Finding a Research Mentor

Finding a good mentor is essential to getting started in undergraduate research.

This guide is designed to give you everything you need to confidently navigate the process of finding the right mentor for you.

It is important to understand the commitment you are making when you choose to work with faculty on a research project. You’ll be part of a team (even if that means a team of two), and with that comes rights and responsibilities. Though it may be enjoyable and rewarding, working on research projects is not a hobby. It’s not something you can do only in your spare time, and it’s not something where the faculty member is there to help you do whatever you want to do on your “pet” project. You’re entering into a mentoring relationship, and you will be working under your mentor’s expert guidance to contribute something new to a branch of knowledge.

It’s important to know that different faculty and disciplines have different standards and expectations. And that means there are different ways of working with faculty:

• Volunteering
• Working for academic credit (either a 495-numbered course or for a specific course)
• Working for pay, which includes:
  • Hourly “time-slip” work.
  • Stipend-supported work where you receive a fixed amount as a scholarship.
  • Work-study support where the government matches the hourly pay from the faculty.

To identify someone you might be interested in working with, you should begin by checking out the research, scholarship, or creative activities LU faculty members are currently engaged in. In other words, you need to do some of your own research on them.

Talk with others to find the names of possible mentors; for example, ask other students or a professional advisor in your department. Also search the Center for Undergraduate Research’s website listings of “Faculty Research Interest”. (Coming soon)

Go to some of the on-campus “poster sessions” where students are presenting their work. Poster sessions are a powerful opportunity that can enable you to informally interview people about undergraduate research opportunities, learn the names of potential mentors, and get a strong sense for what their work is actually like.

“Be prepared” is more than a general admonition. It is the best way to respectfully approach a person new to you who may turn out to help you develop your career by becoming your mentor.

When you find the name of someone you might be interested in working with, it’s usually best to email or call them as a first step.

• Provide a concise personal introduction.
• State briefly, but clearly, how you are interested in their field, specialty, and particular work. Be sure to have done your homework on what exactly they do! (For example, you can find and carefully read their LU faculty profile online, or you can look up and study the academic articles they have published.)
• Ask if they are interested in getting help on their research projects from an undergraduate researcher.

At this point, if the faculty member and you hit it off to the extent that you decide to meet in person:

• Come prepared by bringing a printed copy of your up-to-date resume to the meeting.
• Be ready to discuss your background, skills, and motivations as they relate to working with the faculty member.
• Know how many hours you can work on a project each week. Bring your class schedule to help with scheduling your specific working times.
• Be specific about the time period in which you want to participate—during the school year, in summer, or both.