Undergraduate Research
Taking what you learn in the classroom and applying it to real world challenges is one of the most satisfying and rewarding aspects of how academics are enhanced with research at NC State.
You might be surprised at the areas in which you can conduct meaningful research. Opportunities are not limited to the sciences, but also include technology, the arts and humanities. As a participating member of the undergraduate research program at NC State, you will witness firsthand how inquiry, discovery and creativity can culminate in advancements in knowledge that change the world.
Consider a few past projects: going on archeological digs, developing new ways to manage plants or wildlife in their natural habitats, engineering machines for administering pharmaceutical drugs to patients.
Finding the right mentor is one of your first steps to a successful project. NC State students have worked with faculty, as well as nationally and internationally recognized industry leaders to see what it’s really like to work in the area that interests them. Most mentors agree to work with one to two students per year, but bigger projects may allow up to four students per year. Learn more.
Payoffs from undergraduate research are numerous, but here are a few:
- Gaining real-world experience can make you a more attractive candidate for grad schools or employers
- Making important contacts can help your career in the future
- Completing a project will count as college credit as Special Problems, Independent Study, Free Elective or Honors Research in your department.
Student research is real
Student researchers at NC State conduct real research—and they present real-world applications. At the Annual NC State University Undergraduate Research Symposium, students present abstracts from the areas of Engineering and Technology, Biological Sciences, Humanities, Social Sciences and Psychology, and Physical and Mathematical Sciences. Past research outcomes presented have included:
- effects of weather on sludge levels in waste management lagoons
- role missing census data might play in early and late-stage breast cancer
- how to change health-risk behaviors in teens with sex education
- using GIS to preserve natural resources along the Blue Ridge Parkway
- enhancing plant tolerance to drought and herbicide
- studying olfactory neuronal loss
- examining the effects of overweight trucks traveling on I40
