Research-based Courses
Engaging undergraduates in research through the courses you teach.
Many courses at Washington State University require students to carry out actual research, scholarship, or creativity activity. You can add your course to the list, which we track on this webpage, by submitting an information form.
A course listed on this page as a Research-based Course must meet the following two related criteria†:
- At least half of the course* is devoted to students conducting and presenting original research or creative work. The curriculum of the course must guide students to learn to ask appropriate research questions or identify appropriate creative objectives, select and implement appropriate methods, analyze and interpret results responsibly, and disseminate the work effectively, as appropriate for the particular discipline and level of the course.
- *Note: If the course has an integrated lab/practicum component or a related lab/practicum section, then this criterion will instead be satisfied if half of the lab/practicum component or section is focused on original research or creative work.
- With respect to this inclusion of an original research or creative work component, the course syllabus must be unlikely to vary** across sections, instructors, or semesters. (This ensures that our students will receive a consistent undergraduate research experience through the course.)
- **Exceptions: Courses will be listed by campus, so the research component of the course can vary accross different WSU campuses.
†The WSU Office of Undergraduate Research thanks the University of Utah’s Office of Undergraduate Research.
List of Research-based Courses at WSU
- Biol 107
[BSCI]Introductory Biology: Cell Biology and Genetics
Pullman campus only
In the Biology 107 laboratory, every student participates in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute- sponsored SEA-PHAGES project. During the semester, students learn the required experimental techniques and participate in a scientific culture that allows them to isolate and characterize a novel virus that infects a common bacterial species found in the local environment. Students’ experimental results are shared with the broader scientific community through database entries, Genbank submissions, and published manuscripts.