Table 2 Each rule of research described by interviewees about how to find a research experience and how to secure a research experience
Rules of research | Description | Percent of students who reported each rule (n = 85) | Example quote from researcher | Example quote from non-researcher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Finding research | ||||
Use online university resources | Students can use university online resources (e.g., faculty websites, databases to search university research positions) to find research opportunities. | 84% | “I Googled [research opportunities]. I wasn’t really informed about it, I just wanted to do research so I went out of my way to look for it. (…) I went on [the college website] and each PI has their own website so I went into those and read about their research.”—Sofia | “They have [information] on the [college] website you go to. I don’t know what it’s called. I looked at it before and there’s a ton of different things you can do.”—Sarah |
Talk with instructors | Students can talk with instructors about research opportunities in their lab or in other labs on campus. | 68% | “For certain positions, I’ve had to go and ask professors, ‘Are you doing anything right now? Can I get involved with you?’”—Rene | “I would probably ask my professors first [about how to find research opportunities]. I would probably ask [Professor X] if she knew anything, because I’m sure she could at least direct me somewhere even if she didn’t know of anything.”—Emmy |
Talk with advisors | Students can talk with academic advisors about research opportunities that exist at the university. | 29% | “Well right off the bat when you come in freshmen year all of the counselors are all, ‘Oh undergraduate research, here is how to get involved in undergraduate research.’”—Luciana | “I think there might be an advisor or somebody who can lead you to research.”—Rayna |
Talk with graduate students | Students can talk with graduate teaching assistants about how to find available research opportunities. | 21% | “I talked to the lab TA about his research. And then I kind of asked how I could get involved.”—Kelly | “I would probably talk to my TAs in my bio class and ask what they have heard about [getting into research] and see what they would direct me to and go from there.”—Jamie |
Talk with peers | Students can talk with their peers about whether they know of any ways to find undergraduate research experiences at their institution. | 21% | “[I got my current position because] I was in class, I was talking to a friend [about how] I really like regenerative medicine and for the longest time I thought I wanted to go into industry and my friend says, ‘I know a great developmental biologist, you should go talk to him,’ so I sent him an email.”—Mike | “There’s people working [in a research lab]. Like other students too. So maybe I might know that student or a friend might know that student, like a connection.”—Lee |
Securing research | ||||
Express interest | When sending an email or during an interview, expressing interest in the research position can increase a student’s odds of securing the research position. | 60% | “I let [the PI] know that I did know what they did, and I was actually interested in what they were doing and that I didn’t just pull their name out of the [Biology Department] website and be like, ‘Oh I want to research with you.’ I wanted to make sure that I was actually interested in anything that I’d be getting myself into and I wouldn’t want to find out later that I wasn’t interested in his things and waste his time if he had emailed me back.”—Becca | “I’d just [send an email and] say I’m interested in whatever topic they’re researching. I’m a sophomore, I want to be involved. I think I’d be a great student for this research. Just let them know you’re interested. And then send it.”—Martricia |
Do background research | Doing background research on a lab and the specific research going on in that lab before sending an email or interviewing for a position in the lab can help students secure a research position. | 42% | “A [PI] sent out an email to the [Biology Department] listserv [to fill an open research position] and I applied for that, telling them about what I know about them, the research they’ve published, and discussed that and tried to make connections between what they had done research on and what I had done research on to make me look more employable.”—Logan | “I’d look into the lab myself. They usually have websites about what they’re doing, so I would try to educate myself on what they’re doing and before I send an email [to the PI] and then I’d hope to hear something back from that email.”—Gabriella |
Build relationships with PIs | Building a relationship with a PI by exchanging emails, visiting during office hours, or getting to know them as an instructor can increase a student’s chance of joining their lab. | 39% | “The PI [that I was interested in working with] happened to be also my professor for one of my classes in the fall, so I got to bug him in person and it worked better. So I had to talk to him in person a few times, and that’s how we started.”—Hannah | “Honestly, I’d probably go to my professors I know [to get a research experience]. I believe that would be the best shot. Especially they might know something, if you’re lucky enough to have found someone that does research on something that you are interested in, I believe that would be the best way to go about doing it because it would help you go through the process.”—Max |
Be engaged during the interview | During the interview, being attentive, staying engaged and asking relevant questions can improve a student’s chances of securing a research position. | 33% | “[During the interview] I asked [the PI] more questions about his research. Finding out what he’s working on and then as soon as he said something that sounded interesting to me, I commented on it. Just keeping a bit of a conversation going as far as the interview went rather than him just asking me a question waiting for the next question.”—Madison | “[During the interview, I would show I’m qualified to do research by] always asking questions, showing that you actually care what you’re learning about instead of just trying to get through it.”—Brandon |
Email multiple PIs | Emailing more than one PI at the same time when trying to obtain a research position can increase a student’s chance of securing a research position. | 27% | “I just spent like a few days, like, I literally clicked every faculty’s name and I looked at their research and then I saved the ones that I liked. And then I like, um, I emailed 6 people initially, like, I emailed a lot.”—Mia | “I figured out [which PIs] would be a fit and which labs I would want to get into, then I emailed them. Like, if I send out ten emails there’s a higher chance.”—Daniel |