Roediger says he loves it when a student turns a simple job such as compiling a literature review into a learning opportunity by finding a new piece of research that fits with the topic.
Sometimes, less-than-glamorous duties can lead to big rewards. "You'll earn respect from the lab director if you're willing to do whatever you can to accomplish the task." "There always has to be someone doing the grunt work," Burnett says. You may even do filing and other clerical work, which can seem mundane at times but is necessary to carry out a funded project. As a research assistant, you'll be asked to perform a wide variety of tasks, including literature searches, data entry and statistical analyses. Once you've gotten a feel for your adviser's expectations, exceed them by being dependable, proactive and a good sport, says Kuther. Also, ask about how lab responsibilities are divvied up and how feedback is provided, Pickering suggests. She recommends checking in with your adviser at the beginning of your assistantship to clarify how many hours you'll be working and whether your interests-in specific subject populations or research topics, for example-can be incorporated. Typically, research assistants work about 20 hours per week in the lab and spend more time there during critical research stages, says Western Connecticut State University professor Tara Kuther, PhD, author of "Surviving Graduate School in Psychology: A Pocket Mentor" (APA, 2008). Roediger III, PhD, director of the memory lab at Washington University in St. "Mentors differ in how they get their students' feet wet in the lab," says cognitive psychology professor Henry L. In most labs, you'll have the chance to contribute your own research ideas, but at the beginning of your career, you may simply complete tasks requested by your adviser. But if you get the chance to pick your lab, consider whether you're more interested in pitching in on a large research team working on a grant-funded program or if you'd prefer tackling smaller projects under one main theme, such as memory.
Some RAs are lined up even before you set foot on campus, based on which professor you'll work under.
#LABRAT JOBS HOW TO#
Here's how to make the most of your time as a research assistant:ĭecide what's important to you. "If you want to be a faculty member at any institution other than a two-year community college, you need to have some research base and experience," says Burnett.
#LABRAT JOBS PROFESSIONAL#
It's also crucial for building professional relationships and staying competitive in the academic job market, she adds. The experience can provide practical training in data collection and analysis as well as insight into how scientists generate and test hypotheses.Ī research assistantship is frequently more desirable than a teaching assistantship because it often offers publication and presentation experience, and it may even spark dissertation ideas, says Pickering's counseling psychology colleague Jennifer Burnett. According to the National Opinion Research Center, 56 percent of social science doctoral degree recipients take on research assistantships to fund their educations, and that's not including those students who pursue more informal research roles with faculty. The amount of research experience required for completing a doctoral degree varies, but odds are good that by the end of graduate school, you'll have at least one research assistantship under your belt. "I didn't even know what questions to ask." "My background was in secondary education, so as my lab director talked about ANOVAs and structural equation modeling, my head was spinning and I felt like I was drinking out of a fire hydrant," she recalls.
When Natalie Pickering set out to pursue a doctorate in counseling psychology, the University of Louisville student had no idea what to expect during her first research assistantship.
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