Neuroscience Student Research
Neurons in the Enteric Nervous System
The Neuroscience Program requires students to complete a minimum of two
(2) credits and up to a maximum of five (5) credits of research through
Neuro 495 (graded: “A, B, C, D, F”), Neuro 499 (graded: “S/F”), or a
combination of the two (2) courses. A student can earn Neuro 495 or 499
credits anytime during his/her undergraduate years. Students are also
required to complete one (1) credit of Neuro 490 – Senior Project, in
the last semester of their senior year. The purpose of which is for
students to complete their research project and to present their
research in either a poster or oral presentation before the end of the
semester.
A research experience allows students the opportunity to build
critical thinking skills by applying classroom theory to a real life
situation. Under the guidance of a Neuroscience faculty member,
students are able to research a neuroscience topic of their choice.
Competition to gain admission into graduate and professional school is
increasing due to the growing student population across the nation. Many
students realize that participating in research will give them the necessary
skills and experiences that will potentially make them better applicants for
professional and graduate school. Research experience, networking, career
exploration, enhancing laboratory skills and abilities, opportunities to
publish your research findings, and letters of recommendations are just a
few of the positive outcomes for undergraduates who participate in a
research experience.
Students who sign up for Neuro 490, 495 or 499 must complete an
independent study contract with the faculty mentor. A signed original must
be turned into the Neuroscience Program Office, Wegner Hall/Room 205. A
copy of the “Neuroscience 495/499 Independent Study Contract” form can be
found in the appendix of the undergraduate handbook (PDF).
Neuroscience Faculty Research
Tips to Selecting a Lab (excerpt from Baylor University)
Like a new discovery, finding the right research lab to work in is an
inexact science. Picking a research laboratory based on your research
interest is undoubtedly the most critical first step. If you are not
excited about what you are researching, then your research experience
will be miserable. With your list in hand, go through the faculty
handbook and isolate faculty whose research is on your list of possible
fields of research you would like to explore more.
With the list of faculty in hand, determine the size of each
researcher’s lab. Often times, a small lab environment gives an
opportunity to interact with the Principle Investigator (PI) more
directly and it gives the opportunity to interact more closely with
co-workers. The advantage of working in a large laboratory is that
there will be plenty of grad students and post-docs who can offer you
assistance on your research project. Also, a large lab allows you to
learn about more research projects that other people are doing.
Contact the research lab directly and learn what research project you
would potentially be working on. An idea would be to e-mail the PI with
your resume and a cover letter stating specific areas of interest in the
PI’s research. By knowing the titles of the possible research projects
ahead of time, you will be able to make an informed decision in choosing
the lab.
What are some tips to do your own sleuthing for the best lab? First,
read up on articles published from the lab you are interested in. Discover
if the publications are interesting to you. Secondly, check online by
entering the researcher or Principal Investigator’s (PI) name into a search
engine like Google Scholar (www.scholar.google.com).
This quick background search enables you to see the activities (i.e.,
review boards, faculty committee, and other institutions) and interests the
PI has. By knowing the researcher’s commitments and interest in advance,
you may be able to check to see how active the researcher is in the academic
community. This is useful to know, since it may make the PI more valuable
to you as a mentor. Thirdly, it never hurts to call up your advisor. S/he
will be glad to help you identify a faculty of interest. In fact, your
advisor will often know the personality and character of the researcher and
can often provide good clues on whether your personality will match with
that of the researcher. Fourthly, e-mail the alumni in his/her lab. You
can often get this information from your advisor. Lastly, determine the
number of publications the lab produced in the past 2 years. This
information would help you determine how prolific the research lab is. A
lab that publishes a lot will tend to be more aggressive in their research,
which indicates that your research project will not languish.
Although the advice presented here is helpful, it is definitely not
foolproof. You should keep a short list of researchers with whom you would
like to do research. Often times, you will get your first pick. Keep in
mind that some faculty may be out of town for prolonged periods, on
sabbatical for one semester to one year, lack funding for your project, or
your experience does not match the faculty’s requirements.
