Any tips on finding a undergraduate research topic?

[Doc2019]

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I'm really into doing research as an undergraduate and was wondering if you guys had any tips on finding a topic or how you guys found your topics to do research on? I read a lot of science articles but there's not much to build on since they all talk about studies that have already been performed. What did you guys do to find your topics?

 

[hoihaie]

Are you in a lab? what does your lab study?

 

[WedgeDawg]

Talk to your PI, see what they're currently doing, then see if there is a branch of that project that you can work on.

 

[Doc2019]

I'm not in college yet but I'm going to be a freshman next year. My school offers "research grants" to do individual projects? Do you guys think that's a good idea or should I join a professor's project? I think it'd be so cool to publish my own paper but maybe I should work with other people first before starting my own project to get experience? By the way what's a PI?

 

[WedgeDawg]

I'm not in college yet but I'm going to be a freshman next year. My school offers "research grants" to do individual projects? Do you guys think that's a good idea or should I join a professor's project? I think it'd be so cool to publish my own paper but maybe I should work with other people first before starting my own project to get experience? By the way what's a PI?

99.999996% of the time, these are grants for you to work in someone's lab. You will always be working with other people. A PI is the person in charge of the lab (Principle Investigator).

 

[eternelle]

I'm not in college yet but I'm going to be a freshman next year. My school offers "research grants" to do individual projects? Do you guys think that's a good idea or should I join a professor's project? I think it'd be so cool to publish my own paper but maybe I should work with other people first before starting my own project to get experience? By the way what's a PI?

Once you get to college, form good relationships with your professors. Ask them if they are looking for an undergraduate researcher. Then do whatever projects they expect you to work on, provided that it sounds interesting. Your research will most likely be "independent" (but you'll be watched over by your PI or a grad student and thus, if you get a publication, your name will not be the only one on it).

 

[lifetothefullest]

You will definitely need a mentor and a lab, if you're talking about the sciences. Unless you plan on getting a multi-million dollar grant, you're not buying your own FACS or NMR machine. And so the best way to approach that is to read the PI's recent papers to see if you'd be interested, ask to work in his/her lab, get acclimated to the stuff they do, and then maybe a few months or a year in you're well-acquainted with the literature enough to propose a detailed project.

Also, a little side note: all science must talk about stuff that's already been done. That's the point of science - to extend the realm of knowledge.

 

[Doc2019]

Got it. Thanks for all the advice!

 

[ridethecliche]

Ask your pi for reading and/or a project.

 

[Doc2019]

Do you think my future PI would be interested in freshmen without much research experience? If not how do I prepare myself so future PIs will allow me to be part of their projects?

 

[eternelle]

Do you think my future PI would be interested in freshmen without much research experience? If not how do I prepare myself so future PIs will allow me to be part of their projects?

It kinda depends on the PI. Most PIs realize that undergraduates are clueless and they're willing to start from scratch, but they usually only take students who are in their second semester onward so you have basic lab experience and so that they can ask about your gpa.

 

[hoihaie]

Do you think my future PI would be interested in freshmen without much research experience? If not how do I prepare myself so future PIs will allow me to be part of their projects?

Email a bunch of them (like >30 PIs) and talk to the ones that reply to you

 

[allantois]

Honestly at this point it is far more important to do well in your classes and adjust to college. After you are comfortable with everything, it might be a better time to seek out research opportunities. If you want to get involved from early on, I suggest volunteering.

 

[Doc2019]

Thanks for the advice. So what I'll do is volunteer and get a good GPA during my first semester and then during my second semester find a PI who will accept me since there's no chance I can get a PI to accept me as a first semester freshman. Just curious, how do you guys balance volunteering and research. Do you do it simultaneously or maybe an hour of volunteering per week and a few hours of research per week or?

 

[Lucca]

Thanks for the advice. So what I'll do is volunteer and get a good GPA during my first semester and then drink my second semester find a PI who will accept me since there's no chance I can get a PI to accept me as a first semester freshman. Just curious, how do you guys balance volunteering and research. Do you do it simultaneously or maybe an hour of volunteering per week and a few hours of research per week or?

This is very lab dependent. Research commitments can range from 5 hours a week to 20 hours a week. It depends on how independent your project is, the nature of the project itself, and how much you care about research. We just had another thread on "how do I find a research lab" so go read that for tips on finding a PI. I volunteer on weekends and during the week the only EC I do is research, about 15 hours a week. Occasionally I have another commitment or two. when you get into a lab you can simply ask your PI what they expect of you in terms of time commitment. If you end up liking research (and only continue it if you do, don't do it for the application points) and eventually work on an independent project then you will probably know how much time it takes to get things done by then.

 

[Doc2019]

Thanks Lucca!

 

[Doug Underhill]

The best thing to do is to find a lab with a grad student or postdoc who is in their fourth or fifth year getting ready to publish something. Learn how to do one assay and do it well. Contribute one panel to one figure. Get published as a minor author on the grad student's paper. Make sure you understand every word of the article you're listed on, and its broader relevance to human health, and be able to articulate this at an interview.

