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Research and Creative Activity

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While faculty-mentored research is chiefly conducted by graduate students at larger institutions, undergraduate students at Eastern can start conducting research as early as their freshman year. Research projects can be team-based as part of a class or conducted as independent study projects. Students also have a host of presentation and publication opportunities to share their research. Faculty mentors in each academic department support student researchers, with overall coordination provided by the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA).

300

Student presenters Annual CREATE conference

years representing CT at nation’s Capitol

CREATE 2024

Friday April 19, 2024

Coordinator
Niti Pandey
Webb Hall, Rm. 165
pandeyn@easternct.edu
(860) 465-5293
(860) 465-4541

Coordinator
Emily Todd
Webb Hall, Rm. 264
todde@easternct.edu
(860) 465-5295
(860) 465-4541

Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Catherine Falvey '17

Mathematics and Economics major Catherine Falvey participated in a mathematics research project in California funded by the National Science Foundation. "I am honored to have been able to work under a NSF grant. I gained valuable research experience as well as insight into working on a team. It gave us an idea of the ups and downs that come with doing research."

Elizabeth DelBuono ’17

Biology major Elizabeth DelBuono is pursuing a master’s degree in genetic counseling at Sarah Lawrence College. At her internship at the Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine — where she conducted breast cancer research — “I was surrounded by some of the most brilliant individuals in the world, and was immersed in the race to find an answer, a gene, a treatment, a cure.”

Michael Beckstein '18

Michael Beckstein joined Economics Professor Brendan Cunningham on a summer research project titled "The Efficient Use of Space Orbit," funded by the NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium. “The most interesting thing I found in my research was the vast amount of detail and work that goes into every satellite launch, as well as the wide array of purposes that satellites have.”

Bryce Mase ’18

“Undergraduate research is extremely beneficial for students because it exposes them to what they will be doing in their near future, whether it be graduate school or the career field. My favorite thing about Eastern is the 'small classroom' aspect. Professors know my name — I can talk to them and receive attention I would not receive in a larger classroom setting.”

Mandi Charette '18

Psychology major Mandi Charette presented her research study “Media Influence on Mental Illness Stigma” as an oral presentation at Eastern's annual Psychological Science conference.. “Mental illness has serious and life-altering effects for many individuals. Due to stigma, many people with mental illness have increased difficulties with finding employment, a place to live, and seeking treatment or therapy.”

Julia Underhill ’18

Labor Relations and Human Resource Management major Julia Underhill researched women’s involvement in the early labor movement. “Eastern supports their student researchers in multiples ways, whether through one-on-one mentorship, conference opportunities or assistance with the publication process. Such close partnership with a faculty mentor is rare, so I’m thankful for the supportive atmosphere Eastern provides to those pursuing research.”

Sabreena Croteau ’16

Sabreena Croteau Political Science and History double major, conducted several independent research projects while at Eastern. She is now in the Political Science Ph.D. program at the University of Chicago. “I definitely believe that my experience and education at Eastern played a vital role in getting me here. I'm grateful to the faculty and staff that have gone out of their way to help me."

Kevin Connolly ’17

Biology graduate Kevin Connolly is pursuing a master’s degree in medical laboratory sciences at Quinnipiac University. “At Eastern I was fortunate enough to formulate my own research question and learn not only the satisfaction of obtaining significant findings, but the hardships that go along with conducting research and how to overcome those struggles.”

Lauren Atkinson ’19

Biology major Lauren Atkinson received a fellowship from the NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium to conduct research on producing new antibiotics. “Formulating my own research question and developing a way to test it was a challenging but exciting learning experience. We hypothesize that scorpions have formed symbiotic relationships with bacteria that produce antibiotics that protect the scorpions from pathogens.”