To increase undergraduate participation in research, the Honors College Assembly and the College of Arts and Sciences will host one of six Undergraduate Research Seminars on Monday, Jan. 30, at 6 p.m. in Lloyd Hall, Room 328.
The seminar will be an information session on the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference. It will have the following speakers: Lauren Wilson, associate director of the Office of Sponsored Programs; Millie Jackson, UA Libraries; and award winners from the 2011 conference, including Emily Jones, Isabela Morales and Jessica Duke.
The Undergraduate Research Seminars are a series of six seminars with the goal of increasing awareness and overall participation in undergraduate research. The first seminar series took place during the Fall 2011 semester with topics ranging from how to approach a professor about getting involved with their research, to necessary interviewing skills for research positions.
This semester, the focus of these seminars is preparing students to present at the Annual Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference that takes place in April.
“The goal of this seminar series is to motivate students and give them the tools to not only participate in research, but excel in their academic area of interest,” said Lauren Huffman, HCA director of research.
Huffman has collaborated with faculty and staff, specifically Ann Webb, director of undergraduate research, over the past year organizing these seminars.
“Participating in research has significantly shaped my college years and future plans,” Huffman said. “I hope this series will give other students the opportunity to have a similar positive experience.”
Isabela Morales, a history major, has won first place in social sciences two years in a row as both a sophomore and a junior.
“I can only credit [being so successful] to the fact that I never listened to people who told me not to ‘over prepare’” Morales said. “There’s no such thing. If you’re in historical research…get really good at reading 19th century handwriting.”
The seminars are open to all students.
