Expanding Undergraduate Research Experience: Opportunities, Challenges, and Lessons for the Future

Research is a core activity at universities, but the largest group of people at most universities—the undergraduate students—frequently graduate without scientific research experience. In this case study, we highlight challenges to engage undergraduates in the research process and focus on three key issues: student interest, timing, and access. We then report on our experience of preparing and rolling-out a research internship program designed to overcome these three hurdles. We target: (1) students not interested in a career in research, (2) lower-division students with little to no classroom research experience, and (3) students who are underrepresented in economics and/or STEM based on their race/ethnicity or gender identity. We candidly discuss the benefits, costs, hurdles, constraints, and successes of the program’s first cohort and make recommendations for others interested in curating similar programs at their own institutions.