How hard it is for an undergraduate student at Cornell Arts and Sciences to get a research opportunity in physics?
Before my son applied he spoke with two graduates (one is editor at Wired) and they both said freshmen can just ‘ask’ and be involved in any project/study.
My daughter is currently a Junior (Senior next school year) and she’s a Research Assistant this semester. It can be competitive. They interview applicants just like getting a job/internships. But most of her friends are research assistants at some point since Freshman. You just need to seek for them.