How to Get Research Experience as an Undergraduate (Psychology, Neuroscience, STEM)

Рет қаралды 11,709

Күн бұрын

Need undergraduate research experience? This is a step-by-step guide to joining a lab, for students interested in pursuing careers in (or near) science. Especially for students who plan to apply for graduate school.
Support the channel: / ihmcurious
Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:27 1. How to Find a Lab
1:40 2. Who to Contact
3:07 3. What to Say
4:07 Email Tips
4:53 Interview
5:07 How to Get the Most out of Your Lab Experience
5:53 Run Your Own Study
7:36 Presenting Research at a Conference
8:28 Applying for Grad School
9:22 Summary
(Note: Clinical and Medical programs may also require internships, and professors may be less likely to be involved in research. Consult your professors and other KZfaq people for advice on clinical psych grad programs and med school.)
Elliott was a research assistant in three labs studying psychology and neuroscience at Northern Illinois University. He has hired and supervised dozens of research assistants at UC Santa Barbara, where he got his PhD in Psychological and Brain Sciences.

Пікірлер: 48

@notdeku9197 Жыл бұрын

will you make a video on applying to PhDs?

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Probably not in the near future, but happy to answer questions if I see them. In general, it's very similar to the process described in this video. Figure out whose research you like and reach out to them as early as you can, so you can figure out what they're looking for and when they're taking new students. Best to have strong letters of rec from one or more labs where you've done a lot. That's way more important than perfect grades. And start the application process early, especially the essays! Almost everyone wishes they got on top of their essay sooner. With good lab experience, you'll have a lot more to say in your personal statement and/or research statement.

@alexlandry9317 Жыл бұрын

I can honestly say that my experience working with Elliott as an RA was the best decision I ever made in my professional academic career. Thanks so much for all the guidance and support, man!

@Venomxdrool Жыл бұрын

This was all incredible advice. Wow. Thanks so much!

@fog3911 11 ай бұрын

Great video. Very concise and to the point. Really appreciate this

@JoniniTheChickenNugget Жыл бұрын

Please don't stop making videos! This was very helpful :)

@TheBillNye Жыл бұрын

Your channel is going to blow up. The videos are really well made

@NockyLucky 20 күн бұрын

This was very helpful :) Thank you for making these!

@amiram1256 5 ай бұрын

This is the most helpful video, thank u so much for your

@pattyihm8099 Жыл бұрын

Great information! Exquisite delivery! Thank you for putting this out there. I wonder how many times a rat would scratch itself.

@margarita2147 2 ай бұрын

thank you! its great, i started thinking about working as a research assistant and didnt know HOW to take first step, now i am less afraid and i will start acting

@brandonspringer6370 Ай бұрын

Thank You!

@zeni99 9 ай бұрын

This was helpful…thanks!

@dawsonhicks436 3 ай бұрын

Thank you for making this video! In the fall semester, I am hoping to work as an RA in one of the research labs at my university. This was a lot of help

@ihmcurious 3 ай бұрын

Good luck!

@jas2800 7 ай бұрын

This was so helpful man. I go to a large university and research is impossible to get around here 😭

@sonnyn.7967 Жыл бұрын

This video may no joke change my life

@ericksouza8991 Жыл бұрын

Im "working" as a researcher at my university, sadly there's nothing really big happening on the lab. Im now trying to find a lab that I could work remotely to improve my academic career.

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Remote lab work probably won't be easy to find. Depending on what you mean, it might not be a problem that nothing "really big" is happening. I recommend talking to the lab director and other lab personnel, letting them know your goals and what skills you'd like to learn (if you know them), and seeing if they can give you something more to do, or point you to another lab. I did a lot of data entry, searching the literature, and coding old rodent videos before I was able to run experiments, slice vole brains, contribute to papers, analyze data etc.

@eli19961996 Жыл бұрын

Hey man, I really enjoy your way of presenting things. I have some weird questions and it may be that I'm unable to express myself properly. I'm a medical student with a keen interest in neuroscience and I'm almost at the end of my studies. I really want to get into research, but I'm a little worried I might get "under the wheels" as it very often happens with young researchers getting into the field (here in Germany you only get funding if you're a known name and professors and teamleaders often claim work they haven't done). I'm not lazy I'd say, but I get beaten down by personal failure a little to easily and especially in a field like this self-directed work (and keeping course) is probably essential. Right now I've hit a personal snag in addition to all of this. What is your advice for keeping up motivation, getting enough reading done and keeping up concentration when focusing on your stuff? I feel I let outer circumstances get me down at times and I'm not able to shut it out while focusing on my work. I know part of this seems like a normal problem, but the joy I feel about going into research recently fades away quickly as soon as I'm getting worried about future opportunities and the prospect of sinking into an environment of paperwork and favouritism.

@eli19961996 Жыл бұрын

How much "Sit down and just do it" was it for you?

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Sorry for the long delay! It's hard to give a good reply without asking a few follow-up questions, so feel free to email me at ihmelliott@gmail.com. For now, I'll just say that sit-down-and-just-do-it is a useful tool, but it isn't always the right tool. Whether you want to go into research or anything else science-related, look for a mentor who does things that you'd like to learn, and take every bit of help they're willing to give. That's the most efficient way to learn career-relevant skills, and if they have a hands-on style that can provide really useful structure. Often what looks like laziness is just aimlessness due to lack of momentum, which can come from a lack of actionable next steps that you trust will take you in the right direction. People who have succeeded at things you're aiming for, whether you can interact with them in a professional/advisor capacity or a personal/friend capacity, can help you find those steps and gain that momentum. Good luck, feel free to reach out!

