Button to scroll to the top of the page.

Research Credit

Research credit guidelines

How to register for research for academic credit

1. Secure a research position in a lab.

2. Go to online registration form.

3. If registering for the research experience will place you in over 17 credit hours, submit a maximum hours petition to your assigned advisor.

 

Guidelines for obtaining credit for research in faculty labs

RESEARCH REGISTRATION FORM DEADLINE

  • Registration forms with attached documentation and required signatures may be turned in during the early registration period but must be turned in by 4PM on the fourth class day of the term the course is taken.
  • Retroactive enrollment in a research course is not allowed.

LETTER GRADES Are GIVEN TO STUDENTS WHO:

Discuss specific responsibilities with their PI, which may include any of the following:

  • Attend lab meetings when possible
  • Be supervised closely by a specific mentor (either the PI or another lab member)
  • Maintain a lab notebook documenting all lab work
  • Submit a 1-page long document, minimum, to the PI that includes the following:
    • Project goals, methods, results, and conclusions
    • Revisions aided by the mentor
    • Please note that the mentor set length requirements; BCH 369K documents require a 6-page document

TO PETITION A RESEARCH COURSE FOR A REQUIRED UPPER DIVISION BIOLOGY LAB:

  • This is not applicable for the BS Biology, Option 4: Microbiology & Infectious Diseases degree; see below.
  • .Only 3-hour research courses taken for a letter grade will be considered
  • Before a final grade is assigned, students must provide the following:
    • A 1-page long document that includes the following:
      • Project goals, methods, results, and conclusions
      • Revisions aided by the mentor
      • Please note that the mentor sets length requirements
  • An oral presentation and documented verification of the 1-page summary given either in a lab meeting and/or another public forum
    • Presentations at the Spring Undergraduate Research Forum, Fall Undergraduate Research Symposium, or a venue outside of UT such as a regional or national meeting will all be considered
    • Students should be guided by their mentor in the preparation and practices of the presentation
  • Submit all documentation to the assigned Bioscience Advisor
  • Final approval for substitution for a required lab in a degree plan is at the discretion of the faculty advisor

**Students are responsible for completing all requirements and documentation**

NUMBER OF HOURS PER WEEK REQUIRED IN LAB

  • To receive 3 hours of credit for a research course a student should, at a minimum, be engaged in research 10 hours per week.
  • To receive 2 hours of credit for a research course a student should, at a minimum, be engaged in research 5 hours per week.
  • To receive 1 hour of credit for a research course a student should, at a minimum, be engaged in research 3 hours per week.

MAXIMUM HOURS OF GRADED RESEARCH

  • Regardless of what department the research course is listed with, students may take a maximum of six hours of research for a letter grade.
  • All research courses taken beyond six hours will be taken on a pass/fail basis.

 

BIO 377 and BIO 377-FRI cannot be used to substitute an upper-division Biology lab for the BS BIO, Option 4: Microbiology & Infections Diseases degree.

Students wanting to apply their FRI lab experience to a Microbiology major must have completed a pre-approved microbiology stream from the list below. These streams may NOT be substituted for BIO 226L.

  • Virtual Drug Screening/Robertus
  • Antibiotics/Whiteley
  • Functional Genomics/Iyer
  • Bioprospecting/Hawkes
  • BioBricks/Browning 
  • Aptamer/Ellington
  • Vertebrate Interactome Mapping/Stevens
  • Hijacking Microbial Factories for Synthetic Biology (Microbe Hackers)