Binghamton University’s student researchers shared their stories and advice on Wednesday for how their peers can get involved in various Harpur College fields.
The “Harpur Research Panel,” held in the University Union, was organized by Holly Horn, the assistant director of the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development, and Zoe Liebmann, the senior student associate for Harpur Edge.
Horn and Liebmann said they chose the five panelists from a pool of undergraduate students who were either known researchers at the University, in the Binghamton University Scholars Program or in the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH).
Panelists Che Sun, Anita Raychawdhuri, Rujul Patel, Anna Brooks and Arianna Gorkowitz shared how they were able to approach their professors and secure research positions within different fields at the University. They also discussed what resources, including those found in the library and in the undergraduate research office, are available on campus for researching.
“Some students need to do research, and that is their high-impact learning experience,” Horn said. “Many times people think that research is only going to be in the sciences, but we really have people from across the disciplines. We’ve got humanities, social sciences and science majors here to show students what they can do.”
Che Sun, a sophomore majoring in economics, started his research in the second semester of his freshman year. Working with philosophy professor Nicole Hassoun, Sun is looking to make prescription drug information more accessible for consumers.
Sun said that the most important point he has learned from his research is to never be afraid to ask for help and to use the resources offered by the University and the technology that is already readily available.
“The library has helped me a lot with my research,” Sun said. “There’s this one great thing about the library at Binghamton: that we have an inter-library loan option, so if Binghamton’s library doesn’t have the book or electronic copy, you can borrow it from another library in the area. I’ve used that a lot because it really helps with my research when comparing the paper styles or referencing.”
Gorkowitz, a senior majoring in integrative neuroscience, is researching infant visual perception and attention and the media’s influence on infant memory. To obtain his research positions, he contacted professors that he didn’t even have class with as well as some professors outside of BU at Cornell University.
“I went through the online staff list of people in the integrative neuroscience department and then I looked at all of their research because most of the professors talk about their research online, and I was really interested in my lab,” Gorkowitz said. “So I contacted the professor, and he got back to me, and that’s how it started.”
Mary Kate Kelly, a junior double-majoring in biology and English, said she came to the panel to see if she could get ideas on how she could get research positions for next summer.
“Reaching out to professors doesn’t seem to be as intimidating as I previously thought,” Kelly said. “Personally, I get really nervous about that, but from the panelists’ suggestions, I’m going to go onto the website and see what interests me.”