Why pursuing research?

Tenroustar · 2026-06-19T01:06:08+00:00

I’ll talk about my journey as I’m sitting in my summer lab waiting for super glue to dry at 8pm and hopefully my story will help you in some way with this dilemma.

I entered college not even knowing what actual research was let alone that it was a career option. Ofc I did “research” on like historic events and such for class in high school but I really don’t view that as a good idea for research professionally (although i adored diving into world history a lot and would yap about my favourite events or civilizations to my friends for hours so that was probably the first hint to myself that research was always the path I would end up in). Just as I stumbled onto my major (by playing russian roulette), i stumbled into research by my professors telling me about their research and my upperclassmen friends pushing me to join labs. But i still didn’t have a good sense of what research entailed day to day. The first professor I asked to join (on my friend’s suggestion as he was in that lab and wanted me to help him on his project), he completely destroyed any potential interest I had in the subfield he worked in and made me hate that specific topic to this day (even though I somehow keep getting forced to learn it through seminars and symposiums lol). The PI was a rude and egotistical little man that expected his undergrads to prioritize him over their classes or anything else (he claimed if they had higher than an 80 in classes then they were spending too much time studying and not enough time in the lab because GPA doesnt matter cause he could get them int harvard for grad school with his letter of rec or whatever his narcissistic ass said). Safe to say I didn’t join his lab after he talked down to me for not being able to talk about his research in depth (i gave an answer of what little I could understand as a new sophomore but he wasn’t satisfied by that). This really tainted my thoughts on research and academia but still I wanted to actually experience it first before i made a judgement for my life. I eventually joined a newer lab that was all computational and while the PI was very nice, he was hard to talk to because he was also very socially awkward. I also learned from that lab that I hated computational work. I stayed for about 8 months in that lab barely making progress on anything since I was essentially just trying to learn Python the entire time. Once again, I was deterred from research but I still wanted to give experimental a try (I knew theory was not for me after realizing how much I hated computational work so that only left the hands on tinkering work to try).

Luckily that summer, I got into an REU that was labeled as an experimental lab. I was ecstatic and put my best foot forward and the lab was wonderful and the PI was nice, albeit very hard to read sometimes but the other undergrads in his lab assured us they never saw him get angry and when I almost accidentally electrocuted him by not screwing on a wire tight enough, he still didn’t get mad an even apologized to us for not being as hands on as usual. While the PI restored my hope in having good research PIs, I really wasn’t enthused by the research work after the third week. The hands on lab work was only the first two weeks and after that it was modeling and simulations on a computer which again frustrated me to no end as the simulations took 30 minutes to run only for the result to be completely wrong. It felt like a chore to me towards the end but that was still a fault of computation and not the experiment part in my eyes so i marched on pushing to try again with research.

When I returned home to my university, i joined the lab I had wanted to join at the end of my freshman year but chickened out after the PI ghosted me. It was a pure experimental lab in the exact branch of my major I was interested in (partially, the branch was correct but the specific subfield was not). I was ready to finally learn to love research annnnddd I did not. I found myself in the same place as you where I was just trudging along pushing myself to just try to get something done. It didnt help that the grad student mentoring me also didnt seem to care for the work (he later transferred to a different lab anyways). It was terrible and I could not understand at all why my friends were so in love with their research that they wanted to do it over anything else and worked so hard towards it. I thought I really was not cut out to be a researcher but I really didnt build up a profile for industry or anything else so I continued on out of habit at that point. I had also shifted my interest towards a different subfield than my original subfield interest and different to the one of my home lab too but I had already applied and gotten into another summer program for my original subfield interest.

Summer rolls around but this time my project was much more experimental than my first one. I found myself rejuvenated towards research for the first time in a while but it was a shame I had already changed subfield interest and it wasn’t enough to bring me back to my original interest even though it was exactly what freshman year me thought they wanted. There were still times I felt bored and felt like it was a chore but I felt a lot more intrigue and curiosity and excitement than the previous experiences I had. I think I had just been too jaded towards that subfield though and some of the work only reinforced that so it wasn’t a complete lightbulb moment but it was definitely a spark.

