Undergraduate Research Assistantship Program (URAP)

What is It?

Undergraduate research is a valuable part of your curriculum.  You can earn credit that may count towards your degree requirements while gaining hands-on laboratory or field experience.  Undergraduate Research Assistantship Program (URAP) provides guidance on research opportunities in the Department of Biology and other participating departments.

Advantages of Conducting Research

Although these positions are typically unpaid you will receive valuable laboratory and field experience, opportunities to present at scientific meetings, and potential authorship on publications.  Additionally, the faculty member you will be working with will become the best person to write a detailed personalized letter of recommendation when you apply to a graduate program, professional school, or a career opportunity.  All of these are important for your next career choice whether you plan to get a job or go on to graduate school or professional school.

Tips to Get Involved in Research

• Consider what interests you most in the fields of biological or biochemical sciences.
• Identify 2 or 3 faculty you may be interested in working with
  • faculty conducting biology-related research outside of the Department of Biology may also be considered
  • review faculty areas of research interest and publication
  • select faculty whose research you find interesting
• Connect with faculty
  • Send an email to the faculty you are interested in working with including the following information:
    • introduce yourself
    • state your career goals
    • indicate relevant information such as courses you have taken
    • be sure to explain why you are interested in their particular lab.
    • express your desire to participate in earning research credit in exchange for working in their lab.
• Follow up
  • If you have not received a response to your inquiry after several business days, you can send a polite follow-up message.
  • Discuss details of independent study with your research mentor

Consider Your Course Options

Biology and Biochemistry students may take the following courses towards their major:

• • BIOL 3504 Research in Biology
  • BIOL 3550 Research in Biology with Writing
  • BIOL 4995 Biology Honors Thesis

These independent studies require students to conduct original research under the guidance of a research mentor. The students should be involved in the design of the project, at least partially. Carrying out experiments and/or collecting data for an existing project that has been previously designed by the research mentor or colleagues would not count. BIOL 3504 typically requires a student to participate in the research activities, keep a lab notebook, and meet regularly with the mentor to discuss the progress. BIOL 3550 is a writing intensive course that requires a student to produce a lab report or a presentation at the end of the semester. There should be multiple revisions of the paper or presentation (and practice if it is an oral presentation) before its final version. Towards the end of the semester, BIOL 3550 students are required to upload the final paper/presentation to the University Writing Portfolio via the course Canvas site. BIOL 4995 is also a writing intensive course and is a requirement of the Honors in Biology program. Students will need to complete at least one semester of BIOL 3504 or 3550 before entering BIOL 4995 typically in the last semester of their program. BIOL 4995 requires students to complete a research thesis and at least two public presentations. For students in the Honors College, these courses may be used as their signature honors project.

BIOL 3504 and BIOL 3550 are variable credit hour courses. A student may take 1-3 s.h. of BIOL 3504 or 3550 in one semester, but a maximum of 6 s.h. of BIOL 3504 + 3550 may be used to count toward the student’s Biology or Biochemistry major. Additional research credits may count as WI or free electives as applicable. A student should not take BIOL 3504 and BIOL 3550 at the same time. BIOL 4995 is a 2 s.h. course that may be taken concurrently with BIOL 3504 or BIOL 3550.

For BIOL 3504 and BIOL 3550,

• Fall/Spring semesters:
  • 1 s.h. is equivalent to at least 3 hours of lab work per week
  • 2 s.h. is equivalent to at least 6 hours of lab work per week
  • 3 s.h. is equivalent to at least 9 hours of lab work per week
• Summer sessions:
  • 1 s.h. is equivalent to at least 9 hours of lab work per week
  • 2 s.h. is equivalent to at least 18 hours of lab work per week
  • 3 s.h. is equivalent to at least 27 hours of lab work per week

Register for Research Courses

The registration of research courses will be initiated by the faculty mentor and processed by the Biology Department Undergraduate Office. Once the faculty mentor and student reach an agreement on the project, the course, and credit(s), the faculty mentor will submit an independent study application on the student’s behalf. The timeframe to submit the application starts on the day of early registration per the Academic Calendar and ends on the first day of the semester. Students will approve the application via instructions that will be emailed to them. The application will be reviewed by the Director of Undergraduate Studies after the student’s approval. The registration will be finalized by the department. For this reason, students are not able to register for BIOL 3504, 3550, or 4995 in Pirate Port during the registration period.

Faculty mentors: to request the link for the independent study application please reach out to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Qualify for Honors in Biology

Students who actively participate in research with a faculty mentor for at least one semester and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher, can enroll in the Biology Department’s honors program.

Learn More About Honors in Biology

Scholarship/Fellowship Programs to Support Undergraduate Research in Biology

Faculty in the Department of Biology have played a leadership role in establishing three different scholarship/fellowship programs that facilitate the ability of undergraduate students to engage in research at ECU. Students can learn more about these programs by clicking on the names of the programs below. Additional opportunities for funding to support undergraduate research can be found on the REDE Undergraduate Research webpage. Note that receipt of a scholarship/fellowship is not required to engage in research. Please contact faculty in the department to learn more about opportunities in their research labs.