AMS-532: Lab Rotations/Journal Club Guidelines
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Lab Rotation Guidelines:
- The goal of lab rotations is to help students choose a research advisor and to help faculty members choose students. In particular, faculty members use rotations as a way to help gauge how a student will work in a laboratory setting and if they would be a productive team member of the lab. With this objective in mind it is important to consider the following points when doing each rotation.
- Become fully engaged in the lab during your rotation. Make arrangements with the group leader to have a desk or other place at which you can work and be sure to go to the lab everyday. If you need to work on class assignments do your homework in the lab. Students that rarely show up leave a less than favorable impression.
- Show interest in the lab's research. Ask questions.
- Read key papers from the lab. Become well-acquainted with tools being used in the group.
- Be proactive in communicating with others in the lab. Ask for help and guidance to get started.
- Attend lab meetings. Ask questions.
- Be proactive in asking your rotation advisor to discuss with you research projects which could be pursued should you join the group permanently.
- Keep in mind that faculty members must devote considerable time, effort, as well as provide financial assistance when they commit to becoming an advisor to a student. Thus, faculty members want to be sure that before they make such a commitment a student will have good work habits, can communicate, is easy to work with, is interested in the lab's research, and wants to succeed in graduate school. Lab rotations can be used to show to potential advisors you have such qualities.
Journal Club Guidelines:
- Attendance/participation is mandatory.
- Send a pdf of your paper to the group by Friday for the upcoming Wed meeting
- Print out a hard copy of the paper, make notes, and bring to class.
- Become engaged in the discussion.
- Discussion leaders need to update the wiki with the complete reference of the paper covered in class.