Department of Biological Sciences - University at Albany

BIO 399(Z)/499(Z) Supervised Research (Writing Intensive)
for Juniors and Seniors
Communication and Reasoning Competencies: Written Discourse

Coordinator: Dr. Robert Osuna (osuna@albany.edu); ph: 591-8827; Office: LS 2062
Permission Form and instructions
See also the material about Undergrad Research Opportunities
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ABIO 399 & ABIO 499 (and Z components) are 1-4 credit Independent Study courses in Biology for matriculated Biology or science majors and are intended to engage students in a specific field of research by using the scientific method of investigation; so they may research a topic, develop an argument, organize supporting details, and produce coherent texts within common college-level written forms

GRADING (A-E) ABIO 399/499 and ABIO 399Z/499Z

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: See Undergraduate Bulletin for details.
While it is not easy to evaluate this experience with a single letter grade, a level of consistency and fairness in our grading may be achieved by considering (wherever possible) similar evaluation criteria. Certain common expectations are listed below.
Students are expected to commit to the following:
- TIME: 3 hours of work/ per week/ per credit Fall/spring Semester; 8-10 hours/week/credit during the Summer session. At times during the semester, students may need more time to study for exams, which may temporarily affect their availability for research. However, students should discuss this with their supervisor, and plan to make up this time in other weeks.
- TRAINING: Students are expected to make reasonable progress in responding to lab training by learning and correctly executing the required laboratory techniques.
- MOTIVATION: Students are expected to show genuine interest and become intellectually involved in their research problem. This may be demonstrated (among other ways) by:
  - Completing assigned readings for their research (e.g. advanced textbook chapters published papers, previous lab theses, etc…)
  - Level of preparation for any lab presentations (at least one presentation per semester would be appropriate, where the student may receive feedback from the various lab members)
  - Frequency or kind of questions asked and interest in discussing the research with their supervisor.
  - Level of responsibility and dedication toward their experiments.
- DATA COLLECTION: Students are expected to maintain well-kept lab notebook containing accurate and detailed notes regarding each experiment, data collected, and conclusions arrived at. It should be organized, neat, and legible.
- RESEARCH PAPER:
  - Students are required to write a research paper and submit to the Undergraduate Research Coordinator by the last day of each semester. Late papers will receive a grade of Incomplete.
  - The paper should follow a scientific publication format, which must include:
    - Title and author (s)
    - Introduction (with cited references within the text)
    - Materials & Methods (with cited references within the text)
    - Results (including relevant data and figure legends)
    - Discussion (with cited references within the text)
    - References

FINAL GRADE (see table below for suggested grade range)

The final grade a student receives should take all these aspects of the research experience into consideration. It is OK to assign a grade inferior to A, if one or more of the above criteria are less than excellent.
However, a student’s grade should not be strictly based on the success of his or her experiments.
It is a good idea to discuss these and other expectations with a student at the beginning of each semester, and to discuss their progress regularly throughout the semester.

Evaluation Criteria	Poor (E to D+)	Marginal (C- to C+	Good (B- to B)	Very Good (B+ to A-)	Excellent (A)
Amount of time devoted
Response to training
Motivation
Data Collection
Research Paper

ABIO 399Z and ABIO 499Z [WI = Writing Intensive]

Research Supervisors: Note the University criteria (below) before agreeing
to mentor a student in ABIO 399Z/499Z Writing Intensive Versions of this course.
- PREREQUISITES: 2 credits, previous registration of ABIO 399 or ABIO 499.
- UNIVERSITY CRITERIA INCLUDE:
  - A Substantial Body of Finished Work: A research paper consisting of ˜20 double-spaced pages involving at least two (preferably more) submissions.
  - Response to Student Writing: Student’s papers should receive extensive comments from the instructor.
  - Required Revision: Students are expected to revise their written work, accordingly.
  - Opportunity for Students to Receive Assistance in Progress: It is expected that students will receive help in writing from the instructor during scheduled meetings. The Writing Center may also be used as a resource (HU140).
- GEN-ED REQUIREMENT for WRITING INTENSIVE COURSES
  - Writing Intensive course at the lower division, with grades of C or higher or S (generally completed in the freshman or sophomore year) and a Writing Intensive course at or above the 300 level, normally within the major.
  - These courses use writing as an important tool in the discipline studied and are not designed primarily to teach the technical aspects of writing.
  - The emphasis is on using writing as a means of sharpening critical thinking in and understanding of the subject.

Modified:9/08

Department of Biological Sciences
University at Albany, State University of New York
1400 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12222
Phone: (518) 442-4300; Fax: (518) 442-4767

Questions or comments can be e-mailed to the Department Office

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