INVOLVING UNDERGRADUATES IN RESEARCH PROJECTS AS A WAY OF RECRUITING STUDENTS INTO STEAM FIELDS

Environmental-related projects are amendable to undergraduate research as the projects can be designed to have all the elements of any basic learning style (auditory, visual, verbal/logical and kinesthetic). Undergraduate research is a practical way to recruit students into the STEAM fields. Instructors can involve undergraduate students in field/lab work by embedding research projects as part of the course work requirement. They can also have the students participate with the professor in his/her own research projects.

Water-related topics are assigned to students, or the student can pick a topic to work on, subject to the instructor approval. Most of these water research projects involve measurements in the field with or without a lab component. Some of these research projects can span a weekend or a semester.

Examples of student research work from rivers, wetlands and oceans will be highlighted with pictures from the field/lab. Students usually express the experience(s) to be worth the time spent in the field/lab areas. Students have also been encouraged to present their result(s) to peers in a classroom setting and/or at local, regional, national, and professional meetings. This is a win-win situation for both the students, institutions, and professions.