How to Get Started in Research at Wes

Feeling unsure how to get enganged in research?  Look no further!  We offer tips and suggestions for exploring research options and connecting with a research mentor. If you have any additional questions, please reach out to scienceresearch@wesleyan.edu.

Departmental Resources

CIS annually compiles information on department contacts, summer internships, research opportunities, and grad schools, received and listed by department.
  • Pre-Major Resources

    Who should pre-majors contact if they have questions about your major, minor, or other program? 

    Astronomy 

    They can look at our website which is up to date with all information regarding our major. They can reach out to the admin (Stefanie Dinneen) or the department chair (Seth Redfield) with any additional questions. 

    Biology 

    Emails can be sent to AA (Shana Sperry), chair (Michael Singer), or biology@wesleyan.edu. Students can stop by Bio office HA257 Mon-Fri 8:30a-4:30p with questions. 

    Chemistry 

    Major: Anthony Davis, Carla Coste Sanchez, Michael Calter, Andrea Roberts 

    Minor: Anthony Davis 

    College of Design and Engineering Studies (IDEAS) 

    Director, College of Design and Engineering Studies
    Greg Voth 
    gvoth@wesleyan.edu

    Reach out to Greg for questions about the IDEAS major and minor, dual degree programs, and overall academic direction of CoDES.   

    College of Integrative Sciences 

    Students interested in the CIS linked major can reach out to Anika Dane. Please visit the Majors FAQ for an introduction. 

    Earth and Environmetal Sciences

    Top Ten Reasons to be an E&ES Major

    Molecular Biology and Biochemistry 

    Pre-major students interested in the MB&B Major can find a variety of information on the MB&B website and can reach out to  Professor Don Oliver (doliver@wesleyan.edu) with questions. 

    Molecular Biophysics Minor 

    Students interested in the Molecular Biophysics Program, Minor (undergrads), or Certificate (grads) may contact Director Rich Olson (rolson@wesleyan.edu), or affiliated faculty members in your department. 

    Physics  

    Please contact Professor Brian Stewart for pre-major information bstewart@wesleyan.edu.  You can also copy in the physics admin  Dana Gordon-Gannuscio.   The Academic Forum which is held in early September has faculty and information at the physics table.   Physics also hosts an open house every October for prospective majors which includes visits to faculty labs and explains all opportunities (including research) happening in the department. 

    Planetary Science Minor

    They can look at our website which is up to date with all information regarding our minor. They can reach out to the Astronomy or E&ES admins (Stefanie Dinneen) or (Sarah Reyes) with any additional questions. 

    Psychology 

    Prospective Psychology majors should contact the Psychology Department advising faculty, who are listed in the Psychology Majors Guide. Our student guides and resources are available on the Psychology Department Information site. Students can learn more about the major and meet faculty members at our Open House events in the fall and spring. 

    Science and Technology Studies 

    Students who are interested in the College of Science and Technology Studies should carefully review our website for information about the major requirements, attend an Open House event for prospective majors in the fall or spring semester, or talk to a current major. Students are welcome to email the chair of the STS, Paul Erickson (perickson@wesleyan.edu) or any of its core faculty members, for more information. 

  • Internship, Graduate School, and Employment Resources

    Where can students find information on summer internships, research opportunities, grad schools, job ads, conferences, etc. that are shared with your department? 

    Astronomy 

    Bulletin board in the Observatory, majors email list, and occasionally on social media. 

    Biology 

    Emails are sent to majors from AA when they become available. Occasional postings are added to bulletin boards on Hall-Atwater second floor. 

    Chemistry 

    On department bulletin boards and through our department e-mail listserv. 

    College of Integrative Sciences 

    CIS currates research opportunites off-campus and post-graduation at this link. If you have a program or opportunity to share, please send it to Anika (adane@wesleyan.edu).  

    Molecular Biology and Biochemistry 

    MB&B maintains a Major’s career board on the website to share information about research programs, grad schools and job opportunities. If you have anything to share, send it to the administrative assistant, Mary Readinger (mreadinger@wesleyan.edu). 

    Physics  

    Physics majors/minors will be emailed about opportunities as they occur and announcement posters for talks and upcoming events are posted on the black board on the 2nd floor of Exley.   

    Psychology 

    Psychology majors will be emailed about events and opportunities. Students can also find information on our website, on the boards in Judd Hall, and by reaching out to faculty members.  

    Science and Technology Studies 

    Students are encouraged to reach out to individual faculty members for information on current and future opportunities in science and technology studies at Wesleyan and beyond. 

