Joining Research Labs FAQ

We welcome all students, even non-majors, to apply to be in psychology research labs. The main criteria are an enthusiasm for learning, motivation to learn about the topics, and interest in working with the team. Having had a background in the lab’s research area, such as through classes taught by the faculty member, can be helpful but is not required.

Check the Faculty Research Labs page or specific lab websites for information on when faculty are accepting. Also look out for emails from faculty who may advertise that they are looking for new members via the psych interest lists. Some professors recruit yearly in the Spring, while others do so at other times or ad-hoc as needed.

Apply to labs you have genuine research interest in. If you’re not sure if you’re interested in a particular lab or not, try taking relevant courses with that professor or other related faculty before applying. You should also look through the lab websites listed on the Faculty Research Labs page.

While not usually required, taking courses with the professor running the lab before applying is helpful both for giving you necessary content knowledge regarding the research area and for giving the professor insight into your interests and skills. Demonstrating your reliability and ability to be proactive through your academics or other mechanisms is also valuable.

Most lab websites have an application form or other information about applying.

Most labs are for credit, meaning students receive 2 or 3 credits a term for PSYC394, which can be counted towards the major requirements as an upper-level course if six total credits are accumulated. Some labs also hire students as a work-study position, in which case students are paid but do not receive course credit. Students occasionally also engage with labs as part of an independent study or grant.

While you can apply to multiple labs, the Psychology department only allows students to receive course credit for a single research lab at a time. This is to make sure as many students as possible have the opportunity to engage with research. Some students engage with additional labs through independent study, work-study, or grant-based positions.

Most lab groups have weekly meetings, as well as expectations for performing additional work outside of meetings such as reading articles, running participants or performing animal experiments. Labs can be a substantial increase in academic load, so students should take care making their schedules when in a lab.

Most professors retain lab members once accepted into the lab. However, professors might no longer need research assistants for a variety of reasons (e.g., the research projects ends, the professor is on leave, etc).