Four elements1 are critical for effective undergraduate research experiences:
- Mentorship. The experience is a serious, collaborative interaction between the faculty mentor and the student. The student is intellectually engaged in a problem or project.
- Originality. The student makes a meaningful and authentic contribution to the problem or project. The work is entirely or partially novel.
- Acceptability. The student employs techniques and methodologies that are appropriate and recognized by the discipline(s). The problem or project includes a reflective and synthetic component.
- Dissemination. The experience includes a final tangible product. Both the process and results are presented and reviewed in a manner consistent with disciplinary standards.
(1) Jeffrey M. Osborn and Kerry K. Karukstis, “The Benefits of Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity” in Broadening Participation in Undergraduate Research: Fostering Excellence and Enhancing the Impact, Mary K. Boyd and Jodi L. Wesemann, Eds. (Council on Undergraduate Research, 2009)