  • Research Opportunities in the Department

    How can students find out about research opportunities in your faculty's labs? 

    Astronomy 

    Majors will get emails and can speak with their advisors. Typically, students apply for external funding and the department would fund the balance through existing grants or Van Vleck Fund. 

    Biology 

    Please reach out to faculty directly to discuss research opportunities and available funding.  

    Chemistry 

    There are several funding opportunities during the summer (RIS, WesMaSS, COE, SCIC, etc.) and individual faculty might have grant support for undergraduate researchers, though that will vary depending on individual faculty circumstances. 

    College of Design and Engineering Studies (IDEAS) 

    Please visit our webpage.

    College of Integrative Sciences 

    Supporting student research across sciences and mathematics is one of the core missions of the CIS.  The CIS seeks to help students find research mentors through the ongoing Research Frontiers Seminars (CIS 221/222), as well as special events that highlight research groups from across the sciences.  Our flagship summer research program hosts more than 150 undergraduates every summer. 

    Earth and Environmental Sciences

    Please visit our webpage. 

    Molecular Biology and Biochemistry 

    Students interested in conducting research in an MB&B lab should reach out to discuss opportunities directly with individual faculty members. Students can learn more about faculty research interests on the MB&B website. 

    Funding from a variety of sources, including the CIS, WesMaSS, COE, McNair program, or individual faculty grants, is potentially available to students conducting summer research. 

    Physics  

    Physics holds an open house every October where prospective majors can learn about becoming a physics major or minoring in physics.  During the open house, each faculty’s research field is discussed and students are given the opportunity during the open house to visit each research lab.  Students should contact faculty directly about the possibility of joining the lab to do research.  Physics also accepts students through the CIS/WesMass summer programs. 

    Psychology 

    Read about the Psychology research labs on our website and reach out to faculty members to learn how you can get involved. 

     

    Science and Technology Studies 

    Research opportunities in science and technology studies for Wesleyan undergraduates are limited, but students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the research publications of individual faculty members and reach out to them during courses or office hours to discuss their research. 

  • Student Groups

     

    Chemistry 

    The Free Radicals student group. All majors are members.  

    American Chemical Society Wesleyan Student Chapter. 

    College of Design and Engineering Studies (IDEAS) 

    Code_Wes club for students interested in coding. 

    Disengineering Society 

    College of the Environment (Environmental Studies) 

    Long Lane Farm 

    College of Integrative Sciences

    WAVES: Inclusion in STEM

    Wesleyan STEM Network

    Wesleyan Women in Science

    Molecular Biology and Biochemistry 

    The MB&B Major’s group, The Major Groove, is also Wesleyan’s chapter of the ASBMB. Students interested can contact Professor Scott Holmes (sholmes@wesleyan.edu) or visit the website. 

    The Jelly Rolls is the student chapter of the Biophysical Society at Wesleyan. Interested students can reach out to Professor Fisher (ofisher@wesleyan.edu), or visit the website. 

    And finally, MB&B Professor Tere Padilla-Benavides(tpadillabena@wesleyan.edu) is the faculty mentor for the Wesleyan Chapter of SACNAS. Interested students can reach out to her or visit the website. 

    Neuroscience and Behavior 

    NeuroClub 

    Physics  

    Society of Physics Students (SPS) —  Prof. George Paily is the faculty representative (gpaily@wesleyan.edu).  All students who take a physics class are invited to coffee hours and can be a part of SPS.  

    Science and Technology Studies 

    Each year, the College of Science and Technology Studies convenes a student-run Majors’ Committee. Students interested in the Majors’ Committee should email the Chair or Administrative Assistant for the STS directly. 

Research Opportunities at Wesleyan

  • Research During the Academic Year

    Research in the Natural Sciences and Math

    Students interested in independent research for credit must find a faculty research mentor and submit an electronic tutorial form (Advanced Research Seminar, Undergraduate, 423 or 424) using the drop/add system in their portal. Based on discussions with the faculty research mentor, students may sign up for 0.25, 0.5, or 1.0 credits. The 0.25 credit option encompasses students who are attending lab meeting but not conducting research while students enrolling for 1.0 credit are expected to dedicate a set block of time per week to their research project, which includes attendance in weekly group meetings and reading and discussion of current literature with group members, in addition to planning and performing experiments. Students will discuss specific expectations with their research mentor.

    Research in Psychology and NS&B

    The Psychology department and the Neuroscience & Behavior program offer Advanced Research Seminars for 5-10 students in various research topics. These seminars are POI courses numbered 370 and above in PSYC and NS&B. 

