Undergraduate research

During my undergrad days, we did not have any chance of research; in fact none of the professors had a doctorate, while the Head of the Department was on leave for his PhD. And, we had just one Professor in the Mathematics Department who had a publication in a journal. So, I never had a chance to experience what it means to do research–the closest we came to is a visit to the Vainu Bappu Observatory where we heard some nice talks–in fact, two–one by Dr. Ramnad Cowsik on the structure of the universe, and another by Dr. Priyamvada Saraswat on the birth and death of a star.

However, during my grad student days we had several summer students visit the lab; they were undergrad students from different parts of India. I do not know how much they enjoyed/benefited by their stay in the lab; but, we enjoyed having them around; and, I would never have thought about some of the issues of phase field modelling but for their asking me all those questions. Of course, as this poem notes (pdf), there was the pleasure of seeing them have their “aha” moments.

So, is undergrad research good idea? I say yes, at least for those who work with them, if not for the undergrads themselves!