<p>I feel like I'm just too slow, dumb, and incapable compared to other members in my lab.
I'm not worth being a research assistant.
I feel sorry to other members and my PI for deciding to work in the lab in the first place, because I really don't know what's going on almost all the time and I don't have interest in my project or other research going on in the lab.
But it's too late to quit now.
I have no problem sucking it up for the rest of the summer, but I'm afraid of getting embarrassed because of my poor performance in the lab.
Is there a way to become better and be less incapable?
Before starting research for the first time this summer, I thought I would want to end up publishing papers in my undergrad career, but now that I actually am into research, I realize I won't have what it takes to be like such rare undergrads who get to publish during undergrads. I'm not even understanding my project very well or making any progress; I'm just getting nowhere. It may look ridiculous at this point to even think about wanting to publish a paper.
I'm really depressed.. :(
I just feel I'm not fit for or have the right brain for research.</p>
<p>I don't know if I have anything particularly helpful to say, but this is exactly the reason why graduate schools want students to have prior research experience.</p>
<p>The best way to be successful doing research is to have a strong desire to be doing it. If you really want to understand what you're doing better, talk to your PI and make an effort to figure things out. Effort is really the biggest thing. Keep pushing forward, and if you're really doing your best it'll show. That doesn't mean you'll get publishable results though. As far as i know, getting published is more luck than skill. Getting into the right lab at the right time is a bigger factor than knowing what you're doing. My PI just published a paper, and the only undergrad co-author had only been in the lab for 6 months when it got submitted, and he did very little intellectually for the project. I've been in the lab for two full years now (including summers) and I'm still not even close to a paper, and I've been progressing my own project fairly independently. Bottom line is that undergrad research is more about learning how to be a scientist than publishing papers.</p>
<p>I am sure you are not too stupid to do research, but the summer has just started and you are new to a lab where everyone else has some level of familiarity and comfort. You probably need to spend time learning about your research topic and related material. Then perhaps ask for guidance since you are new. Try to determine short-term goals for yourself. Keep smiling...it will most likely get better as time goes on! :)</p>
<p>Don't give up so easily. Put the effort into it and push forward. Don't be afraid to ask questions if you don't know, and ask if there are any papers (background material) that they recommend for you to read. I've had the same feeling my first time doing research, but I kept putting the effort into it and ended up liking it.</p>
<p>A professor at my school once said that undergraduate inexperience is both an advantage and disadvantage. Our disadvantage is our lack of knowledge, which makes a project seem overwhelming. It also makes undergraduates perceive that they will not make meaningful contributions to the project. However, he argued that our inexperience was also an advantage in that we had a "fresh eyes" meaning we were "unbiased" when approaching a problem. By "unbiased" he meant that sometimes the researchers have read countless papers on the subject, which could cause them to overlooked some possibilities. This means that sometimes undergrads are able to come up with some creative solutions. Maybe not a significant contribution, but at least something.</p>
<p>Hey, relax. :)</p>
<p>No worries; I don't know about everyone else here who was involved in undergraduate science research, but it was a good 2 or 3 months before I actually had any idea of what I was doing. Have you considered that this might not be a project you're excited about working on? That's not to say I'd suggest rushing out before you get a feel for it, but if you go to a school with a sufficiently large department in your discipline, there are probably enough research opportunities around that you shouldn't have to settle for something you aren't at least somewhat genuinely interested in.</p>
<p>I'd take a look around and see if there's anything that seems cooler to you -- if you know you want to stay where you are, just sit down with your PI and voice these concerns to him. Just tell him/her you want to talk about the science behind your research so you can better understand what you're doing.</p>
<p>And yeah, research as an undergrad, from what I've seen, is more about getting experience and a feel for what conducting research is like. It's true that an undergrad here and there is able to publish a paper, but this is enough of a deviation from the norm that I wouldn't think there's an enormous pressure to get published as an undergrad. </p>
<p>Just think about what you really want to be doing -- you're still an undergrad, and there's plenty of time to get yourself to wherever you want to be, no matter what year. (The PI in the lab I do research in was an undergrad for 7 years; he didn't decide to pick up a second major in the field he's currently a professor of until his 4th year of school.) Heck, I'm in my 3rd year, and I've got another 2 (at least) before I graduate, but that extra time now is much preferable to getting out and realizing I'm not where I want to be at.</p>
<p>What field are you in?</p>
<p>Do you really think that way, or is there someone in your lab who wants you to think that way?</p>
<p>If it is the first, then it's fine. You just discovered that research isn't for you. And better now than after you're in a grad program.</p>
<p>But often, there are people in research labs who are insecure and feel better by making the new kids feel terrible. There's someone in my lab who consistently tried to make me feel like an idiot. The person got very insecure when I started to figure my way around the lab. And when I understood more about what I was doing and didn't need his help too much, he went to the extent of trying to jeopardize my experiments. </p>
<p>So identify which of the two it is, and then make your next move accordingly.</p>
<p>sincerely don't worry about it. I've worked in the same lab for 3 years and EVERYONE i've ever met that came into it spent 2-3 months feeling completely inadequate. Labs do very specific research there's no way a general education could prepare you. Trust me, it's fine to feel that way but don't let it get to you, it's not you. Also... there are a certain types of researchers on constant power trips intending to make you feel inadequate - just brush it off. good luck, and have some fun and just get out of the research experience what you can.</p>