CURF Central
Start here before you email anyone: this searchable CURF database contains research descriptions from faculty who are generally open to engaging with undergrads
What is the CURF Research Directory?
Two letters (acronym) for the person who runs the lab, controls the funding and usually decides whether you get a spot
What is a PI?
This is who can apply to be the House Research Fellow: no specific major, class year or research experience required
Who is anyone?
If a professor hasn't replied, wait about this long before sending a single polite follow-up
What is 1 to 2 weeks?
If it's part of your financial aid package, you can be paid to do research through this federal program
What is Federal Work-Study?
CURF's office sits on the ground floor of this building, which it shares with several other centers and the President’s and Provost’s offices
What is College Hall?
Often shortened to “RA,” this role allows undergraduates to contribute to a faculty member’s research, whether by examining historical records or analyzing experimental data
What is a research assistant?
Good news for your wallet: the House Research Fellow position comes with this, unlike volunteering in a lab
What is pay? (Yes, it's paid!)
Before writing “Dear Professor,” check the department directory so you can correctly include these two details in your greeting
What is their title and last name?
CURF trains these upperclassmen to visit college houses and coach first-years on how to break into research
Who are Research Peer Advisors (RPAs)?
This researcher has already earned a PhD and is completing additional research training. They may supervise undergraduate researchers, even though they aren’t professors
Who is a postdoctoral researcher, or postdoc?
True or false: two or more residents can team up on a single House Research Fellow project
What is true? (Yes, group projects are allowed)
Measured in hours per week and semesters available, this is something you should assess realistically before offering to join a professor’s research
What is your time commitment?
This four-letter Penn program funds approximately 25 summer research internships for students in the humanities and social sciences to work in a cultural, historical, or archival setting
What is SHIP, the Summer Humanities Internship Program?
This CURF summer program introduces students to research, runs for 10 weeks, is only for first-years and sophomores, and you can only do it once
What is PURM?
Helping with a project doesn’t automatically earn this credit on a publication. It generally requires a substantial intellectual contribution and responsibility for the work, not just a thank you in the acknowledgments
What is authorship?
Ready to apply to be the House Research Fellow? Watch for the application postings in these two places
What are your email and the house newsletters?
Instead of asking for a research position in your first email, ask for this low-stakes, 15-minute request, which is much easier for a busy faculty member to say yes to
What is an informational meeting?
Penn’s main hub for interdisciplinary humanities research and public programming, this center offers undergraduate research fellowships focused on a new theme each year
What is the Wolf Humanities Center?
When PURM launched in 2007, its name started with this senior Penn administrator's title instead of the word Penn
Who is the Provost?
A student plans to study how social pressure influences decision-making using human participants. This Penn board reviews research involving people to protect their rights and welfare
What is the IRB, the Institutional Review Board?
Still have questions about the House Research Fellow? Ask these two Ware House Fellows: one teaches at Penn Dental and the other teaches Medical Spanish at Perelman
Who are Alicia and Mónica?
A professor’s article is behind a paywall. Before paying to read it, sign in through this Penn resource to check whether the University already provides access
What is Penn Libraries?