Get Research Experience
There are four main research and teaching groups in the School: Biomaterials & Biomechanics, Biomedical Informatics, Biomedical Systems & Signals, and Cellular Bioengineering.
Research is generally associated with graduate students in the school, but for undergraduate students who wish to get involved, there are technical electives offered in the areas of certain professors’ specialties. Availability of these courses will depend on student interest and may change from year to year. For information on the various research groups our faculty members are part of, and the projects our faculty members are working on, visit the Research Section of our website.
Undergraduate Student Research Funding Opportunities
If you have identified a faculty member that has agreed to supervise a summer research project, there are a number of funding opportunities that may be available. See the table below for a selection of summer research programs and their deadlines with links to the applications. Most of these opportunities are offered each spring, with the opportunity announced ~ 1 month prior to the deadline. More information regarding the NSERC application process follows.
| Program/Faculty | Deadline | Application Information |
|---|---|---|
| UBC Faculty of Medicine – Summer Student Research Program | mid-February | Link |
| UBC Faculty of Medicine – Department of Pathology | early March | Link |
| Allergy, Genes and Environment Network (AllerGen) | mid-February | Link |
| Cystic Fibrosis Canada | early March | Link |
| Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) | late February | ResearchNet Portal; Example Call |
| National Sciences and Engineering Council (NSERC) | early March | Link |
BMEG 400M – Selected Topics in Biomedical Engineering
The objective of this course is to provide students with experience in research. Research projects are carried out in the laboratory of a faculty member who acts as a supervisor. The choice of topics is left to the discretion of the supervisor in agreement with the student. More technical topics such as method development and evaluation are also appropriate. Students undertaking this directed studies course, comprising research experience and hands-on learning modules (workshops), will develop skills including critical thinking, creativity, intellectual independence, communication skills, and organization.
Structure
- Students will need to have identified a research supervisor who is willing to accept the student into their lab.
- The course will have an orientation for all students at the beginning. All undergraduate students will present their research findings at the end of the summer.
- Students would spend the majority of their time in this course conducting research in the research lab. They would also enroll in a number of short workshops offered through this course.
- The undergraduate students are required to complete a minimum of 4 workshops, selected based on relevance to their research topic.
- When the students are not taking a workshop, they would be conducting research in the research lab.
- May 11 – August 13, 2020.
Enrollment
Contact joint/core faculty members with whom you are interested in working. After receiving confirmation from a supervisor that they can accept you into their lab, please provide both your name and the supervisor’s name in a request to enrollment to undergrad@bme.ubc.ca.
Course Instructor:
Dr. Sharareh Bayat (shararehb (at) ece.ubc.ca)
NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards
Are you an undergraduate student interested in gaining research experience in an academic setting that compliments your current studies?
NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) are designed to stimulate interest in research in the areas of natural sciences and engineering in an effort to encourage students to partake in graduate studies and pursue a research career in these fields.
Students do not need to be in the School of Biomedical Engineering (SBME) to work with an SBME professor. SBME students, in turn, may also hold an award in another department or university, if you find a faculty member who is interested in supervising you.
SBME Application Deadline for 2022: Friday, March 4, 2022 @ 09:00 (Pacific Time)
ELIGIBILITY & AWARD INFORMATION
The USRA research is a full-time activity. Students should not receive academic credits for the work done during the term of the USRA. Award holders may take a maximum of one course in addition to their USRA with the agreement of their supervisor. If the course is during normal working hours, special arrangements with the supervisor must be made for the student to make up the time spent on the course. In particular, USRA holders are not permitted to do thesis research during the term of the award. In addition, the USRA program makes no provision for sick leave or other interruptions of awards. Please inform the Liaison Officer immediately should a work term be interrupted or terminated early for any reason.
SBME PROCEDURE
- Contact faculty members(SBME associate members are not eligible for the SBME NSERC USRA) with whom you are interested in working. You can consult the list of available projects and also approach faculty to see if they have projects that are not listed.
- Prepare the USRA application (all applications must first be submitted electronically directly to NSERC, including the upload of the transcripts).
- Form 202 must be submitted electronically
- Form 202 consists of Parts I and II. Part I must be completed by the student and Part II must be completed by the proposed university research supervisor.
- Students and supervisorsmust complete an online application on the NSERC website by clicking “System Login” or, if you are a first-time user, “Register.”
- Instructions on how to complete the formcan also be found on the NSERC website.
- A copy of your Form 202 (Parts I and II), transcript (include ONE COPY of the LEGEND located on the back side of each transcript – DO NOT scan the legend multiple times), cover letter, and resume must also be submitted to the SBME Student Services Office electronically as a single consolidated PDFaddressed to awards@bme.ubc.ca with the subject line of “USRA 2021 Application – <YOUR NAME HERE>. File name must follow naming convention “<YOUR NAME> – USRA 2021 Application”. Applications that do not follow these procedures will not be accepted.
Notes:
NSERC will NOT accept hardcopy forms, so the official application must be completed and submitted electronically.
Read the program description in the Program Guide for Students and Fellows before you complete the application.
International Students – Work Learn International Undergraduate Research Award Program may also be available. For more information and the deadlines, please refer to https://students.ubc.ca/career/campus-experiences/undergraduate-research/work-learn-international-undergraduate-research-awards
ICORD Summer Research Program for Indigenous Youth
In partnership with ICORD, we offer a summer program to provide opportunities and mentorship for indigenous youth interested in scientific research. High school students (currently in grade 10 or 11) are invited to do research projects with us, in the hopes that this experience might inspire you to go on in the sciences, and maybe consider further studies or a career in neuroscience or biomedical engineering.