Undergraduate Programs - Research

The Department of Biology welcomes and encourages the participation of undergraduate students in ongoing research, with the understanding that the best training in science includes active involvement in the laboratory. Several different avenues for research participation are available, including:

The Freshman Research Scholar Program:

Each year, a few applicants with impressive academic credentials are invited to become Freshman Research Scholars. During the freshman year each of these students undertakes a project in the laboratory of one of the Biology faculty. Each faculty mentor oversees the necessary laboratory training, and the conduct of the project during the academic year. The intent of this program is to encourage early involvement of students in the research process. No academic credit is given for participation as a Freshman Research Scholar; accordingly, the scope and nature of each project are delimited so that this training may be fit into the student's standard schedule of course work.

Research Participation for Course Credit:

Biology 577/ 578, Research Problems, are courses which allow biology concentrators to register for 3 hours of academic credit for undertaking a research project during a semester. The research project to be undertaken, and the goals to be achieved by the end of the semester are determined through discussion between the student and the member of the Biology faculty who will serve as mentor.

Volunteer or Paid Participation in Faculty-Directed Research:

Students may also become involved directly in departmental research by volunteering to work on a project, or, in some cases, by obtaining paid, part-time or summer positions on projects funded through research grants to the Biology faculty. Opportunities for paid research positions vary, and depend on the particular research grants which are active in the Department at a given time.

Student Internships and Technical Positions at Area Research Laboratories:

The Washington, DC area offers a rich variety of biological research. Research facilities range from new biotech companies to the many different research laboratories of federal agencies. Student internships and part-time technical positions are frequently available at the National Institutes of Health, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, and other agencies. Many CUA biology students have obtained summer, or part-time academic year employment in these laboratories. The Department posts announcements of such opportunities as they become available.

Other Research Internships:

The Department receives notice of undergraduate summer research opportunities across the country, and encourages our students to take advantage of them. Recent examples of biological research internships awarded to CUA students include a prestigious American Microbiological Society summer fellowship award, a summer research internship at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, and an NIH Summer Internship at the National Institute for Neurological Diseases and Stroke.