Our research team in the Child and Adolescent Development Lab includes undergraduate students who work as research assistants on our current study of women who misuse opioids during pregnancy and their infants. Lab meetings introduce the principles of developmental psychopathology and provide undergraduates with the experience, skills, and guidance they need to gain admittance to graduate programs. Undergraduates from the lab have gone on to many different kinds of graduate school including Clinical Psychology PhD programs, Developmental Psychology PhD programs, Medical School, Law School, Masters in Social Work programs, and Nursing
Undergraduates work with women who are pregnant, and with mothers and infants after delivery. Some women are at risk due to opioid misuse. Others are at risk due to other factors, such as obesity or multiple births expected. Activities may include interviewing mothers in the high-risk clinic at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, home visits, managing data, sending out cards and letters, keeping budget records, making appointments with mothers after delivery, updating our web page, and reviewing the research literature.
There may also be the opportunity to be an author on a poster presentation for a national conference
Applying for a position as a research assistant
If you are interested in gaining research experience in an independent study, PSYC 489, you can check out current research in the Child and Adolescent Development Lab.
Pre-requisites for being a research assistant
A three-semester commitment is required. This allows you to immerse yourself in the lab, understand the research process, and gather enough experience to earn a good reference for applying to graduate school. In addition, a current overall 3.5 GPA is required. Being a research assistant is very time-consuming. It is hard to raise your GPA to get into graduate school at the same time as working in the lab. After we have reviewed your online application and if we have openings, you will be invited for an interview to make sure this is a good fit on both sides. Thank you for your interest in the Child and Adolescent Development Lab.
To apply, please complete the form below.