ASU Undergraduate Research Opportunities: A Comprehensive Guide

Engaging in research projects as an undergraduate at Arizona State University (ASU) offers a wealth of opportunities to broaden your academic experience and develop critical skills. These experiences can significantly enhance your resume, prepare you for graduate studies, and provide valuable insights into potential career paths. From stipended research positions to course credit opportunities, ASU provides a diverse range of programs to suit various interests and academic goals. This article explores the numerous undergraduate research opportunities available at ASU, highlighting specific programs, research projects, and the benefits of participating in research as an undergraduate student.

The Value of Undergraduate Research

Participating in research as an undergraduate is a great way to broaden your ASU experience. You’ll get the chance to be part of a research team, develop critical skills in how to gather reliable data, how to analyze this information, and how to present your findings to others in a clear and compelling way. These skills can prove very useful in the workplace. Undergraduate research is formative. It tells you some things that you might like to do and things you might not like to do. And learning what you don't like, in a sense, is as important as what you do like, because if you spend time doing research.

Students interested in pursuing a PhD or research-oriented career may benefit from completing a research assistantship after graduation and before applying for a graduate program.

Featured Research Programs and Opportunities

ASU offers a variety of research programs and specific projects across different disciplines. Here are some notable examples:

Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

ASU's School of Life Sciences (SOLS) promotes opportunities for undergraduates to participate in exciting biological research with the SOLUR program. The REUs tend to be short experiences of seven or eight weeks over a summer and are excellent opportunities to gain valuable hands-on research experience while completing an undergraduate degree. These programs provide a rich interdisciplinary atmosphere for student development.

One such program is the "Regenerative Sciences for Undergraduates" REU in Summer 2024. This 10-week multidisciplinary summer research program pairs students with research mentors in the field of Regenerative Sciences. Mentors from ASU, industry, and the graduate school application process will serve as mentors for the program. Participants receive housing, a stipend, and meal and travel allowances. A total of 10 students will be accepted into the program, and it is directed by Dr.

Another REU example is the Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program at Alabama State University, Life Sciences Bldg., Rm. 305, 915 S.

Specific Research Projects at ASU

ASU offers a wide array of research projects for undergraduates. Here are a few examples of available projects, illustrating the breadth of research opportunities:

AI-Powered Framework for Trustworthiness in International Space Collaborations: This project focuses on developing an innovative AI-powered framework for evaluating trustworthiness in international space collaborations. Students will engage in data analysis, policy research, and consulting to assess how geopolitical risk, institutional legitimacy, and cognitive-linguistic factors shape trust in space partnerships. They will work with hypothetical data sets with the long term intention that real-world data will be collected to test and apply probabilistic reasoning for handling uncertainty and missing data in space diplomacy contexts. Students will be responsible for analyzing data inputs, creating insights from international law and policy documents, and contributing to reports and presentations on their findings to validate the framework to be developed. This project explores how we can deploy more solar energy within the boundaries of urban areas, with the goal of expanding the benefits of solar innovation to a much wider array of communities. We are looking for 1-2 students who can use large-scale data analysis to help us explore a citywide dataset of solar potential opportunities within the metro Phoenix region. Research is available for stipend and course credit.
Community Asset Mapping and Engagement Program: The City of Tempe’s Sustainability & Resilience Division and ASU’s Center for Energy & Society are seeking a passionate and community-focused research fellow to support the development and implementation of a Community Asset Mapping and Engagement Program. This role will help advance local resilience by supporting neighborhood-based mapping workshops, strengthening relationships between residents and resilience hubs, and enhancing everyday hub programming that supports long-term community well-being. The student will research and help design the Tempe Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) Program and gain hands-on experience in asset-based community development, stakeholder engagement, and program coordination. This is an ideal opportunity for students interested in community development, civic engagement, and emergency preparedness. Research is available for stipend and course credit.

