<p>While reading on here, I see that a lot of students have participated in research projects. First of all, what are they? How can i get involved in a research project? Also, when do most students participate in these? Thanks.</p>
<p>Well I did my own study on the effects of stinging nettle (Urtica dioica to be more specific) on the size of renal calculi (in vitro) and basically I just talked to some professors at local schools and my science teacher who had some equipment, kept in contact with the professors to plan out my methodology and then I after school I worked in the lab and relayed my results to my mentors. So I guess to answer your question “how to get involved”, it’s best if you do some research and find a topic that interest you and something that you would like to test, email some professors in the local area asking the question and posing a research study. And then go from there, but be prepared you’re going to have to do about 98% of the work and it takes a lot of effort to balance everything out. But the mere experience of going through the actual research process (the ups and the downs) was something that I benefited from the most.</p>
<p>I have done my own research project and it has been very successful. I am part of a selective research seminar program at my school, but I can give you advice that I got from that course. I don’t know how much time you have, but it took me three years.</p>
<p>Stage 1:
Learn about steps of the scientific method and do some sample projects to get the gist of what research is. (my instructor called these two projects science 1 and 2. I did my science 1 on the effect of spices on yeast activity and my science 2 on the various types of mouthwash and their effect on bacteria inhibition. I presented these to a group to get experience with presentation).</p>
<p>Stage 2:
Find numerous articles across a variety of disciplines that interest you. Once you find a good amount (say 50) narrow them down week by week until you arrive at something you want to research yourself. This should all be in popular periodicals.</p>
<p>Stage 3:
Move from periodicals to journals and become a master in your discipline. Your learning should grow exponentially in a short amount of time at this stage.</p>
<p>Stage 4:
Once you have become a professional, your are qualified to enlist the help of a professional mentor (preferably a university professor/researcher near you who appeared in one of the professional journals you read in stage 3) since you don’t have the resources to do research.</p>
<p>Stage 5:
Finding a mentor is hard, but you can work at it. Realise that they are busy professionals and you can get referred from one researcher who is too busy to another who can take on a commitment (happened in my case). After finding a mentor, you can reach an agreement on where, when, and what you will be researching. </p>
<p>Stage 6:
The what is the hardest. Usually one of two things happens:
-mentor Lumps you into an existing project
-you have an idea of a novel project and your mentor guides you on how to improve it or what to do</p>
<p>Stage 7:
After collecting data, you should write up a paper and prepare a presentation with the guidance of your mentor. This is the record of your research and it can be a very impressive undertaking for a high school student. Practice your presentation skills as you will need them should you choose to enter competitions which leads me to</p>
<p>Step 8:
Enter your project in competitions. This could be very lucrative scholarshipwise, and it could be a major tipping factor in admissions.
These are the major ones you should look in to:
-siemens: deadline in October
-intel science talent search: deadline in november
-junior sciences and humanities symposium: deadline in January</p>
<p>I typed this on a phone and I am too lazy to check it. Ignore all of the errors.</p>
<p>I hope I helped you, and although this process may seem daunting, research an amazing thing to get involved in. Speaking from experience, you will be amazed how many doors it opens. Good luck with your future endeavors!</p>