A record-setting 329 students will present research projects during Purdue University Calumet’s annual Student Research Day on campus, Thursday, April 16 in the Student Union & Library.
Some 195 projects, the work of 240 undergraduate and 89 graduate students, will be presented and displayed from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Learning through self-discovery
“Student Research Day represents student learning through self-discovery,” Purdue Calumet Chancellor Thomas L. Keon said. “The student projects that will be presented are indicative of learning that produces solutions. Research is an excellent way to enhance lifelong learning and self-reflection.”
Students enrolled in each of Purdue Calumet’s six academic colleges and Honors College will showcase research they have advanced during the past academic year. Each presented project will include a written summary and an oral or poster presentation.
Oral presentations are scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 10:40 a.m. and from 1 p.m. to 4:10 p.m. Students also will present posters of their research and answer questions from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Faculty researcher delivering keynote
Purdue Calumet Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering Besma Smida, recent recipient of a National Science Foundation Career AWARD grant, is the day’s keynote speaker. Smida’s grant is supporting her research to enhance spectrum efficiency for cell phones and other wireless communicative devices.
Student Research Day also includes a student panel discussion at 12:30 p.m., dinner and awards ceremony. Purdue Calumet student research activities are coordinated through the university’s Student Research Office, directed by Associate Professor of Mathematics Nicoleta Tarfulea.
“Through deep learning in research, students can gain valuable knowledge and skills, increase their learning and self-confidence, have close interactions with their mentors, attend conferences and prepare themselves for future study and careers,” Interim Associate Vice Chancellor of Research and Graduate Studies and Professor of Mechanical Engineering Chenn Zhou said.
Student research increasing
Since 2011, participants in Student Research Day have increased each year from 165. Student research also is a component of Purdue Calumet’s experiential learning initiative, a graduation requirement in which students integrate traditional and classroom learning with the learning and discovery that occurs in a real world environment.
Research Day also is celebrated at Purdue Calumet to promote, inspire and display opportunities by which Purdue Calumet students learn through engagement and discovery, a goal of the university’s Strategic Plan.