006 ~ Undergraduate Research / Publishing ~ Dr. Paul Moore The Teaching & Learning Professor

Today’s guest is a Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at BGSU. He was formerly the Director of the BGSU Marine Biology Program from 1994-1999, the Director of the Center for Neuroscience, Mind & Behavior from 2000-2002, and the Director of the University Honors Program from 2002-2012.

Today’s guest has also been the Director of the Laboratory for Sensory Ecology since 1994. The Laboratory for Sensory Ecology is a multi-disciplinary lab that is interested in any questions concerning sensory behavior, evolution, physiology, and ecology. Most of their current projects are centered on understanding the role that chemical signals play in an organism's ecological role. They have projects that range from understanding the physics behind antennae design, predator avoidance, selection of habitats and mates, dominance hierarchies and other social behaviors to analyzing the chemical composition of these signals.

He is a former professor of mine, a colleague, friend, and mentor. Please Welcome Dr. Paul Moore.
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Table of Contents:

00:00 - Introduction - Undergraduate Research & Mentoring
05:40 - Interview with Dr. Paul Moore

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URE vs CURE

Undergraduate Research Experiences (UREs) and Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) have recently become very popular among STEM disciplines in colleges and universities in the United States. UREs are usually limited to few students and competitive. Students who apply for UREs are typically highly interested in research, high achieving, and motivated. Students work closely with faculty, post-doctoral researchers, or graduate students during a summer, semester, year, or longer. CUREs are embedded in a course as part of the curriculum and typically only last for one semester, but they may span 2 or more courses. However, CUREs may put a strain on the professor teaching the course because they need to oversee many student’s simultaneously.

Benefits

Undergraduate research offers opportunities for independent research, experience in the field of study, and professional mentoring. There is evidence suggesting that undergraduate research benefits students by preparing them to become scientists and the experience may retain students in the sciences (Graham, et al., 2013). Furthermore, the results of an undergraduate research project may be published in a peer-reviewed journal with the student as a coauthor. Today’s guest will talk about the process and benefits of publishing.

Mentors

However, Linn et al. (2015) believe the benefits of undergraduate research have been poorly studied and that positive outcomes may be due primarily to mentoring. They state that mentoring is essential for undergraduates considering careers in the sciences and one of the main benefits of undergraduate research may be undergraduates close proximity to faculty, postdoctoral researchers, and other members of the lab who help mentor the students. Mentors may serve as guides who orient the undergraduates and help them make connections among their experiences. They may also serve as role models, provide professional socialization, and facilitate the undergraduate’s professional identity as a scientist.

Mentor Benefits

Linn et al. (2015) back up their claims by citing a several studies including one indicating that students who feel they are supported by faculty are more likely to attend graduate school (Eagan et al., 2013) and a study indicating higher rates of attrition among students with inadequate interactions with mentors (Thiry, et al., 2011). They also cite a study indicating that stude