There are over 4,500 universities in the United States, according to the Office of Research and Graduate Education. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education is responsible for classifying universities and colleges across the United States based on their education and research abilities. However, according to the Carnegie Classification website, only about 2.4 percent of universities are considered to have the highest research activity. Universities with high research activity are considered to be a tier-one research university by providing students and faculty with plenty of research opportunities. Washington State University is one of those universities.
The WSU Vancouver campus provides students the opportunities to conduct their own research. Until recently, research opportunities were provided through the University Scholars Honors program which partners undergraduate students with faculty advisors to create and conduct their own research projects.
The 2018/19 academic year is the first year without a cohort for the honors program, a product of the systemwide spending freeze. However, research opportunities remain available to students. The Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) provides students the chance to emerge in various disciplines of research on campus through a faculty member’s lab. In celebration of scholarly activity campus wide, Research Week took place Oct. 15-20.
The week kicked off with an open house of the Fine Arts lab where student projects were on display throughout the Multimedia building. Faculty from the College of Arts and Sciences were there to talk about research opportunities available to students.
Open labs were conducted throughout the week as a way of peeking student’s interests in research. The Water Chemistry lab was open to students to see the advanced equipment available for students conducting research.
The College of Engineering and Computer Science had an open house for the Nanomaterials and Sensors laboratory. Praveen Sekhar runs the lab and is currently researching the creation of gas sensors with a focus on environmental pollution. During Research Week the Nanomaterials and Sensors Lab displayed modern technology used to engineer minuscule sensors and devices sensors.
WSU Vancouver Proposal Coordinator Lynda Olin helps students obtain grants for their research. Olin also works with faculty members to help fund research they are pursuing.
“What I would recommend to students is that they start with their faculty advisor in their discipline,” Olin said for those students wondering where to start their research journey. The goal of Research Week was to encourage students to develop their own research while at WSU Vancouver. Another display of student conducted research will be held during the spring semester Research Showcase.