<p>How do we go about asking for research assistantships (unpaid)? And how many hours must we invest on it per week? I’m talking about non-chem/non-bio related, ie Engineering or PoliSci or Psych.</p>
<p>Many thanks!</p>
<p>There’s no right answer but I’d say at least 20 hours (akin to a part-time job) is what I’d like to see if I were the professor. If you are passionate about it, you’ll easily put in even more. People that put in, say, 10 hours are doing the bare minimum and it’s not productive to themselves and the professors.</p>
<p>Yeah I’d agree. Do some research in the department see who is doing stuff that interests you and contact them. </p>
<p>A lot of it is luck too. I contacted both of my profs and they were just very receptive to undergrad research. It also helped that I had a fellowship to pay my way too so maybe look into that as well. </p>
<p>Undergrad research isn’t done enough at nu I think. But there are loads of opportunities.</p>
<p>One more thing: when I was there, NU granted 1 credit to independent research. Some people would think since it’s 1 credit, it’s a fair game to put in the “fair” number of hours, which I believe is something like 9 or 12 hours a week. But anyone who budgets time for reserach based on 1 credit probably won’t produce or gain anything meaningful. If you are someone like postdoc with lots of coursework under your belt, you may produce some quality work in that time-frame. For undergrads and depending on the project, there could be a steep learning curve; in such case, the background reading alone can take a lot of time.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.northwestern.edu/ipr/undergradflyer-2010.pdf[/url]”>http://www.northwestern.edu/ipr/undergradflyer-2010.pdf</a></p>
<p>its a summer program, but is certainly a good opportunity - particularly in the social sciences. Excellent preparation for a possible career in Higher Ed - or at least proof that you don’t like it.</p>
<p>Another possibility is the pursuit of an honors thesis. It was an incredibly challenging and enlightening experience for me, providing true 1 on 1 time with a great faculty advisor.</p>
<p>10 hours a week is the standard for on campus positions (its the max for work-study jobs).</p>
<p>False it’s definitely not the max unless you have a small work study stipend or you make 10 dollars an hour lol. Just do the math, 10 can’t be right and also work study jobs don’t pay that much. Sorry this just isn’t right.</p>
<p>Since I’m an entering senior who’s done work study since freshman year with the max stipend… you’re a dumbass. You CAN work up to a max of 12 a week, but they’re not supposed to allow that, and it’s hard capped at 12. 10 * 7.50/hr * 10 weeks * 3 quarters = 2250. Higher wages grows pretty quickly.</p>
<p>Thanks, I’ve heard of IPR and am definitely considering it. So unpaid research assistantship is akin to a work-study job (10-12hrs) plus the passion not found in a work-study job (an additional 5-10hrs).</p>
<p>When I was there, I knew people who were assigned to wash lab dishes or do repetitive experiment runs (things that PhD students don’t want to do) for their work-study jobs. They were not real research projects. Unless you have incredible IQ or reading speed, 10hrs/week are likley not enough to produce quality work within 1 or even 2 quarters. Of course, if you stretch it out to 3 quarters or more, then I guess even 10hr/week would add up but professors probably don’t have that kind of patience and slow schedule.</p>
<p>One of my friends that went to CalTech after NU definitely put in more than 10 hours/wk for his undergrad research. One of my former roomates would wake up early or stay late for his chemistry research. He had published several papers in academic journals by the time he graduated. Again, there’s no right answer but the more effort you put in, the better chance you could produce substantial work. So it really depends on what kind of accomplishment you are aiming for. There’s no shortcut.</p>
<p>But as a freshman, you may start out easy with 10hr/week. You can help the grad student/professor with tasks like data-mining or simple data analysis. That type of work probably won’t require substantial training or background reading. It won’t be anything original but you may not want to take on too much in your first quarter at NU</p>
<p>[Work-Study</a> Program: Undergraduate Financial Aid, Northwestern University](<a href=“http://ug-finaid.northwestern.edu/work-study/handbook/index.html]Work-Study”>http://ug-finaid.northwestern.edu/work-study/handbook/index.html)</p>
<p>Please read the part about 15 hours. Thanks. </p>
<p>I graduated from nu and I had three work study jobs at once. Suck it.</p>
<p>I’m not a dumbass but I am an *******. I know nu like the back of my hand</p>
<p>I apologize for my outburst, but it’s funny that arbiter didn’t respond. (Hint, it’s because I’m right). cheers!</p>
<p>Does working as a lab aide in a research lab offer any incentives such as opportunities to actually partake in research?</p>
<p>Sometimes it just depends on who you’re working for. My D did work study every year, but her Prof in Jr. & Sr year had her helping out so much with research and work that my D got mentioned as contributer on the Doc’s paper. Sweet.</p>
<p>You can definitely start out as a lab assistant for the first step. Getting involved in research is a bit like gettting a job; it helps when the prof knows you and has confidence in you. Doing well in classes is another way to get profs’ notice. Sometime profs would invite or ask the students that impress them to join their teams. If you are ISP, you are considered some kind of honors student. That doesn’t mean average student won’t get anything. Even the average/below average at NU are still pretty capable; but what the profs want to see is if the students are committed and intellectually curious about the research. There are enough projects/opportunities to spread around; that said, you do need to actively seek them.</p>