Since she was a freshman, Nicole Goldman has participated in undergraduate research centered around food studies.
The food science junior’s current project seeks to investigate if adding vegetable powders to baked goods changes the goods’ texture.
The powder is added to help people meet their daily vegetable requirements but might tamper with the goods’ texture, Goldman said.
She began research on Oct. 7 by gathering qualitative data from cracker bits.
The opportunity to gain hands-on experience and to advance concepts learned in class is why she participates in undergraduate research, Goldman said.
“I really like putting to use things learned in class,” Goldman said. “I felt much more comfortable when doing a professional internship over the summer.”
As a freshman, Nicole Goldman discovered undergraduate research as a way to build on the material she learned in class.
Now a junior studying food science, Goldman researches the textural changes of adding vegetable powders to baked goods. She said she was able to draw on her project experiences while interning at Wrigley Jr. Co. in Chicago during the summer.
“I really like putting to use things learned in class,” Goldman said. “I felt much more comfortable when doing a professional internship over the summer.”
Undergraduates researched various topics during the past year — from mouse embryonic stem-cell renewal to the population structure of fruit flies.
Spanning all 14 colleges that offer degree programs for undergraduate students at MSU, research allows students to look deeply into topics concerning their majors and to sometimes present their findings, said undergraduate research coordinator Korine Wawrzynski.
“Students have published their articles in professional journals and given research presentations,” Wawrzynski said. “Last year we did a survey, and 42 percent of students said they presented their research to show the community what they’re doing.”
Availability and a student’s interest play a large role in the subject of the research and the number of hours spent on it. Wawrzynski said communication skills and the ability to handle several different phases of a project can be gained through participation.
“When you’re out in the real world, there isn’t a syllabus, and you have to figure out how to get from A to Z,” she said. “This helps students to know how to get it done.”
Benefits of partaking in undergraduate research include stipends and course credit, but that varies from college to college, Wawrzynski said.
A majority of undergraduate researchers are seniors, but coordinators are trying to find ways to include younger students, she said.
Wawrzynski estimates that almost 3,000 students are involved in undergraduate research programs.
Stuart Grandy, assistant professor of crop and soil sciences, works with undergraduate students on a project about the soil communities of till and no-till agriculture.
“I like the opportunity to give them hands-on lab research experience,” he said. “It’s a very different experience than the classroom.”
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