Student-Initiated Contact

In this path to an apprenticeship-style research experience, students take the initiative to contact professors whose research interests them.

This path can be challenging because students may not know where to begin or how to navigate the academic landscape. It is also challenging because the experience is likely to be unpaid, especially in the beginning.

Achieving an undergraduate research position is all about knowing your interests and persistently communicating them to individuals working in research environments.

1. Generate a list of professors whose research interests you.
   1. Talk to professors and graduate students about your research interests and ask if they can think of anyone you should meet.
   2. Search for faculty using UC’s Research Directory or explore the research web pages for your college to identify faculty members whose work interests you. Try several searches using different keywords that describe your major and interests.
   3. Check with your major department for research opportunities we may not know about. Most departments have an “undergraduate director." This person is likely to have the best information about opportunities in the department. You can find out who the person is by searching online or by calling your major department. If your department does not have an undergraduate director, someone in your department’s office should be able to help you find the right person.
2. Email each of the professors on your list.
   1. Choose four or five professors to start with.
   2. Open by introducing yourself and indicating an interest and understanding of the type of work they do.
   3. Consider relaying your previous research experience (classroom experience counts!).
   4. Indicate your interest in meeting them or one of their graduate students or research assistants to learn more about their work and potential opportunities to gain experience in their field of research, including potentially under their guidance.
   5. Be cautious about asking about "opportunities" in the lab or with the professor. While an opportunity may not formally exist, one could be created should your interest and ability align with the needs of researchers in that environment.
   6. Provide days/times you are generally available to meet (e.g., Wednesdays 2-6) and your timeline for research (e.g., 10 hours per week during the fall semester). Offer to come to their office or send a Zoom link for a meeting time that works for them.

Faculty enjoy working with students who are genuinely interested in their work and can commit the time and energy it takes to make a meaningful contribution to the project. Often, a student’s first semester in research emphasizes learning the literature and methods of the research group. Usually the second semester is when a student gains substantial independence to begin making a meaningful contribution. If you are available to research multiple semesters, it can be helpful to include that.

If you are struggling to achieve a research opportunity, you are advised to make an appointment at the Bearcat Promise Career Studio or reach out to UC’s Undergraduate Research Society for guidance and support.