An Independent Study project provides an excellent opportunity
to gain a more intimate understanding of how biological knowledge
is actually discovered. For those of you who are considering a
career in science, this is the best way to discover what it is
like to be involved in research. Fortunately, Penn provides an
abundance of Independent Study opportunities for our undergraduate
Biology Majors.
In general, most students are not in a position to benefit from
an Independent Study project until their Junior or Senior year,
after they have developed a sufficiently strong background through
accumulated course work. However, this does not mean that you
need to wait that long before making arrangements to work in a
research laboratory. Many students have Work Study positions or
volunteer part-time in a research lab starting in their Freshman
or Sophomore years. Such positions can often develop into an Independent
Study project in later years. Also, work in a lab can sometimes
lead to valuable summer employment. Read the following for suggestions
on how to identify an appropriate research sponsor.
independent study
Independent Study may be carried out for credit as Biol 399
or 499 or College 99, but only Biol 399 or 499 can be counted
towards
the major. Each Biol 399 or 499 requires a sponsor or co-sponsor
who is a faculty member in the Biology Department. Biology faculty
often supervise Independent Study course work directly. In other
cases, supervision may be delegated by a Biology Department
co-sponsor
to a faculty member in another department at Penn. For a Biology
faculty member to co-sponsor Independent Study work conducted
outside the Department, it is generally required that the immediate
supervisor’s work be known to the co-sponsor and/or
that the proposed research project lie within the co-sponsor’s
area of expertise. In cases where the proposed supervisor
is outside
of the Biology Department, it is advisable to discuss your proposed
Independent Study with potential Biology Department co-sponsors
as soon as possible. A Biology Department faculty member who
has agreed to co-sponsor a Biol 399 project is committed to
monitor
the student’s progress and to evaluate and grade the final
report. If he/she does not have the immediate competence or
time,
he/she will decline the sponsorship. Note that Biology faculty
are under no obligation to (co-) sponsor Independent Study research,
although many are willing to do so. A student who is unable to
find a co-sponsor within the Biology Department may apply
at The College for credit as College 99, but this does not count
towards the Biology Major.
A final written report is required for all Biology 399/499 courses.
This report is generally expected to take the same form as an
article to be published in a scientific journal (unless other
arrangements are made with the Biology Department sponsor in
advance).
If a Biol 399 student has spent most of the semester working
out methodological problems, it is okay if the paper consists
primarily
of Introduction and Methods, with very limited Results and Discussion
sections. In some cases, a student may devote his or her Independent
Study to preparing a thoughtful review on an important biological
topic, without doing any lab or field research. For further
information
on Independent Study requirements, please see the instructions
on the back of the Biol 399/499 application, which can be obtained
from the Academic Office. If you want to learn more about the
kinds of research projects carried out by previous Biology Majors,
you may want to browse through the file of honors theses written
by previous Biology Majors, available in the Biology Academic
Office (Leidy 102).
Permission to enroll in Biol 399 must always be obtained in
advance. Course selection numbers are only issued after completion
of the
“pink form” (Biol 399 Application for Registration),
which can be obtained at the Biology Department Academic
Office (Leidy 102).
Once a student has completed a Biol 399, he or she is eligible
to take Biol 499, Advanced Independent Study. This is a second
semester of independent study, which requires that the student
carry out a research project of his or her own design. The prerequisite
for Biol 499 is a Biol 399 in the same laboratory as the proposed
499. In rare cases, it may be educationally beneficial for a
student
to switch labs at the end of a Biol 399 and carry out a Biol
499 in a different lab where the student already has some research
experience. If a student has completed a Biol 399 and wishes
to carry out a Biol 499 in a different lab, the student should
prepare
a letter explaining the educational reasons for the proposed
switch in labs and the previous experience that student has
had in the
proposed 499 lab which will allow the student to complete a research
project of his or her own design at a level appropriate for
a
Biol 499. The student should bring this letter to a Biology Department
faculty member, normally the in-department sponsor of his or
her
Independent Study, and the faculty member should indicate his
or her approval or disapproval of this request, with additional
information as appropriate. This letter should be given to the
Undergraduate Chair, who can
then authorize registration in the BIOL 499, if appropriate.
