electronic materials. Her work led Ostroverkhova to nominate her for a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship, which she received. Faculty actively encourage undergraduate involvement in research. “Undergraduate students can attend a lecture from someone who’s an absolute leader in what they’re doing, approach them after class, say, ‘I’d like to learn more about this. I’d like to work with you.’ And the answer, much of the time, will be yes,” said ecologist Ben Dalziel. Where coursework meets discovery Course-based undergraduate research experiences, or CUREs, help students who juggle jobs, athletics and other responsibilities participate in research. By embedding original research into regular courses, CUREs offer a structured and accessible alternative to traditional laboratory positions. Unlike many universities that reserve CUREs for small upperdivision courses, Oregon State offers research experiences at scale in lower-division classes. Lori Kayes and Carmen Harjoe, co-coordinators of the Principles of Biology series in the Department of Integrative Biology, have incorporated CUREs into the BI22x sequence, a three-course series taken by all life science and pre-professional majors. Launched in 2021, the program connects students directly with faculty research. In the first course, students study molecular biology through research on nematodes with evolutionary biologist Dee Denver. In the second, they investigate coral-algal relationships with marine biologist Nate Kirk and marine physiologist Virginia Weis. In the third, they participate in citizen science projects focused on ecology with ecologist Lori Kayes. “We’re scaffolding our students into OSU’s research. They are part of OSU’s research mission, and that is what I think is so exciting about what we are doing,” said Kayes, professor of teaching. Kirk said the program also expands research capacity. Undergraduate participation helps generate samples At Oregon State, students do not have to wait until graduate school to contribute to scientific discovery. About half of College of Science students participate in undergraduate research each year through laboratory positions, course-based research experiences and funded summer programs. Microbiology student Catherine Sterrett joined microbiologist Ryan Mueller’s laboratory after meeting him at a research mixer. Mueller studies the ecology of microbiomes found in diverse environments. Sterrett developed a cost-effective method for creating anaerobic media for bacteria that would otherwise die in the presence of oxygen. Madalyn Gragg reached out to materials scientist Oksana Ostroverkhova after learning about Ostroverkhova’s work on organic materials through the university’s online faculty directory. Gragg joined Ostroverkhova’s research group and studied organic molecular materials, which are gaining attention for their highly tunable properties and potential as environmentally friendly Students gain the deepest understanding of science when they move beyond studying discoveries and begin contributing to them. “We’re scaffolding our students into OSU’s research. They are part of OSU’s research mission.” CREATING PATHWAYS Learn by Doing Madalyn Gragg (left) and Catherine Sterrett (right) found research opportunities as undergraduates by reaching out to faculty whose work they found interesting. IMPACT FALL 2026 7
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