Student Research

Rochester students conduct research everywhere—in the lab and in the field, independently and with industry partners, in our local communities and all over the world. They make world-changing discoveries, while also making an educational experience all their own.

Interacting with objects that hold history in ways I can’t comprehend with just research articles was simply mind-blowing. It’s an opportunity to learn in ways that you can’t get from a classroom.

Emily English ’27

A smiling woman in glasses and a sweater stands before a pile of newspapers at the University of Rochester.

Student research in action

Check out how these students’ research help us radically reimagine the world—while gaining unique experience that sets them apart.

Two people in a lab, one using a pipette, both wearing lab coats.

Using bacteria to create clean energy

A team of students harnessed bacteria to capture carbon dioxide and generate energy—using synthetic biology to solve real-world problems.

Going green

Senior biomedical engineering student Sophea Urbi Biswas adjusts an electroencephalography cap on fellow lab member Jin Dou, a biomedical engineering PhD student.

Exploring how the brain processes speech syntax

Sophea Urbi Biswas ’24 is a biomedical engineering student. Her hands-on lab experience as an undergraduate is driving new discoveries. “It’s exciting pursuing questions that have never been asked before, and getting results that have never been found before.”

Wired for research

Person standing with crossed arms in a library aisle next to bookshelves.

Are there biases when women run for office?

Morgan Gillespie ’23 conducted voter perception research—a unique path in her education that she didn’t know she could take. “I realized I would be able to investigate issues that I always had questions about but that I didn’t think I’d be able to find the answers for.”

How gender impacts voting

Ready to get started?

A woman wearing sunglasses operates a machine in a University of Rochester lab setting.

Learn more about research opportunities, deadlines, funding, and more details on how to conduct research with University of Rochester faculty, labs, and programs.

Office of Undergraduate Research

Explore more topics

Music student with instrument entering Eastman School of Music.

Admissions

Apply to Rochester

Find more information on how to apply to our undergraduate and graduate programs, financial aid, and more.

How to apply

A University of Rochester student walks up stairs of Rush Rhees Library in cap and gown

Libraries

Search for knowledge

Discover how our libraries foster big ideas.

Explore our libraries

Professor writing on a whiteboard at the front of a classroom at the University of Rochester.

Academics

Explore majors and degrees

Our 200-plus programs of study run the gamut, from the traditional to the self-designed.

View academic programs