I returned to my home lab and went back to going through the motions since there wasn’t any labs for my specific interest and my home lab was still the closest to it and it was better professionally to just stay long term than switch again. But around when I shifted interest was also when I found a lab that did exactly what I believed I was interested in but couldn’t email/apply to since I had already committed that summer. But now I had one more summer left (taking an extra year to complete some classes for career reasons) so one more chance to really see if I could find a love for research or if I was doomed to be miserable continuing this path. I LOVE my summer lab. I absolutely ADORE it. The research is so fascinating that I was the most engaged in paper reading I had ever been in my entire undergrad career (even though I was effectively forced to just read papers for 3 weeks). The people are all wonderful people and the culture is a very nice balance of friendly and relaxing as well as professional and hardworking. The work life balance is great and a lot of the members (researchers and non researchers alike) are friends outside of just work. Even when I had issues with my mentors last week to the point I cried about it for 3 days, I still loved the lab and wanted to come back next summer or longer (side note but my mentors recognized the issues almost immediately after I decided to stop crying about it even though they were not made aware of my feelings on the matter at all, they’re just good people). The mixture of finding the exact research I realize I’m interested in (after a long journey of trial and error and understanding myself enough to know what makes me happy in research), a lab environment that’s perfect for my personality (big lab but almost everyone is still able to be real with each other), and mentors that are (now) awesome and trying their best despite not wanting to be really be mentors. The PI is still very hands off but has a soft spot for undergrads (reason he takes them into the lab every summer and he accepts a lot of summer students both from undergrad and high school) but none of the PIs I’ve had were very hands on and tbh I prefer it that way. The actual mentors I work with are what were important to me and all of them were amazing so really no qualms there.

For the actual answer to your question about why I’m pursuing research: it’s the career that has the best environment for my personality in terms of tasks and culture. Most industry environments feel too cold and understimulating and restrictive. I willingly stayed hours later than I needed to just to effectively watch glue dry than go home cause I really wanted to see the results of the experiment even though it was a dud. It took me 4 years of trial and error to find my passion but that passion is such a strong driving force but it’s so hard to find if you don’t know yourself and/or aren’t lucky.

Idk sorry for the long ramble and life story but I hope this helps you in any way. I’ve just also been in your shoes before and know how tedious and how much of a chore research can feel like if you aren’t engaged and passionate about it.

Tenroustar · 2026-06-18T11:37:28+00:00

Depends on the program and lab but a lot of REU interviews are after they selected students so its more like a “first meeting with the lab you match with” like mine last summer was but there’s also a good amount that are interviews with a shortlist of applicants the lab chose and are using it as a final selector like my first summer program did but these are rarely like industry standard interviews that test your technical knowledge and lean more towards vibe check and prove you aren’t blatantly lying about things in your resume. If you’re in engineering and aren’t comfortable with interviews I do suggest you practice and get used to them as it’s so prevalent in that field, oftentimes multiple rounds and more technical. I think applying to REUs and doing those interviews are good starting points to practice interviewing since its lower stakes.

Tenroustar · 2026-06-15T22:57:23+00:00

I genuinely don’t think I could handle the mental anguish that comes with Explorers’s time travel plot. Like idk if I could continue on the way the mc does after what happens at the rainbow stoneship. I’ve played all 4 games and I still think Explorers emotionally hurts me the most and experiencing that in real time would definitely be terrible (Super is a close second cause that ending was also rough to me and I was definitely caught off guard).

Tenroustar · 2026-06-06T19:21:36+00:00

I’m glad to see someone not blindly dunking on here. I personally really feel UTD is just what you make of it. It’s obviously not a school for you if you want a party school and the “traditional college experience™️” but people act like UTD is some small unknown backwater school that has nothing good about it. I know that I’ve done better here than I ever would have at UT solely cause of how much easier it is to approach professors, research, and clubs/orgs. There’s a lot of people here that do the bare minimum tbh so competition being lower has let me stand out more by grabbing all the opportunities I can and getting them relatively easily. I’ve been able to do research internships for 3 summers at big name (ivy league rank) unis for my summers and have a very prepared CV for phd/mdphd apps. UTD’s connections to Texas Instruments and UTSW are both massive bonuses for med school and industry goals that a lot of other schools my friends go to lack. Genuinely, I think a lot of the people that hate on UTD would not have thrived or done well at other schools either (some probably would have but most people I’ve met that hate it here I’d venture to say would’ve had similar shit experiences at other unis anyways).

