<p>I'm a sophomore who is very interested in spending my summer performing research in a lab. however, the university I attend is far from home. additionally, I have no research experience and a low gpa (3.2) so earning a stipend for housing/a project would be difficult. there's no way I would be accepted for summer research programs. and, I do not have the money for housing for the summer if I were to stay near school. fortunately, I live in the bay area, which has many great schools nearby. so, would it look bad if I spent my summer working in a laboratory at one of these schools rather than the on I attend?</p>
<p>also, how would professors at these schools nearby feel about a student from another university working for them? I know that I would only be able to commit for three months, but I would be willing to work full-time. would it be too bold to ask to be paid, even if it was just a minimum wage salary? how much could I get done working full time for three months when I've never worked in their labs before? sorry for all these questions!!</p>
<p>No, many undergrads do not have the opportunity to do research at their own college. (There’s a reason why the NSF sponsors summer REUs.) So if you can find position with a university lab at a school other than your own–go for it.</p>
<p>As for how a prof will respond to a student not from their own school asking to work for them–that’s going to depend on a number of factors, especially his funding budget. Professors often get work-study funding to pay undergrads–and as a student not enrolled at their university, you won’t be eligible for any of those funds. However, if the profs have funds from other sources (NIH, NSF, university-based grants etc) they may be able to use that money to fund you. I don’t think it’s very likely, but you can always ask…</p>
<p>If you’re willing to work as volunteer in the lab, you’re much more likely to get picked up than if you ask to be paid. (Because honestly, profs really aren’t awash in funding and paying undergrads is really, really low on their list of priorities. Especially if the undergrad is a summer-only visiting student with no immediately useable lab skills.)</p>
<p>But in order to get even volunteer position, you need to be able to sell yourself and your usefulness to the profs you contact. IOW, you need to give them a reason to pick you and not some other student who may stay longer on the project.</p>
<p>I’m not sure what you mean by how much work would you be able to get done in 3 months…if you are looking to gain buckets of mad lab skillz or get a publication credit, it’s isn’t going to happen.</p>
<p>thank you WayOutWestMom, your responses were very helpful. and yeah, I want to work in a lab because I want to gain research experience and learn whether or not it’s a career I might want to pursue further. I want to be able to claim that I was a “research assistant” or something like that for future endeavors as well. if I’m going to be at home I don’t want to sit around doing nothing :P</p>
<p>You stated that you wouldn’t be able to afford paying for housing. I know that at the school that I attend all the departments that I know of subsidize housing by 50% and even 100%. I am only familiar with my school, but I would think that there are other schools that do this for summer research as well. You may not be able to be accepted to larger summer research programs, but I would do some research and apply to lesser known ones. I think most require some research experience, so you might not have a good chance at these programs without some at your school. I think that unless you apply to some type of summer research program or contact profs. early enough, it would be hard to find a paid opportunity.</p>
<p>REU funding provides room & board as well as a minimal hourly wage for undergrads. Some REUs are less competitive than others and most are designed for students who have little to no research experience. </p>
<p>REU programs have varying deadlines. (It depends on the school sponsoring the REU.) Some have deadlines as early as Jan 31; others as late as April 1. You will need to send transcripts, a CV and 2-3 letters of recommendation for each REU you apply for.</p>
<p>NSF has a comprehensive list of summer REUs that is searchable by field (i.e. physics; biomedical engineering; biological sciences; animal sciences). </p>