Additionally, you may wish to explore the undergraduate research blog posts from Elon’s Center for Engaged Learning. These provide practical strategies and personal reflections about meaningful research partnerships with students.

Are you curious about how it benefits faculty to mentor students? Check out the Teaching Toolbox posted on this topic in 2024.

• Inclusive Engagement in Student Research
• Contracts and Agreements
• Presenting and Publishing with Students
• JMU Resources
• College Specific Resources
• Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR)
• The Benefits of Undergraduate Research

Note: Some of the videos and handouts in this page will require you to log in with your JMU eID and password.

While there are many documented benefits to students engaging in mentored research, there are also documented barriers that, in particular, affect historically excluded groups.

If you are looking to better understand the barriers and strategies to increase inclusion, check out this handout developed by Dayna Henry when she was serving as the coordinator of student creative activities and research for REDI. The handout provides practical tips for the entire process, from recruiting to selection and through student mentorship.

Given that aligned expectations predict success, it may be helpful for you and student collaborators to develop a contract or agreement for your work together. A Google search of “research mentor contracts” will provide many samples you may wish to adapt for your own use. You can also explore these samples provided through a mentoring workshop held at JMU in 2022.

If you are interested in disseminating scholarly work with your students, paying attention to several things is essential. Academic publishing is mostly unknown to students who may have read peer-reviewed journal articles but have no sense of the work (or time) required to see a manuscript through to publication. Once they graduate, students may lose interest, or staying in touch with them may be difficult through the publication process, which sometimes takes years. Students and faculty may also have different motivations for disseminating their work. Finally, travel to conferences can be cost-prohibitive to students (and sometimes faculty), making it challenging to bring students along. Paying attention to these differences is vital in thinking through the power differential inherent in working with students.

It’s important to talk early and often about expectations and responsibilities related to disseminating your work together. Explaining how authorship works, the expectations of conferences/publications, and the length of time commitment are all important aspects of successfully publishing with students.

College of Arts & Letters 

• JMU College of Arts and Letters Undergraduate Research Conference
• JMU College of Arts and Letters Undergraduate Research Website
• JMU Department of English Undergraduate Research Opportunities
• JMU Department of World Languages and Cultures conference
• JMU School of Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication Undergraduate Journal (RhetTech)

College of Business

• JMU College of Business Research Experience for Undergraduates

College of Education

• Undergraduate Research Interest Group

College of Health and Behavioral Studies

• Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders
• Department of Psychology

College of Integrated Science & Engineering

• JMU College of Integrated Science and Engineering Computer Science Research Opportunities

College of Science & Mathematics

• Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
• Department of Physics and Astronomy Research
• JMU Biology Department Undergraduate Research

College of Visual and Performing Arts

The mission of the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) is to support and promote high-quality mentored undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative inquiry. Activate your free membership! 

CUR provides support and professional development opportunities for faculty, staff, administrators, and students. CUR’s publications and outreach activities are designed to share successful models and strategies for establishing, nurturing, and institutionalizing undergraduate research programs.

• Council on Undergraduate Research Journal Listing
  
  
• Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference for Undergraduate Scholarship

Independent research is beneficial for all undergraduates, regardless of discipline or future career plans. A survey conducted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that employers valued the skills and aptitudes recent college graduates gained through research. Employers in the survey also found that independent research fosters innovation and critical thinking skills. The readings on this page focus on those benefits.

Barron, S., Brown, P., Cumming, T., & Mengeling, M. (2020). The impact of undergraduate research and student characteristics on student success metrics at an urban, minority serving, commuter, public institution. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 20(1).

Collins, T. W., Grineski, S. E., Shenberger, J., Morales, X., Morera, O. F., & Echegoyen, L. E. (2017). Undergraduate research participation is associated with improved student outcomes at a Hispanic-serving institution. Journal of College Student Development, 58(4), 583–600.

Fechheimer, M., Webber, K., & Kleiber, P. B. (2011). How well do undergraduate research programs promote engagement and success of students? CBE Life Sciences Education,10(2), 156–163.

Hunter, A.-B., Laursen, S.L. and Seymour, E. (2007), Becoming a scientist: The role of undergraduate research in students' cognitive, personal, and professional development. Science Education, 91(1), 36-74.

Orsillo, S. (2022, September). Undergraduate research experience: A roadmap to guide your journey. American Psychological Association.

Rix, K. (2023, September 27). How undergraduates benefit from doing research. U.S. News & World Report.

Rodríguez Amaya, L., Betancourt, T., Collins, K.H., Hinojosa, O., & Corona, C. (2018). Undergraduate research experiences: Mentoring, awareness, and perceptions—a case study at a Hispanic-serving institution. International Journal of STEM Education, 5.