@starcatria1188 Жыл бұрын

I'm a cs undergrad doing core cs but my interests lie in combining my skills with brain neurons and neuroscience in general. I haven't studied bio since 10th grade so do I still stand a chance to become a RA ?

@rebecaanastacia3020 2 ай бұрын

I think you should offer your knowledges and skills in computation, code, etc. Search the labs in the unis websites and you will see how much of them use computation. There are areas of computational neuroscience, for example. I think you know that. Prepare an email with a intention letter with your skills.

@anthonymedina9710 2 ай бұрын

“Some guy tried to sell me pills outside my hotel in San Francisco” 🤣

@jas2800 6 ай бұрын

What happens if I send multiple emails to researchers in a single lab and more than one replies back asking for CV or interview. Should I reply to both, or let them know I'm already in contact with another member, or just flat out ignore all of them besides one?

@ihmcurious 6 ай бұрын

I'd probably respond to both with everything they're asking for. If one of them has research interests closer to yours, you might focus on following up with them. But you never know who's gonna flake on you in the early stages, so best to keep all options open.

@timiombe Жыл бұрын

Thanks for this. I'm interested in applying for grad school when I graduate in a year's time. I'm a foreign student and my school (and surrounding schools) don't have labs for the type of research I'm interested in working in (Computer Science). Most interesting labs I find are usually in the US. Is it possible to become an RA for Comp Science labs in the US while I study in my home country?

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

That's outside my area of expertise, since CS experience generally looks a lot different than doing scientific research in a lab. I recommend that you search for info about getting CS experience, especially from anyone who does a job that you'd like to get. Email a few people in the labs you're interested in, and see what they recommend! That being said, a lot of science labs use software that you might want to learn, IF you want to learn research skills, like data analysis, stimulus presentation, even machine learning, depending on the lab. Otherwise, a CS job/internship, or building a portfolio of projects, might be more useful for you - check with CS people. As far as getting experience remotely, it's possible that a lab might be able to set that up, but it's not a common arrangement. I can't speak to CS experience in particular.

@timiombe Жыл бұрын

@@ihmcurious Thank you so much for replying. I'll do as you suggested and try to reach out to the labs I'm interested in and see what they recommend and if they have openings for RA. I'm also working on some projects that hopefully will help showcase my skills. Thank you!

@yaboighandiyo6510 4 күн бұрын

Wonderful video. I just showed it to my PIs because of how useful it was! Question: I'm from a different university (example: Uni X) and I live closer to another (example: Uni Y). I'm interested in research being done in Uni Y. Am I able to engage in research labs with Uni Y despite not being a tuition-paying student? I realize there's also the question of whether it's paid or not in this hypothetical. I'm wondering about unpaid research experience. Is it possible to get such research experience, purely just for experience with no monetary pay-out, or would these positions be reserved strictly for students of that university? Thank you!

@ihmcurious 4 күн бұрын

Yes, you are definitely able to do research at labs regardless of whether you attend the school, at the discretion of the lab director. In my lab, for instance, students can get credit through the school for being a research assistant, but they can do the exact same work as a volunteer regardless of student status. My general advice in this video would apply to your situation, as long as you briefly explain your situation to the lab you'd like to work with.

@yaboighandiyo6510 3 күн бұрын

@@ihmcurious wonderful, thank you so much!

@DanielvanStadenSTEM Жыл бұрын

Is it possible to get into a lab as a high school student, or do you need to be an undergraduate at the university or college that the people working at the lab teach at?

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

It's possible as a high school student! Reach out to the lab directors and feel it out. Some may be enthusiastic, others may not be interested. But if you get started early with a good mentor, you'll be way ahead of the game.

@aichatouprosper4948 4 ай бұрын

What if you already graduated? I graduated with a biomedical science major but now I’m trying to get experience however I don’t know who to reach out to

@ihmcurious 4 ай бұрын

Same advice - check out any local universities, or even research facilities or clinics if they're near you, and you can follow the same steps for getting in touch with them. Some places have specific postbaccalaureate (post-bac) job openings for people who've graduated already.

@honkhonk8009 Жыл бұрын

I only follow ur stuff cus I thought the neuroscience stuff is cool even tho i have zero idea whats happening half the time lol

@chugbunga1665 Жыл бұрын

what field can i get into without college if any? philology?

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Anything's possible, but it's probably a lot harder. You can learn technical skills on your own if you're really self-motivated, or start with an internship at a clinic or something. But if you don't see a path for yourself already, I'd recommend starting with college.

@zahar1875 Жыл бұрын

8:04 Was the guy successful? ;)

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Not particularly

@Bangbang-ei5kd 10 ай бұрын

What is a underergraduate?

@ihmcurious 9 ай бұрын

College student

@lehgeek Жыл бұрын

Honestly feel like the researchs I did so far in undergrad is a waste. 3 years at the same lab, basically all I learned was genotyping and lab management. The last 6 months I was hired as an official lab assistant. Didn't log an of the volunteer hours I did before that. My name isn't on any paper, I never went to any conferences, and I have the most basic understanding of our topic.

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

Sorry to hear! That's why it's so important to find a supportive mentor (or a few) as early as you can, so you can get clear on your goals and how to best prepare for them. Career development for undergrads isn't always the top priority for every lab, and in those cases it's extra important to be proactive if you want to squeeze all the juice out of the experience.

@ihmcurious Жыл бұрын

But if you're still in the lab, you may still have time to talk to your advisor about that. "In light of my long-term contributions to the lab, is it possible for me to contribute to a conference presentation?" Depending on your goals, "Are there any skills that would look good on my resume (data analysis, lab techniques, etc) that you could help me learn before I graduate?" And if you think more experience would be valuable but you're graduating too soon, it's perfectly fine to take a year just gaining more lab experience.