Interactions in the Lab

Lab meetings are held weekly or bi-weekly. During these meetings, we discuss student investigator projects, provide updates and then engage in a general discussion with everyone regarding research articles about the topic the RA’s are studying. The lab meetings are one of the ways that we build a sense of community in the lab. Student Investigators can also expect to have meetings with Crissa and/or Jenn when needed. Student investigator groups are expected to meet together often and initiate meetings within groups and with their primary mentor. They are expected to ask questions and give updates and be responsible for the progression of their projects. Research assistants and dabblers should not expect to have individual meetings with Crissa and Jenn unless specifically requested. Research assistants may expect to have meetings with the lab manager and they should ask questions on Slack, via email, or in the lab meetings when they are feeling stuck or need input.

Good Research Takes Time

If you haven't started participating in the lab by your second year of college, it is, unfortunately, unlikely that you will see a project through from start to finish. The standard projects begin with thinking the concept through, then completing the literature review, and finally to publication. However, there is a lot of room in each step of the process, and we can work with the amount of time you have to make a meaningful contribution to research!

Publication Expectations & Standards

Not all projects will end up with publications or presentations. This may depend largely on the tenacity and the work that you as students put in, as well as the amount of time that a student or student group has to devote to the project. It often means that studies will end at the level of presentations, not at publications. It seems like publishing research is easy. It surprisingly is not.

Authorship and Intellectual Property

Another thing that might be surprising is that projects belong to the lab, not to the individuals doing them (not to the students). The study always belongs to the lab, even if you put a lot of work into the study. The study is always the Primary Investigator (PI)'s study. This ownership property protects the research and the project. If a student drops a commitment, the lab can assign the work to someone else at any point. Students are not ethically allowed to be Primary Investigators on a study for many reasons. The biggest being that the university won't allow students to be primary investigators. The owner of the study, here and in every setting, is the head of the lab (the PI). We put in more work than you know behind the scenes, so if a student ends up dropping a study, then the lab can pick it up where you left off.

Intellectual property is different than hard work. Critical thinking, coming up with ideas, thinking through the methods, writing up the results - these are the important parts. Running subjects or preparing a study to run in various ways is not necessarily enough to get you authorship credit depending on your level of participation. Writing lit reviews is also not enough. If you think you have earned credit on a project, be sure to ask. It should be noted that writing a lit review (doing the work of an RA) will not earn authorship on any poster presentation or publication.

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation (for graduate school or jobs) are far from guaranteed - these are things that are earned, not granted. Dabblers should not expect them, as we will not know you or your abilities in the way that graduate schools or other fields would want us to for the letter to have any meaning. Research Assistants should not expect them generally, but if you are a highly engaged RA who is active in lab meetings, asks questions, and clearly shows what you are capable of, then it's a possibility (but again, far from something you should expect). Student investigators can expect to receive letters, but for great letters, they will need to do great ​work!