Why become a Research Assistant in the Hidden Talents Lab?
Becoming a Research Assistant (RA) in our lab will provide you with some helpful experiences in various stages of developing and conducting a research project (e.g., recruiting participants; collecting, coding, and analyzing data; conducting literature reviews; presenting findings to a larger audience). These are skills and experiences that you may not be able to gain through formal coursework.
Research assistants will have the opportunity to use the data collected in the lab to develop their own research project (e.g., Honors Thesis), or to present them as a conference poster. It will help you to decide whether to pursue graduate school, and what kind of program best fits you. The research experiences you get in the lab will increase your odds of acceptance into graduate school.
You can request a letter of recommendation for graduate school, study abroad programs, scholarships, or jobs.
Through working in our lab, you will be able to learn about how early life experiences may influence teens’ development, learning and behaviors. You will learn about the social-cognitive skills and abilities that teens may develop as a result of growing up in stressful environments.
This will be a good opportunity to network with other students who have similar career goals and interests.
What does a Research Assistant do in the Hidden Talents lab?
As an RA, students get “hands on” experience working directly with teens (13-19 years old) from different family backgrounds.
Research assistants interview teens in local school districts and after school programs about their family and their experiences as they were growing up, and conduct assessments of social and cognitive skills. They administer surveys and computer tasks that are specifically designed for this purpose.
Research assistants also help with scoring, coding and entering data into spreadsheets or statistical analysis programs.
All research assistants are expected to attend the weekly lab meetings. The minimum commitment for an RA is two semesters.
How do I become an RA in the Hidden Talents Lab?
We are not currently accepting applications for research assistants for the hidden talents lab.