    Research with Emeritus Faculty

    The Wesleyan Emeritus College allows students to take 400-level individual research or thesis tutorials in their areas of interest with recently retired faculty members who have been approved by their departments to administer these tutorials for credit. The program provides a valuable source of research and teaching expertise to students, a way for departments to expand their offerings to advanced students without cost, and an opportunity for teachers with much to give to continue contributing to the University. The College currently has 17 recently retired colleagues, ranging across all three divisions, certified and eager to offer tutorials to interested students. You can find them listed, along with their teaching and research interests, at this link.

  • Course-based Research
    Course-based undergraduate research experiences, or CUREs, allows students to engage in authentic research as part of a regular course. Visit our CUREs section for more information.
  • Summer Research Programs

    Research in Sciences (RIS)

    Each summer, the CIS runs a summer research program across the sciences that hosts more than 100 Wesleyan undergraduates.  In addition to faculty mentored research, we offer a weekly seminar series, skills workshops, and the summer culminates with a poster session with presentations of researchby all students. Financial support is available for Research in Science by students enrolled at Wesleyan. Read more about this program and apply here.

    Bailey College of the Environment Summer Fellowships

    The College of the Environment (COE) Fellowship Program allows current Wesleyan undergraduate students to undertake research on environmental topics under the guidance of a faculty mentor during summer or fall or spring semesters. The projects must relate to any of the broad themes covered by Environmental Studies and the College of the Environment. The scope of environmental topics is intended to be interpreted broadly; research may be undertaken using techniques, approaches, and paradigms from all majors or major programs. Fellowships are available to all current Wesleyan undergraduate students, regardless of class year or major and may be undertaken at Wesleyan or off-campus. Students must be current Wesleyan undergraduate students for the duration of their fellowship. Read more about this program and apply here.

    Hazel Quantitative Analysis Center Summer Apprenticeship

    Every spring semester, a week after the end of the add/drop period, a request for proposals (RFP) is sent to the faculty inviting project proposals where the faculty name the students they would like to sponsor.  The expectation is that nominated students will have at least an introductory course where they used appropriate tools for the project (e.g. statistical analysis, programming, GIS etc.) Typically, the deadline for submitting a proposal is the beginning of the spring break. Following a review by the QAC Advisory Board the Center provides funding for the selected ones. Interested students should explore the apprenticeship research opportunities with faculty whose research matches their interests. Read more about this program here. 

    Gordon Career Center

    Wesleyan Summer Grants provide up to $5,000 to fund summer opportunities such as internships, faculty-mentored research, volunteer work, field study, or an academic program related to your career interests and aspirations. Read more about this program and apply here.

    Grants in Support of Scholarship (GISOS) Student-Faculty Research Intership 

    Student-faculty research internships are awarded to faculty members for research projects in which students will participate in conducting research. In these internships, students will support the faculty member’s research project by collecting data, developing analyses, etc., under faculty supervision; the work should serve as an apprenticeship into the research and methods of the faculty member’s project and discipline.

    South Asia Research Opportunity

    Bangalore Life Science Cluster (BLiSC) is a unique hub of interdisciplinary biological research in India, which provides on-campus housing and food in addition to oustanding science research opportunity. Students will be matched with mentors from Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (inStem). Read more about this program and apply here.

  • Additional Programs

    Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Program

    Wesleyan's McNair Program assists students from under-represented groups in preparing for, entering and progressing successfully through post-graduate education. McNair Fellows are afforded opportunities to conduct funded scholarly research and engage in intentional professional development and cohort building programming in order to have the experiences and hone the skills necessary for success in doctoral education. Read more about this program and apply here.

    Wesleyan Math and Science Scholars (WesMaSS) 

    WesMaSS is a program designed to center and guide those students who have the opportunity to be trailblazers as they pursue studies in science and math.WesMaSS students are pathfinders and innovators — opening doors that others in their schools, communities, or families might not have had the chance to open. The program invites these leaders to participate before they matriculate at the university. Current WesMaSS students are eligible to participate in the Research in Science summer program described above. Read more about this program here.

    Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

    NSF funds a large number of research opportunities for undergraduate students through its REU Sites program. An REU Site consists of a group of ten or so undergraduates who work in the research programs of the host institution. Each student is associated with a specific research project, where he/she works closely with the faculty and other researchers. Students are granted stipends and, in many cases, assistance with housing and travel. Undergraduate students supported with NSF funds must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States or its possessions. An REU Site may be at either a US or foreign location. Read more about this program here.

Finding A Research Group