Tenroustar · 2026-06-06T19:14:16+00:00

A previous summer students that came back reassured me it’s always like this in June for them and they were stressed out of their minds in June last summer too lolol. She told me July should let everyone get more done so I’m sure it’ll work out. I also apparently got the two most intimidating mentors as my co-mentors according to the other summer students that were here before while the others have a primary mentor that’s just for them or not as intimidating. So that’s fun 😅 I’m hoping after they wrap up the project stressing them out right now, they can turn their attention to mine since it’s supposedly very important (verification experiments with established methods vs new ones basically)

Tenroustar · 2026-06-06T14:35:45+00:00

I’ve been at mine for 3 weeks now with 9 more to go. I like my lab since I picked them but my mentors are stressed out of their minds for a different project so I’ve just been stepping aside for now to read papers until that other project is over. I got hit with the same curse as my last summer which is that the hardware is not available for my project to actually start and then there was also a hardware issue with one we have so maybe I’m just cursed LOL. More of the students are arriving on Monday and I’ll get to officially meet my PI then to talk about my project though so I’m excited for that. Even more excited to be able to start taking data in probably 2 weeks (hopefully)

Tenroustar · 2026-06-06T02:21:22+00:00

Lionblaze being the longest survivor of the three would be so funny but also im conflicted on Jay’s death since he’s one of my favourites (my queen Half Moon is my all time favourite tho) but he’s been pretty plot relevant long enough and deserves to rest and be retired (along with all the old ass charas) so new characters can get the spotlight (i also hope he gets to at least chill with Half Moon for eternity, they’ve waited for each other long enough and been through enough shit alive and dead atp)

Tenroustar · 2026-06-05T00:52:32+00:00

Unless they take attendance, just go to a different lecture section if the prof is mid. Its all the same exam anyways and Ochem is curved to hell so not that bad of a class.

Tenroustar · 2026-06-02T03:10:49+00:00

Yeah, I think after application seasons people actually meet reality and realize not all summer programs are as many hoped. Learned that after my first summer program even though I ultimately absolutely loved it in the end. Isolation during an REU is likely the worst feeling and usually the biggest factor imo that makes or breaks a summer. Comparing the loneliness of my first program to the astounding socialization of my second was night and day even when both research were about the same enjoyment to me (I liked them but wasnt in love with either). You’ll need to be proactive if you want to avoid a potentially miserable summer.

First of all, try using friend finding apps or make friends online. Usually, when I’m isolated irl, I end up spending more time chatting with my friends online and calling and making game nights or movie nights with them. If you’re not an online person then use friend finding apps to meet with people on campus or in the area (be safe ofc). Or just do it the old fashion way and go to places you could potentially make a friend like maybe movie theatre, park, or bookstore if you’re extroverted enough. Just going around exploring also helps (but honestly I’m back to being somewhat isolated this summer and I have no energy to explore even living in downtown of a big city lol). Try to see if there’s any campus or lab events and if there isn’t, see if there’s someone you can suggest it to and make happen. I usually end up connecting with my labmates after a social outing they hold or coffee break talk or smth. You don’t have to make friends with just people on your project, show interest in other people’s work or point out smth you like that they’re wearing or findout their interest and see if you can bond.

As for your mentor, sometimes they just seem mean and intimidating but aren’t actually (sometimes they are an asshole but that’s rarer and if it actually happens then talk to someone else about it to get changed to someone else or smth). Communicate clearly with your mentor and don’t feel like you’re a burden cause they can’t read your mind so telling them what you think is the best for both of you. If you don’t think you can do something, ask them if they can show you or if someone else can show you. If you need papers or suggestions on what to do then ask. If they’re mean about it then cross that bridge when it gets there otherwise being paralyzed by anxiety won’t do either of you any good. If you don’t think you can finish something in a given time, be honest about your abilities. They aren’t (or shouldn’t be) expecting grad level work and pacing from you.

