In her keynote address at Wednesday’s Student Research Day, geology professor Sharon Kanfoush extolled the many benefits of undergraduate research.
“Through research, students find their passions and explore topics they might not study otherwise,” she said. “It instills creativity, independent thought, and confidence.”
Those attributes were on display at this year’s annual event. With more 50 submissions and 70 student participants, this year’s Student Research Day was the biggest yet, and highlighted research in a wide range of fields, including biology, history, politics, economics, literature, physical therapy, anthropology, psychology, and more.
“To me, that’s the spirit of Research Day,” said Joseph Ribaudo, associate professor of physics and event co-chair. “It allows the community to see the diversity of projects our students are working on.”
In addition to oral presentations, in which students presented their work in 15-minute segments, the event also included a poster session, where students explained their research using visual aids.
Presenting the projects, says Ribaudo, is an essential part of the research process—and a valuable real-world skill.
“It’s the natural culmination of this type of work—to tell people about it,” he said. “Learning how to share and explain what you’ve done is an incredibly important life skill that’s applicable in any job.”
For more photos from this year’s Student Research Day, visit our facebook gallery.
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