Undergraduate Research Experiences
Stand out on your college application. Get research experience in a number of academic pathways, from science to English, sociology to linguistics, and beyond! You will gain valuable experience that can help you win a paid internship or jump right into research work at a 4-year institution. Dig deeper into projects that you are already passionate about.
Benefits
- Learn about research design, subject recruitment, data collection, statistical analysis and reporting
- Pursue hands-on research experiences including simulations, replications, development of original research designs, and/or participation in ongoing faculty/departmental research
- Work one-on-one with a faculty mentor to develop and execute your research proposal
- Showcase your research at the annual ACC Research Symposium
- Prepare your research manuscript for submission to undergraduate research journals for potential publication
- Gain a competitive advantage with a body of work that will build your resume
We currently have 2 opportunities available to conduct undergraduate research projects.
*The deadline for both opportunities is by the 3rd week of the semester.
Honors Research Program (tied to a registered course)
Honors research students will:
- Develop a hands-on research project building on what you are learning in a specific class. This will be worked on and completed over the semester and / or beyond.
- Every research project will be in collaboration with your mentor. This includes topics of interest, anticipated time spent on the various tasks, and what your end goal(s) are.
- The mentor can be your current instructor / faculty or a recommended faculty that has the same interest as you (just ask your instructor if they are a participating mentor for this course).
- Participate and attend talks, seminars, and opportunities with other Honors Research students, that can give you support, feedback, and a community of like-minded people.
- Communicate your research project in the annual ACC Research Symposium, spring semester.
- And finally, you will receive an “Honors Research” designation on your transcript for that particular class.
If this sounds like something you are interested in, reach out to your instructor to learn more. Even if they aren’t a current mentor, the goal of the Research Scholars Committee will be to find a mentor within your field of study - just complete the Letter of Interest (LOI) form. You can also reach out to accresearch [at] arapahoe [dot] edu (accresearch[at]arapahoe[dot]edu) for more information.
Research Scholars Program (outside of a registered course)
Research Scholars will:
- Develop a hands-on research project building on your interest, outside of a specific class. This will be worked on and completed over the semester and / or beyond.
- Every research project will be in collaboration with your mentor. This includes topics of interest, anticipated time spent on the various tasks, and what your end goal(s) are.
- The mentor can be chosen by you or as a recommended faculty that has the same interest as you. We will work hard to find a good mentor match if you don’t have one in mind.
- Participate and attend talks, seminars, and opportunities with other Honors Research students, that can give you support, feedback, and a community of like-minded people.
- Communicate your research project in the annual ACC Research Symposium, spring semester.
Just complete the Letter of Interest (LOI) form. You can also reach out to accresearch [at] arapahoe [dot] edu (accresearch[at]arapahoe[dot]edu) for more information.
Contact
accresearch [at] arapahoe [dot] edu (accresearch[at]arapahoe[dot]edu)
Nia Bauer
Faculty Coordinator of Research Experiences
Biology Faculty
nia [dot] bauer [at] arapahoe [dot] edu (nia[dot]bauer[at]arapahoe[dot]edu)
303.797.5713
Jacob Johnson
Chemistry Faculty
jacob [dot] johnson [at] arapahoe [dot] edu (jacob[dot]johnson[at]arapahoe[dot]edu)
303.797.5765
Chemistry Research Scholars Blog
Research Students Present at the ACC Research Symposium
In Fall 2025 students from the ACC Chemistry Research Scholars program participated in Arapahoe Community College’s Research Symposium. Researchers presented projects culminating their work from the past year.
ACC Chemistry Research Team Performs Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Experiments at CU Denver
Students in the ACC Chemistry Research Scholars group traveled to CU Denver to perform 1H NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectroscopy experiments on compounds they synthesized. Shown to the right are actual samples of these molecules fluorescing made by students at ACC on the Chemistry Research Scholars Team.
Chemistry Research Scholars - The Chemistry of Fluorophores
Students in the Chemistry Research Scholars Team at ACC are studying the chemistry of fluorophores.
