UMaine Introduces New Center for Undergraduate Research
Contact: Aimee Dolloff, (207) 581-3777
Nancy Hall (207) 581-3260
ORONO, Maine — A new program at the University of Maine is specifically designed to facilitate and enhance research and creative achievement opportunities for undergraduate students.
The Center for Undergraduate Research (CUGR) has set out to develop a database of research and creative projects at UMaine that are open to undergraduates, matching faculty and students by projects and interests. The center is located at 124 Alumni Hall.
UMaine realizes that the opportunity to work on research projects as an undergraduate makes a student stand out to potential employers and institutions.
“For many students, research provides an opportunity for a mentor-mentee relationship different from a teacher-student relationship,” CUGR Director Nancy Hall said. “In that context, the learning is invaluable. It’s something I wish for all students.”
Advancing undergraduate research with CUGR’s leadership is one of 12 objectives that are part of UMaine’s Strategic Plan.
“We will build on UMaine’s strengths as the state’s leading research university, taking advantage of the hundreds of faculty and graduate students involved in research and creative projects who can teach and mentor undergraduate researchers,” said Hall, who is also an associate professor of communication sciences and disorders.
Undergraduate students being involved in research projects is nothing new at UMaine, but CUGR will help raise the visibility of the work already being done while providing an easily accessible database for students and advisers who want to participate.
The idea is to allow students to hone their abilities to communicate and put ideas together, to organize and write, to investigate and to push themselves to continue to ask questions and seek answers.
And students aren’t the only ones who will benefit from the center.
“For me as a faculty member, the most incredible process to see is the evolution of learning by a student involved in research or creative experience,” Hall said. “We’re looking at tomorrow’s scholars. The more we invest today, the better off we’ll be.