kwyhan Posted September 7, 2012 Report Share Posted September 7, 2012 i'm in 4th year now of undergrad, and I never had a research assistant position.. unfortunately. I was a research volunteer for 8 months, did some lab work for volunteering, but never had a paid job. I really want to work on a specific research project and applied to multiple RA positions but still haven't heard from them. It's been about a week now. I am probably at an extreme disadvantage, considering I never had a paid research assistant position, right? (and in fourth year! ) Any feedback/opinions is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumanmacbook Posted September 7, 2012 Report Share Posted September 7, 2012 No you are not. People get by/get accepted without research. It doesn't have to be a focus if you don't want it to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyhan Posted September 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 7, 2012 Then I should stand out some other way though, right? Another interesting extra-curricular activity? Thanks. No you are not. People get by/get accepted without research. It doesn't have to be a focus if you don't want it to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumanmacbook Posted September 7, 2012 Report Share Posted September 7, 2012 It's really up to you - I mean just try your best to do things that are interesting to you, and I'm sure if you're passionate it will stand out. Not having research does not that you should "compensate" for in other activities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellorie Posted September 7, 2012 Report Share Posted September 7, 2012 I got a bunch of acceptances and I'd never stepped foot in a lab. Your application is a whole bunch of different pieces, and they don't ALL have to be super strong and incredible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyhan Posted September 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2012 Thank you all for the replies.. Feeling a little bit more relieved...ahha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmorelan Posted September 9, 2012 Report Share Posted September 9, 2012 Plus you actually HAVE reseach experience. The job title is not as important - you did step foot in a lab, did work for some time actually. Often volunteer work can be more valuable than paid work even Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdimple527 Posted October 5, 2012 Report Share Posted October 5, 2012 Yes.......it is must. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IamIDP Posted October 10, 2012 Report Share Posted October 10, 2012 Like everyone said, you don't always need research positions to get into professional schools, but if you do it's a bonus. You are quite fortunate to even get a volunteer position which is quite good. In my opinion volunteer and payed positions are often tougher to get than NSERCs since the prof. has to look at your GPA + resume + cover letter and interview. Whereas, NSERC they look at your marks and its primarily based on that. I hope this helps, good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
page_matrix Posted October 18, 2012 Report Share Posted October 18, 2012 In my opinion, research experience is research experience - it doesn't matter if you volunteered or RA'ed. Focus on doing what you enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Satsuma Posted October 18, 2012 Report Share Posted October 18, 2012 i'm in 4th year now of undergrad, and I never had a research assistant position.. unfortunately. I was a research volunteer for 8 months, did some lab work for volunteering, but never had a paid job. I really want to work on a specific research project and applied to multiple RA positions but still haven't heard from them. It's been about a week now. I am probably at an extreme disadvantage, considering I never had a paid research assistant position, right? (and in fourth year! ) Any feedback/opinions is appreciated. Sounds to me like you have "research assistant" experience. It doesn't matter if you did the work for pay or volunteer. It was the same work right? Part of getting jobs is how you sell yourself. You should be selling yourself as someone with 8 months of research experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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