Student Research Blog

Writing an Academic Paper as an Undergraduate Researcher

Posted on February 13, 2020 by Berkey, Melissa

By Ariane Garrett, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Publishing papers is the primary way that scientific knowledge is disseminated within the academic community. Therefore an essential part of becoming a successful researcher is learning how to write an academic paper. Throughout your undergraduate research career you may or may not have the opportunity to be published. Regardless, learning how academic papers are written is useful knowledge for anyone interested in pursuing a research career. Continue reading →

Your Major Doesn’t Define Your Research

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Berkey, Melissa

By Maria Latta, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

There is a major misconception that students need to conduct research in their major. In reality, you can find projects that you are passionate about and that are relevant to your future goals in a seemingly unrelated field. Continue reading →

Meeting With Professors for the First Time

Posted on January 30, 2020 by Berkey, Melissa

By Brendan Hogan, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Meeting with faculty you’re interested in working with can be intimidating. However, this important step towards getting involved in research does not need to be stressful. The following tips can help you build connections, and ultimately, secure a research opportunity.

Continue reading →

Research Mentors: Who, Why, and How

Posted on November 21, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Shreya Murthy, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

There’s no question that if you are interested in research for any reason, it is a valuable experience. However, one the most important parts of the research process is finding a research mentor. The information below will help you navigate this step. Continue reading →

Setbacks in Your Project? We’ve All Been There

Posted on November 14, 2019November 14, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Maria Latta, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Whether you are working on lab work, human subjects research, an outreach project, or a creative endeavor, you have probably faced at least one setback along the way. I certainly have. Some of the challenges I have faced are: my experiments produced results that didn’t support my hypothesis, my IRB approval was delayed and required revisions, the organizations I partnered with underwent changes that impacted the timeline of my project, and I have just had mental blocks on how to move forward. Continue reading →

Making the Most of Your Research Experience

Posted on November 7, 2019November 8, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Kavita Rana, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Research is a long and rigorous process and typically requires patience and determination, but it is also rewarding and helps students gain knowledge in their fields of interest. At the end of the day, your research experience is what you make of it. As you dive into research, I’d like to share a few tips I’ve learned along the way that have helped me make the most of my research experiences and shape my own research career. Continue reading →

Preparing for Your First Research Conference

Posted on October 31, 2019November 4, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Ian Sands, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Conference presentations are an essential part of any research community. Whatever field you end up doing research in, attending conferences allow laboratories to communicate their recent projects, obtain feedback from their peers, and remain informed regarding up and coming technologies that are gaining attention within that respective field. On top of that, these events allow you to represent your lab and network yourself to other interested parties for potential collaborations. With all this in mind, it’s important to take time to prepare in order to set yourself up for success and represent your research well. Continue reading →

5 Ways to Set Yourself up for Success

Posted on October 24, 2019October 26, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Grace Nichols, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

So you’ve heard of research, and you know that it’s happening at UConn. Maybe you have friends that work in labs, your professors have mentioned their work in lectures, or you stopped by to see the poster presentations at Frontiers in Undergraduate Research. Whatever your exposure, research sounds exciting and important, and now you want to get involved, too! Continue reading →

20 Seconds of Courage

Posted on October 17, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Abigail LaFontan, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Imagine this, you’ve written an email to a professor whose research project is the one you know you want to join; you’ve read it over twice, and it states everything you need to include. But now you’re hesitating to send it because a million different possibilities are running through your head. You start second-guessing your qualifications and your reason for sending this email in the first place and it takes a while to muster the courage to hit send (or even worse, you never hit send!). Continue reading →

Taking the GRE: Who, What, Where, When

Posted on October 10, 2019 by Berkey, Melissa

By Ariane Garrett, OUR Peer Research Ambassador

Are you considering graduate school? The GRE (Graduate Record Examination) might be just the test you are looking for! There is a wealth of detailed information available online about the GRE, and although this is helpful it can also be overwhelming. Through this post, I hope to give a brief overview of the exam and discuss my experience. Continue reading →