We are continuously accepting volunteers in the lab.  If you are interested in volunteering, a good way to get started is to sign up for the lab email list using this link:

https://department-lists.uci.edu/mailman/listinfo/bioroboticslab

Once you do that, you will get notifications when we hold lab meetings, which are held approximately every two weeks in EG3151. Feel free to come by and listen to get an idea about the types of projects we are working on. You can then follow up with a postdoc or graduate student to see if there is a way you could help with his or her project.

It’s also helpful if you read some of the research papers that our lab has written.  We are looking for people who feel intrinsically motivated by the types of problems we are trying to solve.  You can find papers on the Publications page.

Another thing that is helpful is that you work on developing specific skills before trying to volunteer.  Here are some things you could work on.  It’s always very impressive if a student shows up able to say that they have already worked on developing some skills in these areas in order to be able to make a contribution to our research.

Data Analysis — Matlab or Octave
Matlab is free if you are registered as a UCI student.  Try the “Matlab Onramp”.
You can also use a free version of Matlab called Gnu Octave

Programming — C, Python

CAD — Solidworks
Free if you are registered as UCI student

3D Printing — Fabworks

Circuits — e.g. Arduino

Literature Searching/Review
Use Google Scholar to learn what’s been done before and what the unsolved problems are.  Try to read a few papers before coming to lab.

NOTE: Please know that working on a research project is not like taking a course.  As researchers, we are trying to generate new knowledge instead of consuming knowledge as you do in a class. This means research is often open-ended.  A quote attributed to Einstein encapsulates this idea: “If we knew what we were doing it wouldn’t be called research.”  That may sound strange, but a lot of research is figuring out what you should do next in the presence of uncertainty.  You won’t get a syllabus or a problem set when you show up in lab!

Here is a helpful video with advice for future scientists in finding a project.