Students may experience undergraduate research in courses where they get hands on experience doing original research and offer faculty the opportunity to generate new information within their discipline.
Class Search
Use the MCC course search tool to filter courses with integrated undergraduate research experiences (CURE).
Many Course-based Research Undergraduate Experiences (CUREs) have no prerequisites! Although research is integrated into many courses, CURE may be a novel experience to you.
Benefits of Course-based Research Experiences
Students who engage in research-based courses learn by doing. By participating in research, you will gain first-hand experience in a field of study and an increased depth of knowledge on a subject (NASEM, 2017). This hands-on approach provides training in how to
- think critically about the field’s current knowledge,
- form new research questions, and
- generate information using modern investigative approaches.
As part of the research process, you learn how to communicate your findings or interpretations to experts in your field. You also gain real world skills that help you navigate and interpret the vast amounts of information you encounter daily.
Not sure if you are in a CURE class?
If you are not sure if you are enrolled into a course that integrates CURE, ask yourself these three questions:
- Do you conduct research where you are uncertain of the outcome?
- Is your research original, using new data?
- Are you and your professor working toward a goal, knowing that the curriculum could change depending on the outcome?
If you answered YES to all three questions, then yes, you are experiencing course-based undergraduate research!
Students that engage with course-based undergraduate research may also be interested in connecting with a faculty member at the college and conducing a special-projects course to conduct original research with the faculty. Learn more: Faculty Profiles