<p>I noticed that people have done independent research without help from any help from professors, instructors, etc. What exactly are the steps to conducting independent research? Do you just choose a topic you like and do research on it? Do you have to create a hypothesis or outline of what you are going to do? What exactly do you do while researching? Take notes? Publish a paper?</p>
<p>What exactly are the steps to conducting independent research? Sorry if I'm overwhelming you with too many questions, but I'd really appreciate input from those of you who have done research by themselves or know the necessary steps.</p>
<p>Nobody actually does research independently. However, you can propose a topic and question, seek support from your school, and proceed under the guidance of a faculty member. If the research is good enough, you can present at a conference or even publish (jointly).</p>
<p>Cornell funds such proposals if approved, for example.</p>
<p>IMO it's a bad idea to do research without the guidance of a professor or other knowledgeable person. You're flying blind so to speak. You need to be reasonably sure of two things before you begin a research project:
1. What you are researching is not already known and/or in the literature
2. Your background is sufficient for you to make a meaningful contribution
It can be difficult to come up with a topic that fits both of these criteria. Why not seek the input of someone more knowledgeable in the field. </p>
<p>The general procedure for conducting research is:
1. Pick a suitable topic
2. Develop a hypothesis and a means for testing it
3. Gather the data necessary to test your hypothesis
4. Analyze it
5. Arrive at a conclusion
You should write a report which documents all of these things. </p>
<p>Correct me if I'm wrong, but your question seems to be more along the lines of "How do I document the fact that I did research?". The paper that you write does this. The problem is that your paper doesn't automatically have credibility. It could be total crap, and colleges don't want to wade through it to find out. That's why it's helpful to have a mentor of some sort of who can vouch for you. Having your paper published makes it even more credible.</p>
<p>Independent research always has guidance. That said, the specific requirements for independent research somewhat vary depending on the school. If it's any indication, Princeton's "independent work" consists of defining a question to be investigated and the data required to address the problem, creating an approach to solving the problem, and then presenting your findings in "a professional manner". More specifically, you'll likely be developing research plans, writing proposals, conducting research, and analyzing data.</p>
<p>The topic you choose will have to be approved by someone who oversees your independent research. A hypothesis/outline would be a proposal, which requires that you have an idea of what you're doing before you start tinkering. While you research, you set up experiments, run them, collect data, analyze data, etc. Notes are part of this process. You will have to write a thesis or something similar at the end to conclude your project, but it probably won't be published in a scientific journal unless it's cutting edge research or done with a professor.</p>