Undergraduate Research FAQ

Point of Contact: 

Prof. Ed VanKeuren, Director of Undergraduate Studies,erv@georgetown.edu.

Philosophy of research:

Carrying out an independent project, typically within a research group in the department. The work includes a clear formulation of a specific aspect that will be studied to advance the chosen research field, the planned strategy to carry out the investigation, the execution of the planned strategy or an explanation for changes to the planned strategy and the description of the results. The research work will be documented with a thesis.

How to get started:

The DUS talks to students about research already in their first day at Georgetown University during the orientation. We have a webpage dedicated to research for undergraduates: https://physics.georgetown.edu/new-research-for-undergraduates/.

How to get connected with a faculty mentor:

Through Department Research Fair events.

Earning credit for undergraduate research:

We have a senior Independent research class. One semester with thesis is required, but most students take it for two semesters and give a public presentation of their research at the end of the senior year.

Getting paid for research:

There are some summer grants for undergraduates, e.g. NASA DC Space grant or occasional summer funding for undergraduates in research grants of individual PIs. The department has a dedicated summer Hichwa fellowship for undergraduates, https://physics.georgetown.edu/hichwa-fellowship/. Also the research website provides links to other GU or external summer research funding for undergraduate students.

Thesis or capstone research:

Students conduct research for their theses.