Research for Dental School

[RAD3]

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Hi Everyone,

I am currently a sophomore at a large research university, and I am majoring in biology on a pre dental track. I am interested in getting involved with research, however most of the available research positions require 10-15 hour or 15-20 hour commitments per week. I wanted to know if these are usually the number of hours a full time student (I am taking 15 credits) dedicates to conducting research.

Any ADVICE regarding conducting research as an undergraduate would be helpful!

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Luna724]

Hi Everyone,

I am currently a sophomore at a large research university, and I am majoring in biology on a pre dental track. I am interested in getting involved with research, however most of the available research positions require 10-15 hour or 15-20 hour commitments per week. I wanted to know if these are usually the number of hours a full time student (I am taking 15 credits) dedicates to conducting research.

Any ADVICE regarding conducting research as an undergraduate would be helpful!

Thanks in advance!!

Yes. That is exactly the number of hours that are expected from you generally. Also as a student coming from a large research university, I don't think it matters if you get paid/volunteer/get credit. Occasionally, there are some professors that expect you to work over-time and even some that expect you during weekends (some of my peers suffered from this for some reason) but don't worry about those peculiarities.

 

[sjv]

Yes, 10-20 hours is fairly reasonable for an undergraduate taking classes and of course some days will be shorter and some will be longer than others depending on your work. They know that coursework comes before research so its not a problem if you have to take time off, they should be understanding of that.

 

[Combine33]

Hey RAD3,

I also attend a research oriented institution and have been involved for 3 years. One thing about research: you can't put a time on it per day. What I mean is that you're going to have to commit a good portion of time to lab in order to actually get something out of it.

Don't be discouraged by the amount of time it requires. You'll have a lot of time for studying while you're waiting for an experiment and in the end it's a fun experience. Go for it !

 

[thewobblytooth]

One piece of advice.

What you put in, is what you get out!

If your job in the lab is basically the dishwasher and lab maintenance undergrad, find another position. You gain nothing from doing "research" from that perspective. If you're actually given a project to think about, troubleshoot through, and produce results, that's worth the time investment.

Research in a lab is at least a 20 hour commitment (in my case 30+) a week. These labs have a certain expectation when it comes to undergrad volunteers because it's more of a burden for the graduate students training them. You can do other things that are of better use of your time, such as getting a job or volunteering.

 

[Alekshura2]

Yes I would say 15-30 hours a week is normal. Some weeks I was in lab for 40 hours, including weekends. But I was really interested in my research so I actually enjoyed being in lab.