Are you an undergraduate interested in gaining research experience by working in a lab at Brandeis? Not sure how to find a lab to work in?
The Biology Undergraduate Department Representative (UDRs) have created the Lab Tour Program. The first tour was held on Monday, April 13th. Lead by Biology junior, Sarita Biswas ’16, undergraduates toured the Dorothee Kern, Daniel Oprian and Chris Miller labs. Although a Biology major, Sarita has worked in Kern’s Biochemistry lab for nearly a year. During the tour, students were shown lab equipment and specialized research rooms (cold room, autoclave room) in the Volen Center. Throughout the tour, Sarita discussed the research that is being done in the labs.
Following the tour, Rashieda Pugh ’16 (UDR) and Sarita sat down with the students. Sarita discussed the kind of projects that she has worked on in the past year. Both Sarita and Rashieda shared their experiences in finding a suitable lab to work in, how they find a project to work on once in the lab, and the time commitment during the summer and academic year.
Some of the many questions asked:
- Will there be a someone there to guide me? There is always a graduate student or postdoc mentoring you.
- How do you find a lab to work in? Review the faculty webpages, find research that interests you and then email the professors. Do not write all the professors a generic email about opportunities in their lab. It’s unlikely to work. Take the time to find out what kind of research goes on in each lab. Target labs in which you have a genuine interest. Be prepared to show up in person and talk intelligently about research projects with the faculty member. Be prepared to emphasize what you have to offer – skills acquired in courses or other jobs, your dedication and willingness to apply yourself, your reliability and punctuality, your ability to communicate clearly and concisely, etc.
- Is lab research considered an internship? Yes, it is very much like an internship.
Their advice is that there are a lot of labs here at Brandeis and a lot of ways to find rewarding research experience in a lab!
The Lab Tour continues on April 16th.
The comment “The key is to email many professors” worries me a little.
Students should not embark on a campaign of writing all the professors a generic email about opportunities in their lab. It’s unlikely to work.
Take the time to find out what kind of research goes on in each lab. Target labs in which you have a genuine interest. Be prepared to show up in person and talk intelligently about research projects with the faculty member. Be prepared to emphasize what you have to offer – skills acquired in courses or other jobs, your dedication and willingness to apply yourself, your reliability and punctuality, your ability to communicate clearly and concisely, etc.