With almost 500 students in the department, psychology is one of the most popular majors at the University of Notre Dame. The subject’s appeal, no doubt, has something to do with the allure of doing hands-on research.
Indeed, more than half of all psychology majors actively pursue research projects, working one-on-one with faculty and graduate assistants, developing lab experience, and assisting with the publication and presentation of the research results.
“The participation of undergraduates in lab-based research is a distinctive aspect of the educational experience of psychology majors,” says Daniel Lapsley, professor and chair of the College of Arts and Letter’s Department of Psychology. “Students participate as collaborators in significant research, and they benefit from the dedicated mentorship of faculty and graduate students.”
But the benefits flow both ways. “Lab-based research experience is not simply a service that faculty make available to students,” Lapsley says. “In truth, the department cannot take one step in the direction of our scholarly ambitions without the dedication, commitment, and insights of our undergraduate research collaborators.”
Emily Fyfe, a 2010 Notre Dame graduate who is now pursuing an advanced degree at Vanderbilt University, spent the last three years working in Assistant Professor Nicole McNeil’s Cognition, Learning, and Development Lab—and reports that it was “by far the most rewarding experience” of her four years at Notre Dame.
“It allowed me to delve into an area of personal interest,” she says, “it helped me develop a scientific perspective with which to address my questions, and it inspired me to pursue a career in psychological research.”
Working one-on-one with a faculty mentor was particularly valuable, Fyfe says. “I received direct feedback on my personal goals, interests, and performance in the lab—and the frequency and quality of my interaction with Professor McNeil more than fulfilled my expectations and helped me grow as a student and as a person in general,” she says. “My assignments, tasks, and readings were tailored to my interests, and Professor McNeil provided invaluable input about graduate programs and professors that matched my goals and research interests.”
McNeil says students in her research lab (which focuses on how children think, learn, and solve problems using mathematics) are involved in every aspect of research, from conceptualization to dissemination.
“I feel strongly that students need to have one-on-one attention from faculty members,” she says. “It gives them the opportunity to bounce ideas off and ask questions of an expert in the field. This type of intellectual discourse puts them in the position to eventually make a real contribution to the field.”
Assistant Professor Gerald Haeffel, who runs the Cognition and Emotion Lab (dedicated to understanding the causes of depression), says conducting research and mentoring students is one of the best parts of his job.
“It’s a treat to watch the students’ progress in the lab,” he says. “By their senior year, the undergraduates are developing into independent scientists who have their own research questions they want to pursue someday as professors.”
Another one of those students is senior Jena Doom, who has worked in Haeffel’s lab since her sophomore year and spent the summer doing her own research project on how depression affects physical health.
“The one-on-one meetings with faculty, along with this individual research experience, have been a huge benefit for me and helped me find what I’m interested in researching,” says Doom.
Research opportunities like these play an important role in the department’s undergraduate curriculum, notes Lapsley. “Students benefit from the collaborative nature, and we continue to extend ourselves in shared ventures, creating interdisciplinary programs, supporting advances in education, and cultivating new sites for research and clinical work.”