Biology Undergraduate Independent Research Course Info

2901/4950 Course Info

Bio 2901 (Freshman 0-29 units/Sophomore 30-59 units)

Bio 4950 (Junior 60-89 units/Senior 90+ units)

Summer Research available by enrolling in BIOL 2903 or BIOL 4952.  Units for these courses will post to a student’s fall schedule and count towards the 21.0 total units available.

Students conducting Independent Research in Neuroscience may enroll in BIOL 2904 or BIOL 4953.  For more information on these courses, please visit the Biology Undergraduate Independent Research in Neuroscience information page.  Students registering for BIOL 2904/4953 should follow the registration instructions outlined HERE.

Independent Research

Course Master: Professor Anthony Smith, Ph.D.

You MUST complete an application for each semester you plan to do research.

You will not be enrolled for continuing research unless you complete an application by the deadlines below.

Deadlines:

Fall/Spring Registration Deadline:  First Friday of the Semester

Summer Registration Deadline: June 1

Your application and research description must be received by this date to be considered for enrollment.

NEW: ALL Bio Independent research Students are required to have HIPAA training. What is HIPAA? If you have not completed HIPAA training please contact Erin Gerrity (gerrity@wustl.edu) and request the HIPAA online training link.

Purpose of Coursework for Students

To provide opportunities for students to gain experience in using the scientific method to resolve problems of scientific importance. This includes acquiring technical skills, reading and evaluating articles in the scientific literature, gaining experience in design and conduct of experiments, learning to evaluate experimental data in relation to existing knowledge, and in expanding skills at communicating results of research both orally and in writing. Students who spend several semesters and one or more summers in the same laboratory often accomplish enough to be co-author of a paper in a scientific journal.

• Pass/Fail Only. Course may not be taken for a letter grade. Maximum 3 units per semester.
• Students average 9-10 hours a week (Fall and Spring) at the bench for 3 units of credit, pass/fail grade option only. Preparation for lab, data reduction and reading requires additional time. Field-based research requires a comparable expenditure of time.
• If a student wants to receive credit, for fewer hours per week in lab (e.g., 6-8 hrs/wk for 2 units), this will require special permission from the mentor to verify that it will still be a useful research experience.
• Some mentors offer monetary payment for the same independent work that earns credit for BIOL 2901/4950. Any financial compensation for research is at the discretion of the faculty mentor, and must be arranged by the mentor or laboratory manager. The Department of Biology does not arrange financial compensation for undergraduate research.
• The mentor should assign a grade of Incomplete (I) if the time commitment agreed upon has not been met. This “I” can be changed to “Pass” by work the student completes after the semester is over. Please consult Anthony Smith at the earliest time any problem is perceived.
• BIOL 2901/4950 is a demanding experience. It should not be treated as an add-on to a full schedule. If total course load is above 16 units, consult your advisor about dropping a course or BIOL 2901/4950. Lab work typically requires two or more big blocks of time (e.g., 4-5 hours) in lab per week, so your schedule will need to be able to accommodate this.
• Students should begin their independent research projects at the start of the semester, which will be prior to their official registration in BIOL 2901/4950 because of the time required to review applications.
• Summer Research is available by enrolling in BIOL 2903 or BIOL 4952. Credits are received in the fall semester following the summer research.   Since the summer is ~10 weeks students are expected to work 14 hrs/week for 3.0 units of credit or audit work.
• To receive academic credit for summer research funded by a BioSURF or other fellowship, a separate application must be submitted by June 1. Summer research is credited using course numbers Bio 2903, Bio 2904 (neuro), Bio 4952, and Bio 4053 (neuro) as appropriate. See the course descriptions in the Biology Handbook for majors.
• Credit cannot be given in the Spring semester for Fall semester research.
• ALL students that have direct contact with patients or human research subjects, are required to submit the following: A Current TB shot and a current flu season shot.

Note: Bio 2901 offers research experiences to students who have completed less than 60 units of credit at the time of enrollment, whereas Bio 4950 provides research experiences in a similar format to students who have completed at least 60 units of credit at the time of enrollment

• Fill out the Pre-application. IMPORTANT: You must have a mentor and short description of your project or lab duties to complete the pre-application.  The pre-application is designed for students who are beginning their first semester of research for credit, or, if a student is beginning research in a new lab.  We use the pre-application to make sure your research is biological, and that your mentor is an approved Biology Undergraduate Independent Research mentor. Continuing students may use the pre-application to request a link to the full application.

Pre-application link

Full Registration Instructions HERE

When your pre-application is approved, you will receive an email containing a link and password to the full application.  Completion of the full application is required for enrollment.

Important: Units earned for summer research post to fall schedules and count towards the 21.0 total units per semester allowed by the College of Arts & Sciences (each unit > 21.0 will cost the student additional tuition). Registration Deadline is June 1.

BIOL 4952 Summer Independent Research (Fall)

Summer research under the supervision of a faculty sponsor. Prerequisites: junior or senior standing and permission of sponsor and the department. Credit/No Credit or Audit grade options; credit to be determined in each case, usually 3 units/summer; may be repeated for credit in different summers. Credits are received in the fall semester following the summer research. If work is to be submitted for Latin honors, see p. 3, Latin Honors Through a Biology Major Program. Arrangements for registration should be completed no later than the end of Summer Session I.  Visit the course information page or this course information page (for Neuroscience Research) for details and registration instructions. 

BIOL 2903 Summer Introduction to Research (Fall)

Summer research under the supervision of a faculty sponsor. Prerequisites: first-year or sophomore standing and permission of sponsor and the department. Credit to be determined in each case, usually 3 units/summer; may be repeated for credit in different summers. Credits are received in the fall semester following the summer research. The application deadline and registration information can be found on the Biology Undergraduate Independent Research course website. Credit/No Credit. Course may not be taken for a letter grade.

Other Summer Research Opportunities

The Washington University Office of Undergraduate Research also offers funding and programs for students interested in undertaking research projects over the summer.  The programs are not for credit.  For more information please visit the Office of Undergraduate Research Funding & Programs page here:

http://undergradresearch.wustl.edu/research-funding