To: Anyone Interested in Doing Research
Subject: How do I find someone to work with?
Date: November 9th, 2021
After learning that I had been accepted into the McNair program, my next step was to start the process of finding a mentor. First I took a look at the UWEC Psychology department faculty list. This was a great starting tool for me because it highlighted many professor's research interests along with what current research projects they had going on. From there, I took a bit of time to email a professor who I had already knew my face and who was working on something I was interested in as well. Although it was a bit nerve wracking to send an email out of the blue, here are some ideas I included that made the task a little less daunting:
1) Introducing myself to give the professor a small idea of who I am and letting them know I was recently accepted into the McNair program.
2) Bringing up some of my interests and how they connect to the professor's.
3) Asking if they have any available times to talk more about their research.
One thing that worried me was that I had no strong connections to any of the professors I had taken classes with so far, so who was I going to choose?
I took the time to meet up with a few professors I previously knew and some that I had no relationship with at all. After chatting and getting to know what each person was interested in researching over the next two years, I sat down and thought about what I really wanted in a mentor.
It came down to choosing someone who was willing to give me the right amount of support and guidance during my time as a McNair scholar, but who would also give me some freedom to create a project that I was really interested in. Additionally, I wanted my mentor to be someone who I got along with well, and that was indicated by the person who I had the most interesting discussions with during out short introductory meetings. My mentor is someone who I felt was willing to take the time to know me as a person, was genuinely interested in hearing my ideas, and who I felt started the most significant & memorable relationship over the 30 minute chat we had.
After the long time it took to make my decision, I let the professor know that I was interested in having them as my mentor if they were willing to take that on. Even though it was awkward and a lot of work at some points, I am glad I took the time to find the right mentor for me.
People-searching can all be applied to any scenario, really. Whether looking for a job, scoping for a professor for graduate research, or gathering people for a community project; the people you work with have a huge impact on how your work turns out.
From: Cameron
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