Independent Study

To do an independent study you will need to fill out the registrar’s form (https://www.bowdoin.edu/registrar/students/course-registration/independent-study.html) by the end of add/drop II.  An independent study is taken as a course and therefore the expectation is that you put in as much time as you would for any other course (~ 10 hours per week).  This may vary from week to week depending on what you are working on and if deadlines are approaching.  We will meet weekly individually or in a group depending on your project for ~30 minutes to discuss what you have done the previous week and what you plan to do the following week as well as to answer any questions you may have.  I prefer to meet on Mondays.  Please come see me the first week of classes to arrange a time to meet.  If you need to reschedule or cancel a meeting please let me know in advance.  In addition to your research responsibilities, I also expect you to participate in additional research activities including attending research seminars in psychology and biology (https://www.bowdoin.edu/biology/news/seminar-series/index.html).  

Check-in

We will do a mid-semester check in to make sure you are on track with your independent study project (see questions here).

Final Paper

Regardless of whether you are focusing on a literature review, running subjects, or doing data analysis for your independent study, I expect you to understand the background and rationale for the research.  Therefore, in addition to your lab duties, you should be reading papers relevant to your project (2-3 per week).  Many papers are posted on the lab wiki that cite other relevant papers or you can search for relevant papers online.  At the end of the semester, you will be evaluated on your independent study with a final paper (~10 pages) that may take the form of a literature review, empirical paper, or research proposal depending on your independent study project.  For example, if your independent study project was a literature review you should write your final draft of the literature review as your final paper.  If your independent study project was running subjects and/or doing data analysis you should write an introduction, the current methods, preliminary results, and future directions of the project as your final paper.  

You will be graded on your independent study based on time and effort, understanding and engagement with the project, and final paper.