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The supervised research courses are offered to allow undergraduates to gain experience in research activities at a level of involvement and responsibility below that of the Senior Thesis. Students participate for one or more semesters in faculty or graduate student research , performing various aspects of the research under close supervision. The time, duties, and grading procedure for the course are negotiated between the student and the faculty member. Typically, the student works on ongoing projects, but after some experience may be able to propose projects of his/her own design.
Supervised research may be used as Psychology Concentration Elective or Free Elective credit. Students planning to go to graduate school in psychology should seriously consider either taking Supervised Research or doing a Senior Thesis. Students planning to apply to research-oriented graduate programs should choose the Senior Thesis.
Two levels of supervised research are offered, PSY2413:Research Experience and PSY4413,4:Supervised Research.
The Research Experience (PSY2413; one credit) course is designed to give undergraduates early exposure to research and applied activities by placing students in ongoing faculty or gradudate student programs. Students participate in these activities as observers or as assistants, depending on the type of activity and the skills of the student. Approximately three hours per week of contact with the activity are required and contact is scheduled according to the needs of the program and the student's availability. Despite the name of the course, some activities are related to applied psychology or direct service rather than to research in the usual sense. The only prerequisite is PSY1411 Introductory Psychology. It may be repeated.
Supervised Research is designed for high immersion in research conducted by a faculty member or the student. A paper is required to receive credit for the course. The prerequisite is PSY3412 Research Methods. It can be taken as PSY4413 and as PSY4414.
Procedure:
1. Find a faculty member to work with. You may be working in his/her own research program, or in a thesis project that he is directing. For Research Experience, the undergrad chair will probably arrange this for you.
2. Ask him/her to complete the Undergrad Supervised Research Arrangements form and have it signed as required.
Deadline: You must present a signed Undergrad Supervised Research Arrangements Form to the undergraduate program by the end of the second week of classes, or you will be removed from the course.
3. At the end of the semester, the supervisor of the research should complete the Student Evaluation Form and the student should complete the Project Evaluation Form. These two forms should be given to the undergraduate chair by the end of the last week of classes.
4. Supervised Research students must turn in a witten document, as described in the Arrangements Form, by the end of the last week of classes.
School of Psychology, Florida Tech
150 W. University Blvd.
Melbourne, FL 32901
Phone: 674-8104
FAX 674-7105
Contact: William K. Gabrenya Jr., Chair, Undergraduate Programs gabrenya@fit.edu |
