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ARS Home » Plains Area » Brookings, South Dakota » Integrated Cropping Systems Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #211666
Title: Partnership in Undergraduate Research Experience

Author
item VISSER, JERRY - SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIV
item Rosentrater, Kurt

Submitted to: Meeting Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/6/2007
Publication Date: 6/25/2007
Citation: Visser, J., Rosentrater, K.A. 2007. Partnership in Undergraduate Research Experience. 2007 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii, June 24-27, 2007. Available online: www.asee.org.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Practical laboratory and work experience has been helpful in reinforcing the undergraduate educational experience. With limited resources, individual organizations may struggle to give a student a well rounded opportunity. Most undergraduates work within internships or cooperative educational frameworks with one entity. At South Dakota State University, the Product Development Center (PDC) has initiated a collaborative research project with the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Brookings for the benefit of undergraduate students. This collaborative framework with the United States Department of Agriculture ARS grows from three key aspects. First, the students at both the ARS and the PDC exchange ideas, concepts, and work interactively on projects. These activities provide a deep underpinning between their efforts and the greater scope of both the PDC and ARS research agendas. Second, the PDC and ARS pool equipment and laboratory tools which would be prohibitively expensive for each individual organization to operate. Students can observe and utilize these devices to add breadth to their experience. Third, students work together with Manufacturing Engineering Technology faculty and Bioprocess Engineers. This adds another perspective to solving research problems. Further, the ARS is a federally operated lab while the PDC runs with supervision of the state university. The goal of the paper is to provide a functional framework for enhancing the undergraduate research practice. This paper shows the synergistic nature of sharing resources for the improved educational experience of the student. Two examples of the student involvement will be illustrated based on the three aspects of interactive projects, pooled resources, and different perspectives. One student primarily used a background from manufacturing engineering technology with knowledge in CNC machining. The other student used an educational background from physics and fundamental science.