Mentoring undergraduates on research requires different skills that mentoring doctoral students. See below for some of the considerations about why to mentor, as well as tips on how to recruit, mentor equitably, and support students in pursuing graduate school.
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Considering mentorship
- What are the benefits of working with undergrads?
- What institutional structures support undergrad research?
- Should I allow students to volunteer as research assistants?
- How can I obtain funding to support summer research with undergrads?
- Is mentoring undergrads valued in computing research?
- Can graduate students help promote computing research?
Recruiting students
- How can I recruit undergraduates from my own department?
- How can I recruit undergraduates from other schools?
- How should I pitch my research to undergraduates?
- What are some good questions to ask when interviewing prospective research assistants?
Effective mentorship
- What is effective undergraduate research mentorship?
- What should I do before new undergraduate research assistants start?
- Should I have undergraduates work independently or as a group?
- Should I let students choose their own research problem or choose a problem for them?
- Should students work on a single problem or multiple problems?
- How should I set expectations for undergraduate research assistants?
- How often should I meet my undergraduate research assistants?
- How can I help students learn to read and write research papers?
- How can I help students navigate the literature?
- How can I help students to present their research?
- Where I can find travel funding for undergraduate researchers?
- I’d like to recognize my student’s work. Are there awards?
- How can I help students connect with other researchers?
Helping with grad school applications
- How can I encourage students to consider applying to graduate school?
- What resources are available for presentations to undergraduates about graduate school?
- How can I help my students decide whether to apply to graduate school?
- How can I write an effective recommendation letter?
- How can I help my students prepare graduate school applications?