Onboarding Process

After gaining acceptance into a lab, you might have to go through an official onboarding process. This process might have you register with Human Resources (HR) as a non-employee volunteer, which will allow you an additional level of access you wouldn’t have as a student. This additional level of access will allow you to get key access to certain offices or buildings, or to use the printer to print materials associated with the lab. You might also have to undergo a background check as part of this process. The professor you work with and/or their lab manager or graduate student (if they have one) will provide you with additional details about the process. Make sure you are diligent in following the instructions on completing these steps. Missteps could lead to delays on you joining the lab and projects that are important for your development and/or the research itself. We should also note that this process is likely new to you. Generally speaking, it is much better to ask questions if you’ve made a concerted effort to follow the instructions than to guess at something. That advice likely applies to your general experience as a research assistant: ask questions, don’t feel like you have to know everything.