Undergraduate Research Opportunities Database
Our database is a great resource in helping students find exciting undergraduate research opportunities at Penn State.
To get the best results, we recommend that you select all of the research areas that interest you. We also recommend that you conduct multiple searches.
Campus – Select the campus(es) where you would be interested in participating in research. Depending on the time of year when you are using the database, consider whether your location changes. For example, do you spend your summers closer to a different campus than where you regularly attend school?
Research Area – Select the area(s) of research that interest you most, keeping in mind that research is often interdisciplinary so it might be appropriate to select more than one area. For example, if you are interested in health you might want to search for opportunities in the physical sciences, life sciences, and nursing and health sciences, because these research areas could all be relevant to your interest in health.
Position Type – Select the position type(s) that are most appealing to you. If you prefer whether you earn credit versus being paid, be sure to narrow down the search results using this field. Note: You may not receive academic credit and be paid for the same research experience in a given semester.
- “Variable” refers to situations where the position type is likely to change. For example, some mentors like to accept students on a volunteer basis and after a semester of working together will consider paying the student or offering course credit.
- “Work Study” is only available to students who have received a federal work-study (FWS) award. You can verify if you have an FWS award by visiting LionPATH and reviewing your "Financial Aid Summary.” If you do not have a federal work-study award, your mentor can also inquire with Kim Fisher (kaw63@psu.edu) to determine if you are eligible to be awarded one.
Work Setting – Select the work setting(s) that works best with your schedule.
- “Variable” refers to situations where the work setting could change throughout the duration of the project or research. For example, some opportunities can start off in-person and be adapted to remote if circumstances were to require such a change.
Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive database of all the research opportunities available at Penn State. Please visit our Finding an Opportunity at Penn State section for other ideas for finding a research opportunity!
Mentors interested in creating an account or posting an opportunity should visit the Using the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Database section.
| Title | Description | Research Area(s) | Position Type(s) | Work Setting(s) | Updated Date | Posting Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate Student Research Assistant -- Mapping the Student Engagement Journey |
The Student Engagement Coordinator seeks two undergraduate students to assist with a large, multi-year research project around student engagement. Mapping the student engagement journey (https://mappingstudentengagement.com/) is a research project funded through the Student Engagement Network and will explore how Penn State undergraduate students discover, choose, and experience these opportunities. The student research assistants will help conduct in-depth interviews, code data, have the opportunity for presentation and publication at a local and national level, and will have the ability to design and lead their own research project around student... |
Social and Behavioral Sciences |
Paid |
Remote |
September 15, 2020 | September 10, 2020 | |
| Research Experience for Seniors (REFS) Internship |
Senior Vice President for Research, Lora Weiss, in a letter to faculty on July 10th, 2020, emphasized the involvement of students intending to graduate by summer 2021 in integrated undergraduate/graduate research at Penn State. To respond, we have added a senior research experience program that will begin late fall 2020 and will run through the spring 2021 semester. This one-time program specifically targets rising seniors in need of research experience who may not have had the opportunity previously due to COVID shutdowns. For more details, visit https://sites.psu.edu/wisermurefurp/refs/. Program Details
|
Agricultural Sciences, Engineering, Environmental and Geosciences, Information Technology and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Statistics |
Paid |
On campus, Remote, Variable |
September 15, 2020 | September 3, 2020 | |
| First-year Undergraduate Research Program (FURP) Internship |
The PA Space Grant Research Internship Program is an exciting annual research focused program for students attending Penn State - University Park supported by the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium. FURP is open to all first-year students interested in research. In summary, the internship is available to first-year students who are U.S. citizens planning to pursue a degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) related field. Women, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities or hardship are encouraged to apply. The program offers students a two-semester (spring and fall... |
Agricultural Sciences, Engineering, Environmental and Geosciences, Information Technology and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Statistics |
Paid |
On campus, Remote, Variable |
