2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

WIP: Design and Assessment of a Centralized Website to Promote Undergraduate Research

Presented at First-Year Programs Division (FPD) Poster Session

This Work in Progress paper examines the design and initial outcomes of a centralized research advertising platform intended to broaden access to mentored undergraduate research across the academic year and summer. Although early research engagement supports student confidence, identity development, and STEM persistence, learning about and obtaining research opportunities often relies on institutional familiarity and informal networks such as word of mouth. We piloted a platform called URConnected to address the needs of faculty to advertise opportunities and students to engage with research experiences. The centralized platform with a common application was piloted at a small undergraduate engineering institution.

Findings from our three-year pilot draw on applications submitted through the system, research placement, and pre- and post-surveys to examine use of the system and outcomes. While available to all students, users of the system were predominantly first-year students. Survey results indicated that informal word-of-mouth mechanisms remained highly valued. Key constraints included voluntary faculty participation, variability in position availability, limited student awareness, and preexisting culture within the institution.

Results suggest that centralized platforms may function most effectively as supplemental infrastructure that broadens early access alongside informal pathways. Ongoing work focuses on refining implementation and identifying transferable design principles for such systems across institutional contexts.

Authors

Madeleine N. Fahey Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering [biography]

Madeleine N. Fahey is an undergraduate student at Olin College of Engineering pursuing a B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Her main area of interest is human-centered design, and researches how to build informed solutions with both a user-focused and engineer's perspective. She has been working with the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) since her first year through partnership with Olin, and has also more recently studied how students view and reflect on their personal changemaking efforts.
Trinity Lee Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering [biography]

Trinity Lee is an undergraduate engineering student at Olin College of Engineering pursuing a B.S. in Engineering with a concentration in Computing. She has always been passionate about engineering education and has been part of multiple research labs investigating engineering education and research. At Olin, she has worked with The Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) to improve research accessibility to undergraduate students and conducted research on engineering education and its relationship with variability as part of the Uncertainty Research Lab.
Dr. Jean Huang http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1259-7209 Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering [biography]

Jean Huang is an Associate Professor of Biology at Olin College of Engineering. Her teaching and research are in the areas of environmental microbiology, sustainability, and interdisciplinary pedagogy.
Dr. Jeff Dusek Baldwin Wallace University [biography]

Jeff Dusek is an Associate Professor of Engineering at Baldwin Wallace University, where he directs the Laboratory for Adaptation, Inclusion, and Robotics. His work emphasizes interdisciplinary undergraduate research in marine robotics, marine energy, and assistive and adaptive technologies. Supported by the Kern Family Foundation, he has collaborated with undergraduate researchers from Baldwin Wallace University, Olin College, and Valparaiso University to investigate student and faculty perceptions of undergraduate research, examine student–mentor matching processes, and develop web-based tools to enhance the visibility and accessibility of undergraduate research opportunities. He earned a PhD in Mechanical and Ocean Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and serves as an Engineering Division Representative for the Council on Undergraduate Research.
Dr. Reva E. Johnson http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3725-0754 Valparaiso University [biography]

Reva Johnson is an Associate Professor of Bioengineering and Mechanical Engineering at Valparaiso University. Her research interests include learning and adaptation, human-machine interfaces, heart rate analysis for athletics, and STEM education.
Dr. Daniel Maguire Valparaiso University [biography]

Daniel Maguire is an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Valparaiso University. His teaching and research interests include adaptive control systems, active noise and vibration control, signal processing, and instructional methods for signals and systems.

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 21, 2026, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 24, 2026

« View session