Remote Research

Remote research has many pros and cons. On one hand, you might be cutting out a long, unpleasant commute from your day, but on the other hand, you may sometimes need the change of scenery. Having your private and professional lives trying to coexist in the same space can be a handful to balance.

When there is a lack of separation between work and home, setting clear boundaries is important. When are you going to be working? When are you going to be relaxing and tending to your private life? Just because it is convenient for you to work at any time of the day/night, that doesn't mean you should!

Everyone's boundaries will be different. For some people, this might mean physically segmenting the space within their home to create a workplace they go to. For others, this might involve creating a set routine and limiting the times when they will be available to attend meetings.

Figuring out your boundaries might take some time. Talking about what you are finding challenging with people you trust is always a good place to start finding solutions.

Technostress is the negative impacts technology can have on your health and well-being. While conducting research remotely, you may find yourself spending a lot more time in front of a computer screen than you would normally. This may lead to an increase in the amount of technostress you experience.

It is important to keep your technostress in check as much as you are able to. Let's continue this conversation on our technostress page.

At the start of every research project is a steep learning curve followed by many ups and downs. If your first encounter with research is in a virtual setting, this point cannot be emphasized enough. Not being in the same physical space as peers means that you don't get to see them struggling, running into dead ends, hear their sighs of frustration, or listen in on them working through a problem with other members of your lab.

While many people in research struggle with imposter syndrome, the isolation created by the remote environment can amplify these feelings. Be patient with yourself. Remember that you are here to learn. You are not the only one who is facing challenges and roadblocks.

Having good mentorship can drastically change your research experience. How do you bridge communication barriers? What can you do to cultivate a good relationship with your mentor in a digital space?

If your mentor isn't very responsive to your attempts to connect, don't take it personally. Some mentors just don't have the capacity to provide direct mentorship to every student, especially if they are the principle investigator. This is true for remote and in-person research.

At times, getting the ball rolling with your mentor will be the biggest barrier you have to overcome. Try setting up a consistent weekly meeting with them during which you will be able to discuss your research project with them. Ask them about what is the best way to get a hold of them in between meetings.

Get an understanding of their expectations of mentees and share your expectations for a mentor. What level of independence do they expect of you? What kind of support do you need from them to be successful? Clear expectations can reduce misunderstandings by creating a foundation for the relationship.

Your mentor probably isn't as scary as you think. Feeling disconnected from your mentor or worried that you are bothering them is not uncommon. The digital environment exacerbates this issue. While it may feel uncomfortable reaching out to someone you never met in person (or only a couple times) to discuss issues/challenges that make you feel vulnerable, your mentor will not be aware of struggles you are facing without you communicating with them.

What do you do if your mentor continues being unresponsive despite continuous attempts to connect? If your direct research mentor is the PI, try finding mentorship from other lab members. If there is a lab manager or coordinator, reach out to them for help figuring out who to talk to instead. In cases where you are being mentored by someone else, reach out to your PI or the lab manager to discuss this issue.

In some cases, doing remote research means that you aren't able to do the things you really want to do. The disappointment you feel about this is valid. Though you may not be able to cultivate certain skills in a remote environment, take advantage of the opportunity at hand! Do what you can given the situation.

There are important research skills that adapt very well to remote environments, such as:

• Honing your literature search skills

• Familiarizing yourself with relevant software tools

• Data analysis