If your HS student has worked in a research lab/ used one for a science fair project

[angela in ohio]

could you answer a few questions for me?

 

We met a professor who is director of an engineering research lab at a large university, and one of the projects there is something dd has been very interested in for a few years. Dh casually asked if they would let dd come do anything in the lab, and he said he would take her as a high school research intern if she applied with her resume and it was okay. So she did that, and they accepted her. He will be giving her several projects to research independently, and then they will choose one for her to go in depth. They all support the main research project the grad students she met are doing.

 

I'm not sure what to tell dd. I never set foot in a lab when I was going through college. What should she know to make a good impression?

 

Also, I'm hoping to help her spin this into some type of science fair project/entry, too. That was what we were originally asking about when they offered her the internship. I've seen suggestions that high school science fair projects should be college level original research, and I never thought that would be possible, and I'm not really sure what the process is. Any book suggestions? I know where the science fair is for our area and how to register, but not how to teach her to present a project at this level.

[lewelma]

Hi Angela,

 

I have not been in your situation directly, but I did work in an immunology research lab as a high school student, run the home schoolers' science fair in my city, and have attended the Regional science fair. All this to say, that I may be able to piece together some advice for you.

 

First of all, congrats. I think it is difficult to get into a research position at such a young age and I think it will be an excellent experience for your dd. I am not sure, however, that you will want to spin off the experience into a science fair project, although I could be wrong. Here is some of my thinking.

 

1) It takes quite some time to build up the required skills in a lab to actually do any decent research. Let her know that the learning curve will be steep. She should ask for material to read at home.

 

2) You will need to talk to the researcher she will be working under. Having her run the techniques/experiments to help the grad students is one thing, but doing her own research is another. It would take quite a bit of the researcher's time to guide her through her own research that would then produce an independent project able to be presented at a science fair. It really depends on the researcher (talk to him/her) and on the restrictions of the science fair (rules about independence).

 

3) If it can be spun off into a science fair project, make sure you follow the rules/guidelines (they can be very pedantic). Also, the higher level projects will have quite a bit of statistics in them (depending on the field), and statistics takes a bit of time to comprehend. She should start right away on understanding any math that might be required that she has not already studied.

 

4) Think about whether your dd wants/needs a science fair project spin off from this experience. Working in a real science lab might be enough both for her resume and for her working knowledge of science. Think clearly about what she will gain from a science fair project. It might just be making a poster, which she could do anyway. A science fair project is often used to get students to research a question. If she is in a real research lab she is already researching a question.

 

5) When I was young and worked in a lab, it seemed quite a fine line to be not too shy and not too bold. It was a challenge to feel like I was fitting in and useful rather than just taking everyone's time. I also made mistakes, like infecting the bacterial colonies with virus, that were embarrassing. She needs to understand that this can happen to anyone and is likely to happen more to her because she is new to research. I think that the maturity issue will be front and center for her, which is why I would be careful with a science fair spin off unless her research advisor is fully on board with the extra effort that will be required of him to make it happen.

 

Hope this helps. Good luck and congratulations,

 

Ruth in NZ

[Gwen in VA]

Real research on a high school resume can be a "golden ticket", so congrats to your dd!

[angela in ohio]

Hi Angela,

 

I have not been in your situation directly, but I did work in an immunology research lab as a high school student, run the home schoolers' science fair in my city, and have attended the Regional science fair. All this to say, that I may be able to piece together some advice for you.

 

That is helpful; thank you! I'm feeling good that I got her signed up for AP Stats for next year, so we have that covered. I'm taking an advance stats class in the fall, so I should be able to help her, too. She already has the background skills except for one of the programming languages, and she is working on that right now. The professor stressed how much independence she would have; how all of her projects would be self-contained but peripheral to the main research. I get the impression that she will be trying out a lot of possibilities, then find one that might be helpful, and ideally it would then show up in the main project. He's already on board for a science fair project, because we asked him about that first, and she's excited to present her research. She will be doing the usual poster presentations already, I think, and she has done that for her robotics team.

 

They had a high school student for a few years, but he moved on to college, and she will have a similar set-up to his, so they are used to students. I think the research will be enough, with everything else she has, to spin into a great admissions resume, but she has always wanted to do a science fair project.

 

I will talk to her about the mistake aspect. She does get a bit upset about letting people down or making mistakes.

 

Thank you again, good things to think through...

[angela in ohio]

Real research on a high school resume can be a "golden ticket", so congrats to your dd!

 

:D That's what I'm hoping. She just wants a chance to "play" with the project, but I'm thinking of all the doors opening if things go well. ;)

[JanetC]

I have a CD full of hand-outs from a high school teacher about how to do a science fair project. I'll PM you and if you send me your email address, I'll send you the PDFs.

 

I have some other manuals, with more details, etc, but these are pretty easy to start with.

 

--Janet

 

EDIT: I tried to PM you, but it didn't work. If you want the handouts, please PM me.

Edited April 15, 2012 by JanetC

[Candid]

I think you should also talk to her about the basics of good job type behavior. She needs to be dependable. Although her projects will be hers alone, I'm betting they will also contribute to the overall project so she needs to work on them consistently, be up front ahead of time about how much time she has to give, if she runs into snags balance solving them on her own with working with the team to make sure she doesn't get behind the schedule.

 

She'll also want to both dress and comport herself appropriately while she is at the lab and so forth.

[angela in ohio]

I have a CD full of hand-outs from a high school teacher about how to do a science fair project. I'll PM you and if you send me your email address, I'll send you the PDFs.

 

I have some other manuals, with more details, etc, but these are pretty easy to start with.

 

--Janet

 

EDIT: I tried to PM you, but it didn't work. If you want the handouts, please PM me.

 

Oh, thank you! I will PM you; my PM box was full because I always forget to check it. :D

[Pegasus]

 

I'm not sure what to tell dd. I never set foot in a lab when I was going through college. What should she know to make a good impression?

 

 

This is based on my experience as an undergrad lab assistant:

 

#1) Safety - hopefully there will be some formal orientation to the lab and the safety procedures. they should be followed all the time, even when not convenient

 

#2) Reliability - show up on time, every time, no excuses.

 

#3) Ask questions - make sure your DD is confident enough to ask questions and not try to pretend she understands. If she's told to do something, she needs to be able to say "I haven't been trained on that yet. Can you show me how to do it?" The flip side of this, of course, is to listen and pay close attention.

 

Congrats to your DD on this wonderful opportunity!

 

Pegasus