Students are vital to research here

Research helps undergraduates discover which subjects interest them as scholars, allows them to gain the critical skills necessary to enter graduate school, and helps underscore the real-life applications of classroom teachings.

Funding Your Work

There are many resources available for funding undergraduate research and creative activities.  This is a list of those with broad applicability, but more resources are available within specific disciplines.  

Summer Research Opportunities

Consider submitting a proposal to the SDSU Undergraduate Research Program, open to SDSU students/faculty. Undergraduates can earn a salary while they work on a project over the summer and during the academic year.

SDSU colleges, centers and departments also run research programs for undergraduates on a semester-by-semester, summer, or multi-year basis. Ask faculty or staff in your Student Success Center about these opportunities.

National organizations like the Council on Undergraduate Research list opportunities as well. If you are willing to live elsewhere during the summer, you can search for summer research opportunities at other universities. Search terms can include "summer research," "research experiences for undergraduates," "REU," or "summer undergraduate research fellowship." 

Presenting Your Work

This is a list of opportunities for undergraduates to present their research or showcase their creative activities.  These opportunities are relatively close to SDSU and are expected to be friendly to undergraduate presenters.

One good source for conferences friendly to undergraduate presenters is regional conferences of large professional organizations.  Students should ask peers in their same area and faculty mentors for ideas.

Funding for undergraduate student travel to conferences can be difficult to come by, but the page on Funding your research has a few good tips/leads.

On-Campus Resources and Events

Looking for undergraduate research opportunities? Access our list of current research opportunities for SDSU students both on and off of campus. 

Trying to figure out where you want to go in life? There are many fabulous resources available at the SDSU Career Center.

The University Library has lots of how-to guides for getting started in research with library resources.

Doing research with humans?  You might need Institutional Review Board approval (check with your faculty mentor) - and if you do, you can go here if you need CITI training to be authorized to work with human participants.

Doing research with animals? You might need IACUC approval (check with your faculty mentor).

Need specific help with various aspects of your work?