Undergraduate Education Research

An important part of an undergraduate experience at UCI is doing research with the faculty. In addition to my neurobiology research, I also do work on undergraduate education in large lectures. I take a small number of undergraduate students each year to work on these projects with the specialists in the HHMI-UCI Office.

Are you interested in this research? Applying is a three step process:

1. Read over these requirements for a 199 student:

• Must have taken Bio 194, or take it concurrently your first quarter.
• Must attend lab meeting Fridays from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
• Must attend a weekly 2-hour project meeting period that fits with others in your project (day and time to be established by the project leader)
• Work 10 hours per week for three units, or 12 hours for four units of 199 (including meetings).
• Complete a project rationale at the start of the quarter, and the 199 project summary at the end of the quarter.
• Arrive on time to your work hours, and check in with your project manager.
• Provide thoughtful input on your research project in meetings and when reviewing writings

2. Read over the following examples of our research:

• Learn Before Lecture: A Strategy That Improves Learning Outcomes in a Large Introductory Biology Class (link)
• Garage Demos: Using Physical Models to Illustrate Dynamic Aspects of Microscopic Biological Processes (link)
• Two Minute Training in Class Significantly Increases the Use of Professional Formatting in Student to Faculty Email Correspondence (link)

3. After reading the articles above, look at the list of current projects below and choose one. Use an online journal database to find a related journal article (ideally, one that is experimental and has methods and results). Write a one-page summary on why you believe this is an interesting topic that you would like to work on, and incorporate the journal article you found. Please submit this summary page and an unofficial copy of your transcript by email to Dr. O’Dowd.

Current Projects:

• “Communities of inquiry” and discussion effectiveness in online courses
• Racial and gender gaps in science, math and engineering
• Notetaking by paper or laptop in large lectures
• Effectiveness of undergraduate tutors in large lectures
• Student learning by making animations or physical demonstrations

After you have confirmed your interest in our program by submitting your summary page and transcript, we will meet to discuss whether there is an available project on a current subject of our choosing, and then contact you.