Stanford Undergraduate Research for Freshman

[Aznwithabrain]

So I am 70% sure that I will be attending Stanford this fall as a freshman. I've done research in high school on Alzheimer's and Parkinson's at a state university and would like to continue doing research in college. I don't mind menial tasks, since I understand that's usually what underclassmen end up having to do. Any advice on how I could continue this research at college? (who should I e-mail, etc.) Preferably, I would like to start first semester freshman year but second semester (or even the summer before sophomore year) would also be okay.

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[Cypher321]

So I am 70% sure that I will be attending Stanford this fall as a freshman. I've done research in high school on Alzheimer's and Parkinson's at a state university and would like to continue doing research in college. I don't mind menial tasks, since I understand that's usually what underclassmen end up having to do. Any advice on how I could continue this research at college? (who should I e-mail, etc.) Preferably, I would like to start first semester freshman year but second semester (or even the summer before sophomore year) would also be okay.

What research did you do?

 

[warypremed]

Just email around profs whose research sounds interesting. Especially if they've taken undergraduates before. Do it one by one, too. If you did bench research in HS that's going to be a plus. Someone's bound to say yes.

 

[Aznwithabrain]

What research did you do?

It wasn't bench lab work. Mainly worked with MRI images, computer programming algorithms, and statistical models.

 

[Aznwithabrain]

Just email around profs whose research sounds interesting. Especially if they've taken undergraduates before. Do it one by one, too. If you did bench research in HS that's going to be a plus. Someone's bound to say yes.

Should I do this the summer before I step on campus or after I get a feel for my surroundings?

 

[Lokhtar]

Tell them you're willing to do it for free. You'll get your pick of labs and you'll likely be trusted with more important tasks faster.

I would wait a little bit to start, just to get a feel for campus and college life. You have four years, you don't need to rush it. And a place like Stanford will have plenty of opportunities to get involved in all sorts of things that might interest you.

 

[warypremed]

Should I do this the summer before I step on campus or after I get a feel for my surroundings?

Do you know what you're taking your first quarter? Have you taken AP Biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Physics? Are you looking for bench research or more of what you did in HS, MRI imaging, statistical models and etc?

I ask because if you haven't had any introductory science courses it'll be kind of hard to understand what you're doing, especially if you're in a basic science lab. And I don't know how rigorous your HS courses were but at least when I was in HS my AP science courses were a joke so they weren't helpful at all.

I would wait till you get to campus. Settle in first, enjoy your first year. No need to rush right into things. Once the first quarter is beginning to end see how you're doing and then look around for labs/PIs to work for.

 

[Cypher321]

I would get used to college first and get to know some professors before you start looking for any research positions. As previously stated, you have a few years to get all your research in. Also I'd try to be open to new research areas - never know when something might strike your fancy.

In addition, if you have some free time it might be worth taking a stats class to give yourself additional value. Here at SJSU our first upper div. stats class only requires calc II.

 

[Aznwithabrain]

Do you know what you're taking your first quarter? Have you taken AP Biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Physics? Are you looking for bench research or more of what you did in HS, MRI imaging, statistical models and etc?

I've taken three years of bio (AP junior and senior years though I learned the most AP material sophomore year ironically enough), two years of chemistry (AP sophomore year), and two years of physics (AP Physics C junior year).

I'm looking for more bench research and clinical if possible. I feel as though I do have a decent understanding of the basic bio concepts to understand what's going on in most research projects I've seen done by undergraduates (and a good number of the papers published in Nature and Science).

Also, I'm a little confused by how the quarter system works, especially with regard to prereqs. Does two quarters or three quarters count as a year for prereqs?

 

[peaceandpeace]

you seem to be in the same boat as me. I took high school AP, made really bad grades because the school wasn't very keen on pressing the students to learn with tests and quizzes,there were only a midterm and final.
I also only had two years of physics in junior high, needless to say, that had put me in a huge disadvantage, given all the other people in my class made it such a good experience out of high school. Nonetheless, I guess you're asking the right person to Warypremed about the quarter system, the expert on this.

I've taken three years of bio (AP junior and senior years though I learned the most AP material sophomore year ironically enough), two years of chemistry (AP sophomore year), and two years of physics (AP Physics C junior year).

I'm looking for more bench research and clinical if possible. I feel as though I do have a decent understanding of the basic bio concepts to understand what's going on in most research projects I've seen done by undergraduates (and a good number of the papers published in Nature and Science).

Also, I'm a little confused by how the quarter system works, especially with regard to prereqs. Does two quarters or three quarters count as a year for prereqs

 

[Aznwithabrain]

I forgot to mention that I will most likely be a non-science major. What should I do differently to ensure that I get into a lab (and do serious research) by my sophomore year?

 

[slatermd]

I forgot to mention that I will most likely be a non-science major. What should I do differently to ensure that I get into a lab (and do serious research) by my sophomore year?

You need to network with the professors who run labs and find out who has (or will have) opportunities to take on new students. Once you know who is running a lab, contact them directly.

It wouldn't hurt to keep your eyes peeled for student grant-writing opportunities through NIH, NSF, or HHMI. Your profs at Stanford won't need any extra funding but if you get someone else to pay for your work in a prof's lab, then, in the parlance of our times, urdoinitrite.

 

[warypremed]

I forgot to mention that I will most likely be a non-science major. What should I do differently to ensure that I get into a lab (and do serious research) by my sophomore year?

What are you majoring in then? And why do the research? Not trying to be a prick, but just asking because yes, labs are looking for a set of free hands, but if there's tons of other students looking for research positions who are actually science majors wanting to go into research.... I'd give that student priority.

But anyways, to answer your question, what the person said before me. Email around, apply for summer internships, get good grades, see what interests you. Network. See the career advising office.

 

[Aznwithabrain]

What are you majoring in then? And why do the research? Not trying to be a prick, but just asking because yes, labs are looking for a set of free hands, but if there's tons of other students looking for research positions who are actually science majors wanting to go into research.... I'd give that student priority.

Really? Did you just ask why a premed student would want to do research? You're also assuming I think science majors should not get priority? Anyways, I will probably be majoring in philosophy and research was a big part of my high school years as a junior and senior. I understand the difficulties of continuing this research in college, especially as a non-science major, thus why I proposed the question on how to approach professors. Asking me a series of condescending questions seems like the least productive way of advising me how to go about that.