risk
Consider your role at supervisory meetings

For more information: http://math.la.asu.edu/~crook/tips_topics.html