At the same time, work to build good relationships with the PI and the student/postdoc. Don't be one of those premeds who thinks Ph.Ds are failed pre-meds who couldn't hack it. This is only true for some of them: the rest are hardcore science types who have zero interest in interacting with patients. DO make sure you have time to do your assay: one big irritation researchers have with undergrads is that they don't have enough time to run assays. It might take 12 hours to do an experiment- if that's your assay, be there for all 12 hours, even if you're only on the hook for twelve hours a week. Keep a schedule and stick to it. DO speak up if you don't understand something (and you won't): don't just nod silently to avoid looking dumb. Research productivity is measured in data and conclusions, not hours spent.

 

[Doc2019]

Thanks Doug! Just curious, I've yet to do any research but what do you mean by add one panel to one figure and what's an assay? When you say assay do you mean understand a certain part of the project very well?

 

[hoihaie]

Thanks Doug! Just curious, I've yet to do any research but what do you mean by add one panel to one figure and what's an assay? When you say assay do you mean understand a certain part of the project very well?

I think you should read a scientific paper first

 

[22031 Alum]

Take at least the first semester to adjust to college, and get involved with some volunteering and extra-curriculars if you can. The transition to college from high school can be tough, and you don't want to put yourself in a hole, grade-wise, that you then have to dig yourself out of. From your questions it seems like you have ZERO experience with scientific research. And that's okay! As a freshman you can take the time to learn about that stuff. I think an intro bio lab course can provide a nice introduction to things like "What is an assay?"

 

[Lucca]

Take at least the first semester to adjust to college, and get involved with some volunteering and extra-curriculars if you can. The transition to college from high school can be tough, and you don't want to put yourself in a hole, grade-wise, that you then have to dig yourself out of. From your questions it seems like you have ZERO experience with scientific research. And that's okay! As a freshman you can take the time to learn about that stuff. I think an intro bio lab course can provide a nice introduction to things like "What is an assay?"

Listen to this advice, it's good that you are getting as much info as early as possible but don't feel too rushed your very first semester. Above all else, your grades have to be there come application time.

I plan to make research my career now and I had no idea about anything when I was a first-semester freshman.

 

[Doc2019]

I got the concept of it hoihale. I was just hoping he could elaborate.

Thanks for all the help guys!

 

[ranob]

Three steps:
1) Find an interesting research lab at your school
2) Find out which undergraduates are part of the lab
3) Find out if said undergraduates have published any papers. Read these papers; they should be relatively easy to understand since they were written by undergraduates. I guarantee you will get good research ideas from these papers. Go email the PI with your ideas, they will be impressed and let you into their lab.

 

[Doc2019]

Thanks ranob!

 

[LizzyM]

Thanks for the advice. So what I'll do is volunteer and get a good GPA during my first semester and then drink my second semester find a PI who will accept me since there's no chance I can get a PI to accept me as a first semester freshman. Just curious, how do you guys balance volunteering and research. Do you do it simultaneously or maybe an hour of volunteering per week and a few hours of research per week or?

Either this is an autocorrect problem or you need the word "and" between semester and find.

Most successful applicants get started with research during sophomore year and the summer after that as well as junior year. Summer can be full-time, particularly if you get a stipend to help cover your living expenses, during the school year might be 5-10 hours per week. some students take "research" as a class (usually junior year) and thus have time in their schedules to devote to it.....

You can certainly get involved with service to others as a freshman; most campuses have organized activities of this kind that you can join. Pantries & soup kitchens, tutoring poor kids or helping adults in literacy programs, homeless shelters, etc. You can also find clinical volunteering in hospitals and free clinics but service to the poor is just as important as clinical exposure. You can also get clinical exposure in a paid setting such as working as an EMT or aide.

With regard to research direction, almost all research papers will say something in the very last paragraphs about unanswered questions raised by this report. However, you should find a lab that will take you and then read what's been done in that lab and follow the PI's lead, at least at first, in determining what there is for you to do.

 

[NeuResurgens]

Look at your faculty list, many schools will list each professor's research emphasis with them. Ask around to find out who does research that you're interested in, try and figure out when their office hours are, and go talk to them. Also, ask the professors who are teaching you about their research and see if they would be able to take you on. Best time to do this is right now (this time of year) because some of their students might be graduating and they'll need to fill some vacancies in their lab.

 

[NeuResurgens]

Especially if you're interested in research in the hard sciences, it's pretty easy to brainstorm some topics. What body system do you like? Brain, heart, lungs, GI, skin, etc? Are there an diseases which fascinate you? Cancer, Alzheimer's, schizophrenia, COPD? If your interest in science/your major goes beyond human interests, what are those interests? A biology major who does pharmaceutical botanical research? Maybe general botanical research? Do certain animals interest you? You could research them as well.

Think hard about what you really like and find interesting, then find the professors who are researching that thing.

 

[Doc2019]

Thanks guys and it's an autocorrect mistake. Sorry about that