How to Prepare to Be a Researcher

Reflect

Before you reach out to potential mentors, it is important to reflect.

collage of students conducting research in various settings

Considering Your Interests

What are your interests? Not just your major, but what kinds of research questions would engage your interest? Keep in mind that working outside your field can also benefit your growth and help you confirm your interests or help you find a different path.

Student in lab coat working at a desktop computer

Considering Your Timeline

What does your timeline look like? Should you start with Office of Undergraduate Research workshops your first semester or start research right away? How does research fit in with the rest of your schedule of coursework and RSOs? Your mentors will depend on your ability to show up and contribute, so make sure you can fully commit the time required. Once you find a mentor, you can discuss time commitments and expectations, but the typical range is 8-20hr/wk.

Investigate

Before you reach out to potential mentors, it is important to investigate.

Mentor and student look at research on computer

Identifying Potential Mentors

Although many opportunities are posted, many are not. You will need to do some digging to investigate and find undergraduate research positions.

Each department has a listing of their faculty and their research interests. Read through these pages and develop a shortlist of who you might want to reach out to as a possible mentor. Remember that research outside your major or even your department can still have a huge impact on your academic career. Speak with your academic advisor and with other students to learn more about faculty and their mentoring approaches to consider who might be a good fit for you. Pro-tip: look for faculty who have undergraduate researchers listed on their group webpages — these faculty enjoy mentoring undergraduate researchers. Keep in mind, though, that some research groups are new and space/funding of lab groups fluctuates.

students working at a laptop together

Navigating Institutional Processes

Exploring departmental resources:
All ACES departments support undergraduate research, but each department has its own processes. Pro-tip: Some departments have centralized undergraduate research postings — look on the department websites and speak with your academic advisor to learn more. However, keep in mind that even when there are departmental postings, not all of the faculty who have undergraduate research opportunities will be listed.

Exploring College resources:
Global Food Security Internship: wrap-around program including funding for ACES students to work with ACES faculty on research projects related to global food security.

Exploring partner resources:
Students in Agricultural and Biological Engineering — check out Grainger College of Engineering Undergraduate Research Programs to see if there might be a good match for you there.

Exploring university resources:
Here are some great opportunities that are not limited to ACES departments:

Check out postings on the Illinois Job Board — some faculty post paid positions here.

student with laptop

Finding External Opportunities

There are many opportunities to conduct research outside of the University of Illinois.

Internships:
Many employers have internship programs. These can be full-time or part-time, paid or unpaid. They are often in the summer, but there are also many opportunities during the academic year.

  • Check out employer websites to find opportunities.
  • Check out the internships information on the Career Services page and search through listings on Handshake.

Paid summer research programs:
There are many full-time summer research programs, such as NSF REUs (Research Experience for Undergraduates) or USDA REEUs (Research and Extension Experiences for Undergraduates), that are hosted at institutions across the country. These programs pay students to conduct cutting-edge research. They also pay for housing and travel and provide wrap-around professional development programming. Guidelines and tips for finding and preparing for a REU can be found at the resources posted here. Pro-tip: Many of these programs have eligibility restrictions, so look at the criteria closely.

Use these resources to find opportunities:

NSF REU: This is a complete list of NSF REUs, but it is only for NSF programs and is not as user-friendly. You cannot apply through this site.

Pathways to Science: This site contains helpful resources as well as a database of opportunities. It is not a complete database, but has many different types of opportunities and is easy to use. Check out the Advanced Search for more options.

NSF ETAP (Education and Training Application): This site lists opportunities and serves as a common app for NSF REUs. It is only for NSF programs and is not a complete list.


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