Read also: Undergraduate Research at CU
Solar Energy Deployment in Urban Areas: This project explores how we can deploy more solar energy within the boundaries of urban areas, with the goal of expanding the benefits of solar innovation to a much wider array of communities. Students can use large-scale data analysis to help explore a citywide dataset of solar potential opportunities within the metro Phoenix region. Research is available for stipend and course credit.
Science and Technology Policy Reform: ASU’s DC-based Consortium on Science, Policy and Outcomes (CSPO) is joining networks of scholars and others who are hoping to build an improved system to support science and technology. An intern is invited to help gather historical materials and help build a network that can be ready when the rebuilding begins, on the assumption that 8 decades of bipartisan consensus will be restored. Research is available for stipend and course credit.
World’s Fair Research: This project involves researching Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, where over 150 countries are presenting their visions of the future, inviting visitors to “co-create our future society” with sustainability as a priority. Research is available for stipend and course credit.
Community-Engaged Health Technology Assessments: This project explores how community-engaged health technology assessments can be used to govern innovative digital health technologies. Students will contribute to ongoing research on the development of a racial equity impact assessment, learning about the relationship between innovation and governance, and what constitutes “safe use” of innovative digital health technologies. Research is available for stipend and course credit.
Environmental Disparities in Phoenix: This project aims to further the TierrArte (or eARTh) workshop series- a community-centered project from AZ(LAND) that integrates place-based education, sensory arts-based methods, and storytelling, along with environmental and archival data. The SURF student will work with community partners, AZ(LAND) and Rising Youth Theatre to help execute and evaluate the first workshop “Spatial Expansion in the Sunbelt.” This workshop will provide an introductory overview of historical Indigenous origins and movement rooted in the Southwest to the annexation of South Phoenix and the process of land and infrastructure expansion. Research is available for stipend and course credit.

Read also: Comprehensive Internship Guide
Biofoundry Landscape Analysis: This research opportunity is part of a project funded by the National Science Foundation to explore the development of ‘biofoundries’ or biofabrication facilities. The SURF Fellows involved in this project will assist with conducting a landscape analysis of US-based biofoundries, collecting, curating, and summarizing news articles, press releases, and academic articles about US biofoundries. Research is available for stipend and course credit.

School of Sustainability

It’s never too soon to get involved in research on campus - even as a first-year student in the sustainability degree program. Gain valuable experience while also receiving course credit by working with our faculty on a variety of research projects.

Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies

The Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies is pleased to offer hands-on experience in publishing and marketing for undergraduate students at ASU.

Internships

Internships are a great way to gain real world experience and connections while also continuing your degree! Our internships provide indispensable opportunities to explore careers in public service, government, and the private sector; build your resume with professional experience; network with potential employers; perhaps travel to Washington, D.C. The school’s summer internship and practicum program provides a flexible way for students to draw on the international expertise of our world-renowned faculty. Internships can be a great way to build experience in your chosen field. As a Public Service student, participating in an internship is the best way for you to gain practical experience within your chosen field. College internships provide valuable real-world experience.

How to Get Involved

There are several ways for ASU undergraduates to get involved in research:

Talk to Professors

Talking to professors is a crucial way that students can get involved in research. "I had consistent bi-weekly meetings with my mentor, Dr. "We talked about potential problems and research questions I could tackle within my expertise level at the time, and problems I may run into. Dr.

Explore Established Programs

There are longstanding research and internships programs established in many academic units. Some of these are captured in the tabs below.

Apply for Stipends or Course Credit

Students participating in the SFIS undergraduate research program can apply to receive a stipend ($1200 per semester) or to receive research credit (2 credits per semester). Applications for the Fall 2025 research program will be open from August 1st, with a closing date of Wednesday, August 13th at 11:59pm. Fall research projects will ideally start the week of August 21st.

Check Job Postings

"My first research opportunity was in the Swette Center for Environmental Biotechnology over in the ASU Biodesign Institute and … it was a (lab manager) job I had applied for," Fakrudin said. "In the process, the lab manager and financial manager for the institute … thought I was more adept at research.

Funding and Support

ASU offers various forms of support for undergraduate research, including:

Stipends: Many research opportunities come with stipends to help cover living expenses during the research period.
Course Credit: Students can often receive course credit for their research contributions.
Travel Allowances: Some programs, like the "Regenerative Sciences for Undergraduates" REU, provide travel allowances.

The Grand Challenge Scholars Program (GCSP) Research Stipend and FURI

The GCSP Research Stipend, unlike an NSF REU, is more exclusive and only open to members of ASU's Grand Challenge Scholars Program. Similarly, FURI is another program offered by ASU to encourage undergraduate research, and is limited to students in the Fulton School of Engineering.

Impact of Giving

From every corner of every ASU campus, location and program, and across ASU Online, students engage in impactful work daily. Their work helps them develop content knowledge, critical thinking skills, communication skills and creativity. Your gifts will fuel their personal, academic and professional development.

When you support this fund, you help us educate and engage students about sustainable food systems and organic gardening in the Sonoran Desert and resilient communities. Your gift provides direct support to dedicated scientists working around the clock on COVID-19 testing capabilities, treatments, virus tracking and vaccine development for COVID-19.

Considerations for International Students

The REUs tend to be short experiences of seven or eight weeks over a summer. That's certainly very prestigious," Munk said. "Employers look at those lines as well as graduate schools. Furthermore, these programs are not open to international students, which makes them less accessible. Generally, most undergraduate research is not done this way.

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