Aggie Research Scholars Program Reaches Milestone of 2000 Opportunities
Undergraduates at Texas A&M University have had more than 2,000 opportunities to participate in research thanks to the Aggie Research Scholars program.
A milestone of 2,090 research opportunities have been created for students in just four years since the program’s conception, an accomplishment Dr. Christopher Quick, program founder and professor of Veterinary Physiology & Pharmacology (VTPP) in the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVM), is extremely proud of.
Aggie Research Scholars was established to provide hands-on research experiences to undergraduate students at Texas A&M. Through this program, Quick aimed to introduce undergraduate students to the world of research in a way that mirrors the process of real-world scientists.
Quick’s program follows his “research-intensive community” model, which highlights collaborative exploration. Students are grouped into communities to conduct research projects rather then receiving individual assignments. This model reflects the cooperative nature of the scholarly communities.
These research-intensive communities are formed from groups of undergraduates, graduate students, and post-doctoral students who work together to complete larger and more ambitious projects than they could tackle alone. Such a model emphasizes the importance of diversity and communication in the research world.
The Aggie Research Scholars program is paired with the Aggie Research Leadership program, which trains graduate and postdoctoral students to manage their own research-intensive communities and prepares them for future roles as leaders in research.
The scope of this program has expanded beyond expectation, bringing together Aggies of multiple departments, degrees, and backgrounds with the common goal of discovery.
“This sustained growth shows that opportunities at a land-grant university are not finite resources that must be doled out to a select few,” Quick said. “We have shown that postdocs, grad students, and undergrads can work together to create their own leadership and research opportunities. Our faculty mentors recognize that teaching and research can go hand in hand, and that team-based research is not only an excellent way to teach students, but also is an efficient way to produce research.”
Students interested in the Aggie Research Program can find more information at http://aggieresearch.tamu.edu.
