Chinty147 Posted November 22, 2011 Report Share Posted November 22, 2011 I'm really confused about research even though I'm halfway through 3rd year. I want to e-mail professors about a summer position as an undergraduate research assistant. I have no experience however. Do I have to find a supervisor before applying for a research award (like NSERC)? I also wanted to volunteer next semester so I was wondering if I could request a volunteer position and summer position in the same e-mail? (I really want the summer position, volunteering is to get experience under my belt) Or should I e-mail separate labs for summer and volunteer positions? Also, do professors actually pay students even if they don't get an award? What if I find someone but don't end up with the award? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tooty Posted November 22, 2011 Report Share Posted November 22, 2011 from my days, you need a good set of grades and a prof that has the time and available work to give to an NSERC student. if the NSERC application doesn't go through and the prof doesn't have extra money in the lab to hire a summer student, you would have to work out some no-payment arrangement if the prof is willing to train you. you should approach the profs whose work you're interested in and ask to join their lab for the summer. if they take you on and your nserc goes through, i'm sure they'd be happy to take you on on a volunteer bases the semester before the summer. i'd say that's you're best bet. the guys with more experience should correct me if I'm wrong. there's a thread in cerena's FAQs in the link up top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xkittens Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 I'm really confused about research even though I'm halfway through 3rd year. I want to e-mail professors about a summer position as an undergraduate research assistant. I have no experience however. Do I have to find a supervisor before applying for a research award (like NSERC)? I also wanted to volunteer next semester so I was wondering if I could request a volunteer position and summer position in the same e-mail? (I really want the summer position, volunteering is to get experience under my belt) Or should I e-mail separate labs for summer and volunteer positions? Also, do professors actually pay students even if they don't get an award? What if I find someone but don't end up with the award? I have no experience either, but I still got a paid position for this summer. I have nothing to contribute though, the first doctor I emailed accepted me lol Just thought the fact that experience isn't a requirement would be motivating for you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinty147 Posted November 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 Let's say I don't have any experience and my GPA low: 3.59. What are my chances then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdincale Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 TBH for NSERC your gpa is probably two low, however that doesn't stop you from just getting a paid summer position. Do you plan on doing a 4th year research project? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tooty Posted November 23, 2011 Report Share Posted November 23, 2011 approach the profs who you want to work with and ask. some may have money to hire a summer student. you never know. read up on their research so that they know you're interested in the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGo1990 Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 TBH for NSERC your gpa is probably two low, however that doesn't stop you from just getting a paid summer position. Do you plan on doing a 4th year research project? Isn't NSERC given out depending on your average during the year you apply? Ex: apply during year 3, then your year 3 average is used to determine whether you get the position? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayward son Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 Let's say I don't have any experience and my GPA low: 3.59. What are my chances then? I don't think for research that a 3.59 is considered low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apache Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 depends on the department, nserc's are department specific, ours used to just rank order the previous years gpa of people who found a prof to work for and fill out the paperwork required (although i'm sure if you've taken a 400/300 level with a prof that likes you they could edge you up that list a bit if you're just a bit off) Isn't NSERC given out depending on your average during the year you apply? Ex: apply during year 3' date=' then your year 3 average is used to determine whether you get the position?[/quote'] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apache Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 depends on the field, in psychology you needed high 3.8 gpa because there were so many applicants that want to go into clin psych. i would imagine it's high in bio sciences too because everyone wants to do have it for their med app. in stuff like comp sci, physics, chem i think you'd see lower gpa's since people interested in nsercs in these fields usually want to do research in these fields, and people who want to do research don't always aim for the 4.0 gpa. tbh, i think using gpa to rank people for nsercs is absurd, we should be giving these scholarships to future researchers, not pre-med/pre-whatevers, you should have a research proposal, long meeting with the prof, and the process should be way more wholistic, i had no interest in doing research, and i still did an nserc, because it looks good. I don't think for research that a 3.59 is considered low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinty147 Posted December 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 Ok, so I'm going to e-mail profs about summer research positions. I won't keep my hopes high for an award though. I was still wondering, is it ok to ask for both a summer paid position and volunteering during the semester in the same e-mail? Or should I just ask for the summer position? