Research

So you want to do some research?  The Biomedical Engineering department allows students to either do research for credit or for pay.  Most BME students do research in a BME professor's lab, frequently under the guidance of an advanced PhD student or post doctoral assistant who work for that professor.  Some students do BME-related research in labs in other schools/departments.  Note that some labs require students to volunteer for a semester first, before they will be able to register for the research. 

The best way to find research opportunities is to contact a professor directly.  For example, to find someone in the BME department, go to either the primary faculty or program faculty profiles on the BME website, or the Research Lab Overview website.  Read up on what kind of research is going on, when you find something that interests you, contact the professor, via email, phone or direct contact.  Make sure you have read about the professor's work in depth, perhaps even attempting to read a research paper or two.  If emailing the professor, make sure it's a professional email that demonstrates that you have read up on their research.  A "Hey, do you have any spots in your lab?" email is sure to be instantly trashed.  You might have to be persistent to find an open spot, but persistence usually pays off.  Faculty typically do not advertise that they are looking for student help in labs, so it is the student's responsibility to find a position.

Research for Credit

With BME Faculty
Once you have found a BME professor willing to let you work in their lab for credit, you will need to complete the Undergraduate Research Form, have your professor sign it, and deliver it the BME Undergraduate Academic Advisor. You will then be given a permit to register for either BMED 2699 (1st and 2nd year students) or BMED 4699 (3rd and 4th year students). This form should be delivered to the advisor by the beginning of Phase II registration.  You need to register for the research by the end of Phase II registration. 

With Non-BME Faculty
If you choose to work for a professor outside of BME, you will need to follow their school's/department's procedures for registering for credit. If you wish to apply this credit to satisfy BME depth/technical elective requirements, you will need to have this pre-approved by submitting the Non-BME Undergraduate Research Form to the BME Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies

Note:
- Important:  When registering, you must manually change the number of credit hours to the agreed upon number of credits.  The system defaults to one credit, and if the number of credits are not changed, your transcript will show you with one credit for the research.

- Consult with your professor to determine the appropriate number of credit hours desired for the experience. It is expected that you should spend approximately three hours per week on research for every hour of credit.


- A final report is required. This should be turned in to your professor by the first day of final exams. A copy of the report must also be sent (electronic copies are ok) to the Undergraduate Academic Advisor. The default requirements for the report are detailed on the Undergraduate Research Form. Your professor may have additional requirements for the report.  It is the student's responsibility to understand those requirements.

Research for Pay

There are a several ways to do research for pay:

- Funding from a professor through one of their grants or contracts
- PURA (President's Undergraduate Research Award)
- REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) programs
- Petit Undergraduate Research Scholars program

When you do research for pay for a BME professor, you do need to register for BMED 2698 (1st and 2nd year students) or BMED 4698 (3rd and 4th year students). This will appear on your transcript, but you will not receive a grade. You will not incur any tuition expenses for these “for-pay” courses.

Research Option

Research Option offers students the opportunity for a substantial, in-depth research experience. It offers students a taste for what long-term research can be like and provides extensive experience not found within a typical course setting. One-on-one student and faculty mentoring is also a highlight of the experience. Students are strongly encouraged at the end of their experience to work with their faculty mentor to develop a journal publication or conference presentation on the research in addition to the actual thesis.

The exact requirements for research option vary by academic unit, however, students typically:
• Complete at least 9 credit hours of undergraduate research
    o Courses should span at least two, preferably three terms
    o Research may be for either pay or credit
    o At least 6 of the 9 required hours should be on the same topic
• Complete a research proposal outlining their research topic and project for the thesis (for additional information on the contents of this proposal, click here)
• Take the LCC 4701 "Undergraduate Research Proposal Writing" and the LCC 4702 "Undergraduate Research Thesis Writing" courses.
• Write an undergraduate thesis/report of research on their findings and complete the Certificate of Research Option Approval form

The research proposal and at least 6 hours of research are required for admission to the LCC 4700 undergraduate thesis course. Completion of Research Option is noted on the student's transcript.

For more information on the Research Option, click here.

FAQs

Frequently asked questions about undergraduate research can be found at:
http://www.undergradresearch.gatech.edu/questions