Integrating Research-Based Learning into the Undergraduate Curriculum: Challenges and Solutions

Abstract

Integrating undergraduate research into introductory level courses can improve student accessibility, inclusion, and retention. Herein, we discuss two one-on-one research projects that are being scaffolded into the undergraduate curriculum. We will describe the design and application of CUREs (course-based undergraduate research experiences) in forensic biology as well as physics and astronomy degree programmes. The forensic biology CURE includes trace evidence analysis and models the experimental methods, techniques, and instrumentation students will use in their future careers. In the Eclipsing Binaries CURE, students are introduced to coding and computational physics through modelling spectroscopic and photometric data. The lessons learned through scaling up these interdisciplinary models can apply to other fields of study.