What are the different ways in which I can get research experience? As someone who has completed three research internships at Cambridge, LSE, Ashoka, and two independent research projects with my professors at Lady Shri Ram College, here is my answer:
Primarily, you can get research experience through three means: 1) Research internships/assistantship, 2) Independent research projects, and 3) Lab manager positions as elaborated below:
- Research Intern/Assistant Positions (RI/RA)
- As a research intern, you assist with other people’s research. For example, my tasks as a research intern at Cambridge include data collection, data analysis, and assistance in writing the manuscript
- You can get these positions by cold emailing the professors whose work you find interesting or by applying whenever there’s a call for interns (for example, summer interns)
- Most of these positions accept beginners with 0 research experience
- The cold email I used and my process of applying are linked at the end of the post
- Independent Research Projects
- During these projects, you work on your own research and have more responsibilities as compared to RI/RA positions
- For example, my tasks as an independent researcher at Lady Shri Ram College include designing the research question, reviewing literature, collecting, analyzing and cleaning the data, and writing the manuscript
- You can do these projects by requesting one of your professors or your research internship supervisor to supervise your work
- Lab Manager Positions
- As a lab manager, you assist with other people’s research, work on your own research, and manage the administrative responsibilities of the lab.
- For example, **Arshiya** is the lab manager of UC Riverside’s Social Neuroscience Lab and she has administrative responsibilities such as managing emails, maintaining databases and documentation, etc. in addition to research responsibilities.
- Most student abroad do a lab manager position instead of a master’s
- These positions require students with a bachelor’s degree and extensive research experience
- You can apply for a lab manager position by cold emailing the professors whose work you find interesting or by applying whenever there’s a call for lab managers.