Why Engage in FEQ?

Research changes how you experience your education. Instead of feeling pushed through classes—checking boxes, solving problems because you have to—research makes you feel pulled toward knowledge. When you start research early, you're exposed to real concepts in lab meetings before you formally study them in class. Then, when it's time to learn quantum mechanics or other challenging material, you're genuinely eager to understand it because you've seen why it matters. You're not thinking "I have to get through this"—you're thinking "I finally get to learn what they were talking about in lab." Research gives your coursework purpose and transforms you from a student completing requirements into a scholar pursuing understanding, and that motivation will carry you through your undergraduate career and beyond.