How to become a Lab Rat
If you are interested in becoming a research
assistant, please contact Dr. Shears. If you have any questions regarding our
experiences within the laboratory, please feel free to contact any of the
laboratory assistants. (Can be found on the Researchers page). If you have any basic questions about being a lab assistant or about anything else on the website, use the form at the bottom of the page.
Requirements
Duties as a Research Assistant:
As a research assistant, you are responsible for a variety of tasks over the course of the semester. Here is a list of some of the things that we do throughout the year:
Opportunities
Working in the Cognitive Science Laboratory is challenging, but also extremely rewarding. Being a research assistant allows you the opportunity to make a unique connection with Dr. Shears, who acts as mentor for the laboratory, classes, and your future career in psychology. Most often times the work conducted in the laboratory results in presenting at professional conferences. This is a truly unique experience for undergraduates allowing one to be exposed to the professional world, opportunities to network, and more importantly expose one to the reality of research. As the laboratory provides research assistants with strengths in computer programs such as Direct Rt, Microsoft Excel, and SPSS, it provides students with an opportunity to piece together what is taught in lecture classes. It provides a safe environment to explore your own questions within psychology, and begs you to ask more. If you are interested in becoming a research assistant or have any questions about personal experiences please contact any of the current researchers.
Requirements
- Psychology Major
- Cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher
- Informal interview with current researchers
- Formal interview with Dr. Shears
- Year long commitment (3 credits per semester)
- 10 hours a week in lab
Duties as a Research Assistant:
As a research assistant, you are responsible for a variety of tasks over the course of the semester. Here is a list of some of the things that we do throughout the year:
- 8 am Lab Meeting every Monday
- Data Collection.
- Running participants through a variety of experiments
- Formatting data using Direct RT and Microsoft Excel
- Use SPSS to analyze data
- Create and present posters at professional conferences
- Experiment Design
- Literature reviews
Opportunities
Working in the Cognitive Science Laboratory is challenging, but also extremely rewarding. Being a research assistant allows you the opportunity to make a unique connection with Dr. Shears, who acts as mentor for the laboratory, classes, and your future career in psychology. Most often times the work conducted in the laboratory results in presenting at professional conferences. This is a truly unique experience for undergraduates allowing one to be exposed to the professional world, opportunities to network, and more importantly expose one to the reality of research. As the laboratory provides research assistants with strengths in computer programs such as Direct Rt, Microsoft Excel, and SPSS, it provides students with an opportunity to piece together what is taught in lecture classes. It provides a safe environment to explore your own questions within psychology, and begs you to ask more. If you are interested in becoming a research assistant or have any questions about personal experiences please contact any of the current researchers.