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Learning Research Through Apprenticeship
Purpose
The Undergraduate Research Program is a joint venture between the Honors Program and the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School. The purpose of this program is to serve as a critical component of the both the Honors Program and the Graduate School in preparing highly qualified and motivated students to maximize their potential to succeed in graduate school by giving students the experience needed to give students real-world professional experience in discipline-specific in research before embarking on their Honors Capstone.
For more on the purpose and goals of this program, President Davila's Interview with Graduate School Dean Carol Erting and Honors Capstone Coordinator Geoff Whitebread on "Bob's Vlog."
Summary
Each student admitted to the program is paired with a faculty researcher on campus.During the course of a student's apprenticeship with a faculty member, a student is expected to contribute substantively to the development of the project. While students cannot always be guaranteed to be involved with all parts of the research process, we maximize a student's exposure to research. That means a student will participate in different stages of the research process, including gathering and synthesizing additional extant literature, developing the research methodology, obtaining IRB approval, writing grant proposals, collecting data, conducting analysis of the data, and reporting results.
A student's experience is supplemented by occasional lunches of all participants in the program, as well as a special topics course offered by the Honors Program. The lunches provide faculty and students an opportunity to gather assessment data related to the learning objectives from each of the teams, and also present an opportunity to gather feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of this seminal program. The Undergraduate Research Program uses the learning objectives and assessment tools the Gallaudet Research Institute uses for their undergraduate student workers. Student Learning Outcomes include demonstrating critical evaluation of other research, successful data analysis, an appreciation of research as a culture, and achievement of competence in academic discourse in both English and American Sign Language.
In addition, a special Honors course provides an opportunity to teach students about the range of research methodologies and to gather additional feedback related to the program. The course also requires students to complete reflective writings on his/her experience in research. These writings include recognition of growth, an appreciation of research culture, awareness of ethics in research, an initial understanding of how to contribute to the body of knowledge, and experience with various stages of the research project. These journals also include reflections on the drawbacks of research, including boredom (particularly in the data collection phase), and the frustration of a very steep learning curve. Students will also complete readings for their specific research project while in this class.
Benefits for Faculty
Faculty who participate in the program will receive an undergraduate student worker with an appropriate skill level necessary for the project. The Honors student worker will be beneficial to a faculty member's project in all areas of the research design. Previous participating faculty members have found their student workers to be highly valuable in the development of a research proposal, such as the development of instruments, the development procedures, and the operation of the experiment. Faculty will also receive a $500 professional development grant from the Graduate School.
Benefits for Students
Students will gain a year's worth of research experience through this apprenticeship opportunity. Students will acquire skills necessary to succeed in research, including software proficiency, academic discourse, and research design. This valuable experience will strengthen a candidate's application for an internship in their major and their application for graduate school. Students will receive a $1,000 stipend for each semester and Honors course credit.
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