The more serious students pursue a research project because they have been inspired by a professor who demonstrates exceptional teaching skill in the classroom. These students recognize the potential for further educational experiences with this professor on an individual basis in the research laboratory. Prior to beginning their research project, students often expect that doing research will be identical to a laboratory connected to a course.
Students discover that the research experience far exceeds their expectations.
Some of the most dramatic effects of the research experience that students report are conflicting feelings of maturity, self-confidence and humility. More important than the research topic itself is the issue of compatibility between the student and advisor, and among other individuals working in the laboratory. Advisors who are approachable, patient, treat students as colleagues, make them an integral part of the research program, and recognize their ability to contribute intellectually to the project tend to engender long term commitment and fierce loyalty in their undergraduate students. Research is an experience that coalesces individual, focused classes into a coherent picture. In the standard undergraduate curriculum, there is no comparable course.