Project Mentor
Dr. Peter Chen
Department: Geography
Research Project Overview:
Food activities are key to human health. In this project, the SHARE apprentice is expected to assist with survey data coding and analysis about people’s food activities, experiences, and mobility patterns in Willimantic, CT, which is known as having the lowest median income in the state. The data includes residents’ regular food shopping trips, including where they buy food and how they travel from home to food places. The SHARE apprentice will learn and submit an IRB application, which is a requirement of human subject research. If interested, the apprentice will learn coding the data spatially in GIS software and making maps. The data coding and analysis will be conducted over distance.
The apprentice will have the opportunity to join an interdisciplinary team in geography and public health and will work with both professors and Ph.D. students in these fields. As a result of the SHARE project, the apprentice is expected to develop their own research project using the collected data, present the project at the undergraduate research symposium, and potentially write a research article.
Role of a SHARE Summer Apprentice:
The research apprentice will help with transcribing the audio recordings and cleaning/coding survey data. Through the experience, the apprentice will learn mixed-study methods, IRB applications, subject recruiting and compensation, and fundamental quantitative analyses (e.g., statistical analysis and GIS mapping).
Summer Schedule/Time Commitment:
It is expected that the average workload is about 5-7 hours per week or about 90 hours throughout the summer. The research apprentice has a high flexibility in scheduling their work hours. They can work around other commitments as long as the assigned tasks are completed on time.
Preferred Qualifications:
This internship is heavily research focused. It is expected that the prospective student has a strong interest in a research career. The student should be interested in social science studies (including but not limited to sociology, geography, public health, politics, business, and psychology). Students with good communication skills and writing skills are preferred. Having experience with low-income groups and minority groups (e.g., having visited a food pantry or having lived in a minority neighborhood) or speaking Spanish is a plus.
To Apply:
The application deadline has passed.
Please note:
All students hired for a SHARE Summer apprenticeship must complete a federal I-9 form and present original documents in person to OUR staff as part of the hiring process. Visit this U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services page for more information about acceptable documents. You cannot begin working until this is complete. Students are encouraged to plan ahead for this. For example, if you are going home for spring break, consider bringing documents back to campus with you.