For many students, the first opportunity they have to conduct, read, and appreciate current research doesn’t come along until they begin a graduate-level program. But for undergraduate students in the College of Education and Human Performance, engaging with research can begin much sooner.
The Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings, a semi-annual event in the College, offers undergraduates in every track the opportunity to present current research findings and academic projects related to the field. From school uniforms to teacher training to educational access and more, students explore their particular areas of interest, review current literature, and present their findings to their fellow students as well as a panel of faculty judges.
Pryia Persaud, junior in mathematics, was the organizer for this fall’s showcase, and was overly impressed with the work that her fellow students brought forward.
“The event on the whole came about because we need to start introducing research to the undergraduate students,” Pryia tells us about this year’s event. “What we’re trying to do is bring people in and help them understand both what research is and why it is important, especially in the field of education. UCF is all about research, and we want to make sure our college is on track with that focus. We want to make sure that we have more participants attending the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence, and we want to make sure we’re promoting research possibilities as much as we can within the College of Education and Human Performance.”
As for her experience running this fall’s event, she said “When it is all complete it’s extremely rewarding to see what everyone has put together and the different ideas they have regarding what needs to be researched or what problems need to be looked into.”
Future opportunities for undergraduate CEDHP students include presenting education research at regional conferences and continuing to explore current topics in numerous education fields. Learn more about the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings at the link above, and visit the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence website to learn more about campus-wide opportunities for students.