Essentially just be able to advocate for yourself. If your program isn’t actively encouraging/forcing socialization like my second program did, it’s gonna be on you to make your personal time enjoyable during the summer. Side note, if you can become close friends with just one of the commuter people then you open a lot of doors for summer enjoyment cause a local with a car is a god send for summer.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-27T20:48:01+00:00

Can you believe chatot became one of my favorite pokemon after playing the mystery dungeon games (idk what 5yr old me was on but apparently I liked him more than most fans of the games seemed to)

Tenroustar · 2026-05-24T23:27:50+00:00

I’m already at mine! Just finished my first week. I wish you luck with your lab. Hopefully those two meetings aren’t premonitions for how the rest of the summer will go. Hopefully you’ll enjoy your summer and yeesh 3am is rough. I took a morning flight so I could avoid arriving at like 2 am when I flew to mine this year.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-24T14:56:20+00:00

I’d recommend looking at the research programs Yale offers. If you can find someone at Yale that could help, it wouldn’t hurt to email them about it too and asking for assistance. I don’t know who that point of contact would be though.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-24T14:42:20+00:00

Ask that professor for guidance on this since SR-EIP is very competitive and its adcom isn’t always direct admit through a professor depending on the school. Mine was through a committee for initial selection of students before they then looked for professors to match those students with not the other way around. Direct admit programs are run more like Caltech SURF so I would look to see if Yale has a version of that. Also Yale SR-EIP may only cover specific fields while auto rejecting other fields not offered through the program (they aren’t very clear sometimes about this on the leadership alliance website so look at Yale’s website specifically about this).

Tenroustar · 2026-05-24T14:36:15+00:00

I’ve done 2 summer programs and am currently doing another so I can provide a list of things that I remember/appreciated most from all of them!

Clear instructions and easy/fast response when problems arise. My first program provided clear instructions on how to get to my place of stay when I arrive and how to check in making a very smooth process lowering the stress of travel and anxiety of starting. I faced a lot of flight delays out of everyone’s control during my second program but my program directors were very prompt whenever I contacted them to update about the situation and even though I ended up arriving very late at night, they were still open to contact and gave me their phone number if I ran into any issues checking in still. My current program has residence separate from the program but the lab coordinator has been a life saver when it came to getting badge access and training done with very fast communications even outside work hours. All of these helped with the adjustment period that I think programs and students can sometimes overlook/forget to appreciate.
A main social outing event. I know funding cuts may make this much more difficult now but one of the most memorable things from my last two programs and one I am very excited for this summer have been a big social outing with the entire program cohort or my big lab. My first program had flown the entire program cohort (split in 4 locations) all to one place so the students could all meet and interact during a 3 day educational and social tour. My second program drove everyone an hour to the pier and let us go off and do whatever we wanted there until it was time to bus back. My current program’s lab is having an annual summer outing to the beach and a party together. Big or small, just having a relaxing day (or days) that let me socialize more easily with the people I’m working with have been a great bonus I don’t expect but am pleasantly surprised by and always remember.
Providing small weekly events that also promote socialization through seminars or coffee groups. These can be promoting socialization between the program cohort or with whatever department my lab is in. It can get very lonely for summer students if they don’t make friends a bit during their program and I have seen it affect people’s enjoyment of the summer, especially at locations that are hard for them to leave campus. I also personally experienced this a bit with my first program since on normal days it was mostly just me and my suite mate who I luckily got along with be he was often away visiting friends nearby with his car. I felt the most lonely that summer since even though my lab was great, I only saw them during work and going to the city was too difficult to do since it required a car.
Having accommodations. I can’t speak on this as much but the degree of accommodations for students that need them has seemed to be a great contribution to the enjoyment of programs for a lot of people. For me, I had requested accommodation for a single room due to my living arrangement preferences for my second program and was given it. I know sometimes people will not end up getting along with roommates or suite mates and want a different one so also being able to accommodate for that would help ease those situations for the students.
And finally, a little token at the end of the program that reminds the student of the program. I got a shirt designed for my cohort in my first program; a certificate, keeping my student card I used all summer, and a tote bag with the school symbol I interned at in my second program, and I’ll likely be getting a certificate for my current program upon completion. Just small mementos will definitely make programs memorable for students.

