10 steps to get involved in undergraduate research
The fall term one is coming to a close and you may have missed out on making the most of it. Get a head start on your academics and your career by launching your undergraduate research profile in term two.
- Jump into the FYRE. You don’t have to go far to find a course-based opportunity that can get you some credit and jumpstart your research experience. Search and register for classes in the new year with the attribute “undergraduate research”.
- Wise-up with a workshop. Uncover the skills and know-how you need to start or further your research. Experienced students give workshops all year long on everything from how to approach a professor to presenting your research. Check out upcoming topics and register now through the Library-PAL program.
- Sample the Symposium. The USSU will host the annual Undergraduate Project Symposium on February 5. Submit your own project by December 15 for a chance win a chunk of the thousands of cash prizes. Mark your calendar for the showcase to take in what other student researchers, scholars, and artists across campus are accomplishing.
- Scope-out a Summer Assistantship. UofS faculty members from each college hire undergraduate students as research assistants every summer. If you’re looking for a summer job – who isn’t? – and you have what it takes to land a position, arrange to talk to a prof soon.
- Talk to a Prof. It doesn’t take much to strike up a conversation with one of our world-class researchers. Build your confidence by checking out faculty profiles, reading-up on their research, and setting up a professional chat to expand your network and uncover opportunities.
- Glance at the Journal. The UofS Undergraduate Research Journal (USURJ) accepts submissions of undergraduate work from all disciplines on a rolling basis. Submit your strongest paper to the Journal and find out what it’s like to get published.
- Rise to the challenge. Academic and research challenges are happening across the country and globe, all year long and can elevate your CV. Keep an eye out for competitions and contests and be ready to take on the right one for you.
- Research far and wide. Go global by landing a research experience outside of Canada. Student researchers are coming and going from the UofS. Read about student researchers who’ve gone abroad and reach out to opportunities to become one yourself.
- Find funding. Why pay to do research when hundreds of awards are out there? Check out the funding opportunities on campus, throughout Canada and around the world, and start early.
- Share your story. Do any (or all!) of the above and you might just have a story worth telling. Submit your story and join other undergraduate research champions at the UofS’s Undergraduate Research Initiative.