We asked URSCO Director Mitch Croatt why students benefit from undergraduate research experiences – even if being a researcher for life isn’t the goal. Here’s what he said.
Last week, I had the pleasure of moderating two panels of faculty members to talk with first-year undergrads about undergraduate research. These wonderful events – which helped open students’ eyes to the value of undergraduate research – kicked off URSCO’s busy semester of offerings to assist students in reaching the next steps in their journeys.
To help students understand why undergraduate research is a high impact practice and how they can get started, here are my top ten messages!
1. It is a life-changing experience
I wouldn’t be where I am without undergraduate research, and this was echoed by all the panelists.
2. Learn to fail forward
There is a lot of “failure” with research. To quote one panelist, “On a research project, students learn how to fail productively” or “fail forward.”
3. Start with a conversation
Talking with faculty during office hours is great for your performance in a class (and in college) and gives you a foot in the door for doing research for them or others. Don’t know what to ask in office hours? Ask about their research. Faculty LOVE to talk about their research.
4. Get paid
There are ways to get paid to do research. That’s right! You can get paid to advance your career!
5. Stand out
If you do well in your classes and stand out, a faculty member might recruit you to join their group or do a research project. Or, if you stop by their office to talk about research, you will automatically be standing out.
6. It’s about curiosity and passion, not grades
You don’t have to get an A in a class to do research in that area. Many faculty, myself included, didn’t get all A’s in the courses most related to their research projects.
7. You don’t have to have it all together
You don’t have to have a research project/idea in mind to join a lab. Most labs have active projects that you will join.
8. Practice resilience
Undergraduate research will test and hone your grit and determination. Sometimes getting into a research group will also test this. Don’t let one “No” stop you from doing research. The faculty member might not have the space or time to mentor an additional student or they might be going on sabbatical. Ask them the following semester or ask someone else. Ask if you can join their group meetings prior to joining the group. Ask what you could do to be able to join their group in the future.
(On a related note, it is hard to say no to a student who shows up in person to ask to join a research group. It is easier to say no to an email. 😉)
9. Start now
For most areas, trying to join a research group in your senior year will be too late. Faculty generally prefer students to start doing research in their second or third year. Don’t know when you should start in your area? Talk to a faculty member to find out.
10. Don’t be afraid to switch things up – It’s an experience, not a life-long commitment
You can switch research groups if your interest changes or you want to learn new skills/techniques. You can also do future work unrelated to your undergraduate research project.
No matter what, undergraduate research gives you problem-solving skills that are desired by employers, graduate schools, and professional schools.
About Dr. Mitch Croatt
Mitch was born in the small town of New Prague, Minnesota. He went to the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities in 1998 and earned his B.S. in Chemistry after doing research in the group of Professor George A. O’Doherty. In 2002, Mitch then went to Stanford University to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemistry in the group of Professor Paul A. Wender. He focused his graduate research on the design and development of new transition metal-catalyzed reactions and successfully defended his thesis in 2007. Mitch did postdoctoral research overseas in Zurich, Switzerland to study in the group of Professor Erick M. Carreira at ETH-Zurich. There he made semi-synthetic analogs of Amphotericin B to help study its mechanism of action with an effort to generate a more selective antifungal compound.
In 2010, Mitch started his independent academic career at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro as an Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2015 and to Professor in 2021. In 2022, Mitch was named the Marie Foscue Rourk Distinguished Professor based on the many successes of his research group, including receiving grant funding from the NSF, NIH, NCBC, and ACS. For more information about his research projects, please visit his research group’s webpage.