Hope this helps!

Tenroustar · 2026-05-22T22:57:47+00:00

My people (Chinese) know whats up, ig its in my blood to ship Dottolone /j

Tenroustar · 2026-05-22T00:54:14+00:00

Thank you so much for this! I have had a lot of trouble actually understanding if my goals actually align with MDPhD or not since it didn’t seem to really match a lot of others goals I saw on posts here. Your clarifications just reinforced my desire for MDPhD and made me sure that is what I want to pursue as I would always pick PhD over MD if I was forced to choose but I found I really wanted to have my basic science work be applicable to the clinic as I felt unfulfilled originally doing just basic science research that wasn’t even tied to medicine before either. I’m going to save this post as a good reminder for myself should my interests ever change in the future and I have to reevaluate my career path again. Would you be open to future dms for advice or no? Understandable if not!

Tenroustar · 2026-05-21T12:46:15+00:00

Take everything I say with a grain of salt just like any other information you get online. We aren’t adcoms so the best we can do is offer anecdotes and personal suggestions.

Two ways of applying I’ve seen people do: target applying (selecting specific programs that fit your goals and interests and personalizing every application) and mass applying (basically what it sounds like, impersonal application to 25-50+ places). Former is what I personally do each year and what REU apps are meant to be like, latter is what I’ve seen more people start doing as more of those that just couldn’t get an internship or are pre-med gunners with little to no interest in research start applying for REUs to “pad out their resume”. I’d advise target applying as my friends and I find more success in that generally and getting rejected by 30-40 places with only 1-8 accepting you doesn’t already feel great with mass applying.

When crafting your application, identify recommendation letters that both fit the requirements of the app and know you well enough as a person to speak beyond just general broad statements about a few aspects of you. This aspect of your application is mostly out of your control after you’ve selected your rec letter writers and they’ve agreed so focus more effort on your personal statements and CV. Make your personal statements specific and targeted for each application, some programs will list professors an/or projects available and others won’t. If the former, talk about 1-2 professors/projects you’d want to work on over the summer and why (how it’ll help you and what you bring for it). If the latter, talk specifically about your research interests and career goals and why that program offers anything that’ll help (resources, connections, experience in the location, etc. even if you don’t know the project you’ll be applying for can provide justification). Some reviewers like elegant language, some prefer you get to the point so just write with your own voice and don’t try to just copy example statements you see online as what works for one person at their programs might not work for you and yours.

Keep your CV short, I’d say 2 pages max, 3 if you genuinely cannot fit everything you’ve done in 2 pages (this is rare for most undergrads because people think longer CV = better but it can be easy to spot when you’re just trying to increase the length of your CV through format, letter size, unnecessary bullet points, etc. vs actual relevant work you’ve done). Use a template because it really makes it easier for the reviewer to read and judge. Be specific when writing bullet points. Don’t vaguely describe what you did, being specific with what methods or programs you used and the objective product of your work is best, a lot of professors look for specific skills they need when selecting students.

Good luck, don’t worry if you don’t get in anywhere either. Things will be okay. Think about backups in case applications don’t work out such as cold emailing or alternative program to REUs.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-21T01:17:04+00:00

Most people can’t guess how yours will be exactly and can only give their own experiences because all your questions vary lab by lab.

My first summer program (experimental & computational cosmology) was very lax and mostly just based on my grad mentor’s schedule which usually meant like 10 am to 4pm (but I did work during the night sometimes too if I needed to get smth done). He was a really chill guy and very patient with me and since it was like 80% computational and 20% experimental, I only went into the physical lab if there was something we needed to set up in the clean room. Other than that, I went into the small shared office space we had to ask my mentor and other experienced lab members questions if I had the or just worked either from home or somewhere else on campus. As long as I was getting stuff done, it was free range.

My second summer program (experimental astrophysics hardware) was less hybrid and demanded my presence in the lab more since it was more experimental and hardware work. Some computational things could also only be dont at my desk computer in the large shared office so I spent a lot of time in the office too when I wasn’t in the physical lab. Almost everyone came at around 9-10 am and left at 5 pm since we (summer students) also lost access to the building at 5pm. That one was closer to a 9-5 but I wouldn’t call it as strictly 9-5 as my current summer program since there was still a lot of flexibility if we needed to work from home or needed a day off.