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinty147 Posted January 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 I have another question...what should I put in my first e-mail that I send profs? Dear_____ I read about ____ and am interested in being involved in _____. I was wondering if you had any positions open in your lab for undergraduate students? (obviously it will be better in real life) I was wondering how far I shoul go in stating why I am a worthwhile candidate. Do I need to include my resume? Should I state which courses I have taken with labs and what skills I have learned (I have no previous research experience)? Or does that go in the resume? I am very confused...I really want to do research and its already halfway through my third year. Please help me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Scully Posted January 22, 2012 Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 What you're describing is basically your "cover letter". Google that for some ideas on how to write a good one. A few tips: try to keep it on the shorter side (I've seen people write way too much for them - the person doesn't want to read a novel). First paragraph, state what you said, you are interested in a position and wondering if one is available. Do you care about getting paid vs. volunteering? If not, state you're simply looking for lab experience and leave it at that. You can bring it up later in the interview. Second paragraph, briefly state your relevant skills (lab skills through courses you mentioned are a good idea). If you don't have a lot of lab experience, put other skills that would be useful to any job situation. (Caveat: avoid simply randomly listing cliches like "I'm a super hard-worker, fast learner". It's better to have a brief example of something you did or experienced that shows your qualities... i.e. "I have been working and going to school for 2 years while maintaining a 3.6 gpa" has more of an impact than "I'm good at time-management"). State what your major is and how it's relevant to their research. Explain why you want to work with them, what exactly about their research excited you. Be positive. Be awesome. Sell yourself. Close a third paragraph saying you have attached a resume, and hope to hear from them soon to set up an interview. A cover letter is essentially a condensed version of your resume, with sprinklings of "here's why I'm awesome for the job" added in. Another thing, what school are you at? At York we have a work-study/Research @ York program on their website where you can see workopolis links to professors who are hiring for part-time lab jobs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinty147 Posted January 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 I go to UofT St. George. We also have work-study but I didn't apply to OSAP so I'm not eligible for it. I'm going to try for a work-study position next year if I don't have anything else lined up. So I do include my resume? Thank you, your answer was very helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumanmacbook Posted January 22, 2012 Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 I go to UofT St. George. We also have work-study but I didn't apply to OSAP so I'm not eligible for it. I'm going to try for a work-study position next year if I don't have anything else lined up. So I do include my resume? Thank you, your answer was very helpful. Yes you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmer08 Posted January 22, 2012 Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 depends on the field, in psychology you needed high 3.8 gpa because there were so many applicants that want to go into clin psych. i would imagine it's high in bio sciences too because everyone wants to do have it for their med app. in stuff like comp sci, physics, chem i think you'd see lower gpa's since people interested in nsercs in these fields usually want to do research in these fields, and people who want to do research don't always aim for the 4.0 gpa. tbh, i think using gpa to rank people for nsercs is absurd, we should be giving these scholarships to future researchers, not pre-med/pre-whatevers, you should have a research proposal, long meeting with the prof, and the process should be way more wholistic, i had no interest in doing research, and i still did an nserc, because it looks good. But there are supervisors that choose students interested in a research career... thats why career option is one of the most frequent question asked in an interview Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmer08 Posted January 22, 2012 Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 I have another question...what should I put in my first e-mail that I send profs? Dear_____ I read about ____ and am interested in being involved in _____. I was wondering if you had any positions open in your lab for undergraduate students? (obviously it will be better in real life) I was wondering how far I shoul go in stating why I am a worthwhile candidate. Do I need to include my resume? Should I state which courses I have taken with labs and what skills I have learned (I have no previous research experience)? Or does that go in the resume? I am very confused...I really want to do research and its already halfway through my third year. Please help me. uhm I actually don't include anything... if you've taken a course with them, just let them know and show them your interest in their work... but I would only send them a resume and transcript when they ask me to or when they say they have a position bottom line: everyone has their own way... do what you think sounds right to you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumanmacbook Posted January 22, 2012 Report Share Posted January 22, 2012 uhm I actually don't include anything... if you've taken a course with them, just let them know and show them your interest in their work... but I would only send them a resume and transcript when they ask me to or when they say they have a position bottom line: everyone has their own way... do what you think sounds right to you Basically: 1) cover letter, in the email body (and attach as a pdf in case their email isn't html based, common mistake) 2) attach resume/CV 3) attach transcript and go from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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