Undergraduate Research Programs
Undergraduate Research Programs at WSU
Research is for Everyone. (Yes, You!) As an undergraduate student at Washington State University, you’re well positioned to participate in academic research. You may have an idea you would like to test. Or have wondered what it would be like to write a play. Or you may already be on a professor’s team. With a WSU faculty or staff member as a mentor, your research will help you build new skills and create new knowledge that are as unique as you are!
What is “research?”
When we say “research,” we don’t mean just activities conducted in labcoats. It’s much broader than that. It’s “research, scholarship, and creative activity.” And it happens any time you are working with faculty to …
- Create,
- Design, or
- Discover.
Undergraduate research has four components:
- Mentorship: a student working on a project must be supervised by a WSU faculty or staff member.
- Originality: projects should be novel and involve a meaningful contribution from the undergraduate student.
- Methodology: the project must employ techniques or methods that are appropriate for the discipline.
- Dissemination: produces results that are worthy of communication to others.
In what fields can I create, design, or discover?
You have—or can create—opportunities to work with world-class WSU faculty and staff members in fields ranging from agriculture to zoology, and from English to engineering. Every field is open to you as an undergraduate researcher.
What are my investments and rewards?
Your time and creativity are your main investments. Your rewards involve both short and long term payoffs. Not only will you develop as a critical thinker who is able to solve complex problems, but you will build your resume in ways you might not imagine. Some undergraduate researchers work as volunteers on projects, but many are paid. And all are eligible for several scholarships, fellowships, and summer internship programs on the WSU campus, around the nation, and throughout the world.
How do I get started as an undergraduate researcher?
Though research is a high calling, it is not a lonely road—there are many people at WSU who are eager to help you get acquainted with this kind of work that they themselves love. With a little planning, ingenuity, and assistance, your own path to becoming a researcher will be more straightforward than you might think. While a career involving research is a lifelong pursuit, our office can help you get well underway.