Both Biol 499 and Biol 399 can be counted toward the major requirement
for "4 additional courses", provided that the student's
other two courses for the "4 additional courses" requirement
are both Biology Department courses. If a student wishes to
count
courses from outside the department toward the “4 additional
courses” requirement, then the student may count Biol 399
toward the major and count Biol 499 as an elective.
additional policies and restrictions
- Only one credit unit of Independent Study is allowed per semester.
- An Independent Study student is normally expected to devote
10-20 hours/week to the Independent Study, including reading,
actual research time, discussion with research mentors, and preparing
the required paper.
- Students may not receive Independent Study credit for paid work
(such as a Work Study job). You may, however, carry out a separate
project for Independent Study credit in the same laboratory where
you are working for pay. In such cases, the distinction between
paid work and Independent Study research should be spelled out
clearly in the BIOL 399 application form, and students should
devote approximately 10-20 hours/week of unpaid work to their
Independent Study project.
- Independent Study credit is not given for research done
at institutions other than the University of Pennsylvania.
strategies for finding an independent
study sponsor
Penn provides numerous opportunities for Biology Majors to participate
in research and we recommend that majors take advantage of this
opportunity in order to share in the excitement and challenges
of developing new knowledge, to better understand the processes
by which our understanding of biology advances, and (perhaps)
to discover a challenging career direction. In seeking a suitable
laboratory for Independent Study research, keep in mind that,
in addition to research opportunities in the Department of Biology itself, biological research is
conducted in several hundred laboratories in other departments,
schools, and hospitals within the University community. These
laboratories provide a tremendous resource. As noted above, however,
if you are considering working with a supervisor in a laboratory
outside the Biology Department, you are strongly advised to discuss
this with your departmental advisor as early as possible, to ensure
that you are likely to gain a valuable research experience (not
all labs provide an ideal environment for research training) and
to facilitate identifying a suitable department co-sponsor.
If you have taken a course with a faculty member whom you liked
and you are interested in his/her area of research, you may want
to approach him/her (or email him/her) to ask if a position is
available or to ask if he/she could suggest a faculty sponsor
in the Medical School or elsewhere in the University. If you have
already worked in a lab as a Work Study student, you may be able
to develop an Independent Study research project in this lab (but
note that work for which you are paid is not eligible for Independent
Study credit). You are also welcome to contact your Biology Department
advisor for suggestions. Other students who are already involved
in research may also be able to provide advice.
In addition to these personal contacts, you may want to use the
list of Suggested Sponsors for BIOL 399/499 Independent Studies,
which is available in the Department of Biology Academic
Office (Leidy 102). We also suggest that you consult the web
sites listed below.
Finally, a couple of closing words of advice. First, note that
many laboratories at Penn occasionally take on bright, motivated
students who are interested in gaining some laboratory research
experience as volunteers. You need not restrict your search to
advertised openings! Second, as with any job search, you should
prepare yourself before contacting your prospective supervisor.
Look into what kind of research is conducted in the laboratory,
and be prepared to explain why this work is of interest to you;
have a clear idea of your goals and the time that you are willing
to commit to a research project (normally 10-20 hours/week for
a Biol 399 or 499).
links
The following websites may be useful for students interested
in finding a research position with a University of Pennsylvania
faculty member, as a volunteer, Work Study, or Independent Study.
symposium on undergraduate research
in biology (SURB)
This symposium provides an opportunity for undergraduates to
present their research to an audience of Biology faculty and fellow
students. SURB is organized around a poster session -- a format
of research reporting that national biological societies are increasingly
adopting. SURB is usually scheduled on the first reading day of
the spring semester. Any students who have completed a Biology
research project are invited to apply to present a poster. All
Biology students are invited to come view the posters and discuss
the research project with their fellow students.
|
 |
|
Undergraduate Program