There’s so much that happens when students and faculty members work together. That’s why our institutions put such a priority on having professors teaching our classes and keeping those classes small enough so students are never just a number. By the time they graduate, our students have been coached, as well as challenged, along the way. 

Undergraduate research flowers in this environment, with faculty members and students working together. Students benefit from the opportunities to tackle these kinds of projects; it enriches their college education and prepares them for contributions they will make in their careers and additional education. 

We’re clearly preparing students for ongoing academic inquiry; in fact, of all the students who earn an undergraduate degree in Minnesota who then go on to earn a doctorate, more than half of them start out at our institutions.

Each year we celebrate and share the power of our students’ undergraduate research with the Private College Scholars at the Capitol. The projects that are recognized represent the breadth of disciplines at our institutions from philosophy to nursing and chemistry to operations management. The students have brought their curiosity to bear on a topic that was ripe for deeper inquiry, for them to observe carefully, frame questions and interpret results. Faculty or staff members have encouraged them along the way.

• The value of the liberal arts 
• Faculty-student collaboration through undergrad research
• Hamline undergrads find opportunity through research
• The power of undergraduate research