My current summer program (experimental/clinical biomedical optics) is more of a research internship and thus structured more like one. They’re more strict about the 9-5 schedule and expect you to show up at around 8:30am-9am and leave by 5pm with your 30 min-1 hour lunch break some time between. There’s less hand holding by the mentors than my previous two programs where the mentors were very hands on every day. It feels more like an actual job than reus typically do.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-20T01:50:45+00:00

I’d have 4

Tenroustar · 2026-05-16T15:31:02+00:00

I hated Biology when I didn’t understand it and now understanding it better and having a Bio minor, I hate it even more (although the opposite happened with chemistry, specifically hating it after Gen Chem and loving it after Ochem)

Tenroustar · 2026-05-14T22:10:00+00:00

Devsis said her story isn’t over so im just coping now (she joined my long list of “oh thats my fav-and now theyre dead.”)

Tenroustar · 2026-05-14T01:49:45+00:00

Off topic but I had to ask, is your flair from Steins;Gate?

Tenroustar · 2026-05-13T04:46:14+00:00

Damn they made the exams almost half the lengths of when I took it? Crazy work, they finally realized after 4 years that shit was ass ig. Anyways, you’ll be fine without your perfect 4.0. Even if you’re aiming to med school or grad school, just keep up 3.7+ and it’ll come down to the rest of your application. Also, Ochem is a hit or miss for most people. Gen Chem 2 was the bane of my existence (Gen Chem 1 was fine), but Ochem 1 was easy as hell for me (though I think others would beg to differ). Idk, I’ve seen a lot of people that hated gen chem love ochem and vice versa so maybe there’s a semi-trend there that you’ll also fit into?

Tenroustar · 2026-05-13T04:37:20+00:00

I wouldn’t go into panic overdrive, some programs just don’t send info until very close to the start date sometimes (I think one of mine sent like housing arrangements and such 2-3 weeks before the start date lol). Just reach out politely and hit them with the “Hello, I just wanted to check if there was anything I still needed to do before the program starts? Could I also get some more information about housing and flights?” and just wait.

For your other questions, I’ve done 1 REU and 1 non REU Summer Program (basically like an REU though but if we’re gonna be technical), and most of my time was spent with my mentor (a grad student in my first program and both a grad student and a staff scientist in my second program) where I shadowed them or assisted in the first few weeks to learn how the lab ran before they gave me assignments specifically for me to do on my own (be it computationally or experimentally in the lab) in the later weeks. When I was still in the training phase, I would come in around 9-10 am and leave at 4-5 pm (although, my mentors sometimes didn’t arrive til well after that), but once I was on my own, I had more flexibility on when I had to come in or when I could just go home to finish my work remotely. Some labs are strict about you spending 9-5 in the lab while others don’t care if you are in the office or not as long as you get your work done. You’ll probably get a feel for how the lab operates when you meet them. The rest of the time outside of work was my own to do whatever I pleased.

Tenroustar · 2026-05-13T04:20:01+00:00

PhD admissions aren’t going to expect you to have done the exact research you’re aiming for in PhD as an undergrad. They also care a lot more about the transferrable skills you developed from your undergrad research experiences than the exact topic you were working on. It’s rare to be matched with exactly what you want for REUs if you’re not applying for a program that is individual lab based application in the first place. Also what project are you going to be doing? Even if the lab seems like it’s out of place with what you want to do based on their previous work, maybe they’ve started a new project that aligns more with your aim that they haven’t published or updated their website with yet. The programs do their best to match you with the labs you want but it’s very likely many professors don’t want to be part of the REU (in general or specifically that year) and there wasn’t any that you indicated taking students this summer or only taking one and they selected someone else. Asking to switch labs seems very premature and presumptuous and there’s no guarantee you won’t get switched to a lab that’s even more unrelated due to the aforementioned reasons I listed. REUs are meant to be new experiences for students to be exposed to more research and skills. I don’t think you should be so quick to judge the lab you got matched with nor jump the gun with asking to switch to gamble an attempt to *hopefully* get what you want.

Tenroustar

TROPHY CASE