Undergraduate Research?

frever
Sun, 14 Apr 2013 00:33:00 +0000

In a lot of ways, the research side of UT is separate from the teaching side of it. Labs kind of operate as independent practices. While the professors are paid by the school, their research is for the most part funded by external organizations. Because of this disconnect and other reasons, there isn’t too much integration between these two aspects of the university. Other than the FRI program, which applies only to the College of Natural Sciences, I am not aware of a program that provides a predefined path for entrance into research. Typically, then, you don’t apply through some general application but directly to the lab itself. Common ways of doing this include asking your professor for a position in their lab (or one of their colleague’s); asking your TA if they’d be willing to take you on (it’s as simple as them saying yes or no, there isn’t any special authorization process); or simply doing cold-calls in person or email after looking through the lab’s website.

Generally, though, they are wary of taking on students whom are still taking introductory courses as the training process can be more trouble than it’s worth. But while that is generally true, if they can see that you’re genuinely interested in the research (many are in it for the resume) then they’d gladly welcome you in. The most important way to convey this excitement is to read up on the lab’s subject area, especially papers published by the researcher (i.e. grad student, post-doc or PI) you are applying to, before you apply.

Best of luck and welcome to UT!