September 15, 2020 | September 3, 2020 | |
| Minority Undergraduate Research Experience (MURE) Internship |
The PA Space Grant Research Internship Program is an exciting annual research focused program for students attending Penn State - University Park supported by the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium. MURE supports underrepresented minority students interested in pursuing research on campus that are in their first-year, sophomore, or junior years. Minority students are defined as African-American, Hispanic, Native American, or Pacific Islander. Students of Asian descent are not considered minority students by NASA. The program offers students a two-semester (spring and fall semesters of one calendar year) faculty... |
Agricultural Sciences, Engineering, Environmental and Geosciences, Information Technology and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Statistics |
Paid |
On campus, Remote, Variable |
September 15, 2020 | September 3, 2020 | |
| Women In STEM and Engineering Research (WISER) Internship |
The PA Space Grant Research Internship Program is an exciting annual research focused program for students attending Penn State - University Park supported by the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium. WISER is Open to all first-year students but focuses on supporting outstanding women interested in pursuing research on campus. The program offers first-year students a two-semester (spring and fall semesters of one calendar year) faculty-mentored internship in a research laboratory at Penn State-UP. During the internship experience, students have the opportunity to collaborate with a research team, learn the... |
Agricultural Sciences, Engineering, Environmental and Geosciences, Information Technology and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Statistics |
Paid |
On campus, Remote, Variable |
September 15, 2020 | September 3, 2020 | |
| The Role of Cognitive and Mathematical Structures in Problem Solving Process |
Our research group is interested in studying the cognitive role of mathematical aesthetics and strategic choices of problem solving solution methods and the relational role of item discrimination and difficulty. We examine how problem solvers’ behavior might be affected or altered by elementary modifications of problem structures. |
Education, Mathematics, Statistics |
Paid, Volunteer, Work Study |
On campus, Remote, Variable |
September 3, 2020 | August 24, 2020 | |
| Behavior, Ecology, and the Brain |
Research in the LaDage lab concerns the relationship between the brain and behavior, specifically focusing on the evolution of spatially-based behaviors and the hippocampus, an area of the brain heavily involved in learning and memory. Typically, we use non-model species (lizards, in particular) to incorporate ecological relevance into this relationship. |
Life Sciences |
Variable |
On campus |
September 1, 2020 | August 25, 2020 | |
| High Performance Engineering Design Teams |
In this project, we are investigating how engineering design teams work, with a particular focus on the key factors that lead to high performance. As part of our investigation, we study the interaction behaviors of engineers (what they do, the approaches they take), their cognitive characteristics (who they are, what they know), and the design outcomes of the engineering team (what they create). This is a great opportunity for you to learn about the design process, design cognition, product assessment, and research methods in general! Because this project is a collaboration between Penn State and Stanford University, you will also have the opportunity to meet engineering students and researchers from across the country. You will work with an enthusiastic, multi-disciplinary, multi-... |
Engineering, Social and Behavioral Sciences |
Variable, Volunteer |
Variable |
August 31, 2020 | August 26, 2020 | |
| Design of scientific illustrations |
If you are an art or design student and you would like to practice your skills, you could help us design and refine scientific illustrations for publications, presenations and websites. We work on different topics in biology (evolution, ecology, genetics, cell biology). We would work together to understand the content and the essential elements of the project, and you would then be free to choose the design. You are free to decide how much time you want to commit, from a quick redesign of existing figures, to a comprehensive, long-term plan for a new project. This is initially an unpaid internship, not for credits, but it could eventually lead to a short-term project-based paid position. |
Volunteer |
August 31, 2020 | June 5, 2020 | |||
| Undergraduate Research Assistant Needed for Project on Transitions in Health and Close Relationships |
Our lab is conducting a project which is designed to explore the connections between changes in health and close relationships as people age. We are currently enrolling participants, conducting interviews, delivering surveys, tracking participants and cleaning data. Undergraduate research assistants will have the opportunity to gain valuable research experience and develop numerous skills relevant to complex longitudinal research. Undergraduate research assistants can receive course credits (3 credits) for 6 to 9 hours per week of work. Please contact us for more information: rzz12@psu.edu.
|
Credit |
August 31, 2020 | August 26, 2019 |