Undergraduate Research - HHS 455 Contract

UK COURSE DESCRIPTION

Students complete a mentored, self-directed research experience. Students work with faculty to develop an experience of mutual scientific interest. The nature of the experience and the subsequent activities and expected outcomes are defined and outlined in the research contract between the student and mentor. Prereq: Consent of CHS Director of Undergraduate Research. 

COURSE OVERVIEW

HHS 455 is a mentored research course designed to provide undergraduate students with practical experience in research related to human health sciences and associated fields. Students are paired with faculty mentors who are engaged in clinical, translational, or basic science research, and they take part in faculty-led research initiatives. HHS 455 immerses students in the research process through active engagement in ongoing faculty projects. Students will:

• Engage in mentored research experiences
• Participate in lab meetings or research team discussions
• Contribute to data collection, analysis, or interpretation
• Participate in the dissemination of scholarly activity (e.g., poster, paper, presentation)

This course is ideal for students considering graduate study or research-related careers in the health sciences.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Understand the research process in a human health sciences context
• Develop research questions and hypotheses
• Demonstrate proficiency in research techniques relevant to their lab/field
• Communicate research findings in written and oral formats
• Practice professionalism, accountability, and ethical conduct in research settings

COURSE FORMAT & REQUIREMENTS

• Weekly Research Hours (2–8 hrs/week): Students are expected to spend at least 30–120 hours over the semester working on their assigned project.
• Meetings with Mentor: Regular meetings with faculty mentors and/or research teams.

COURSE DETAILS SPECIFIED BETWEEN STUDENT AND FACULTY

Details regarding safety training, specific lab procedures, grading, and work duties are established between each faculty mentor and the student. Each student will have their own customized set of conditions under which the faculty and student will mutually operate. This set of conditions will constitute an academic contract and operate as the individualized syllabus for the student. The approved contract is appended to this syllabus.

REQUIRED STUDENT TRAINING & STEPS

• Student will complete the trainings and steps listed below before beginning any research experience.
• Student must submit evidence of completion for the required trainings to the Director of Undergraduate Research (Dr. Andreatta)

Faculty mentors will direct students to perform the following tasks before lab work is allowed to start.

• Student must register with the UK Office of Undergraduate Research.
• Student must successfully complete Human Subject Protection (HSP) training.
• Student must successfully complete Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR) training using CITI. 
  • Students participating in animal research should complete training on the care and use of animals in research offered by IACUC
• Student must create a ForagerOne account

Optional Training: Faculty can decide if students must complete any web-based safety trainings (WBT) before working in their lab.

• Bio-Safety link
• Chemical Hygiene link
• Bloodborne Pathogens link
• Hazardous Waste link

GENERAL COURSE POLICIES

• If you have a documented disability that requires academic accommodations, please see me as soon as possible. In order to receive accommodations in this course, you must provide me with a Letter of Accommodation from the Disability Resource Center (DRC). The DRC coordinates campus disability services available to students with disabilities. It is located on the corner of Rose Street and Huguelet Drive in the Multidisciplinary Science Building, Suite 407. You can reach them via phone at (859) 257-2754 and via email at drc@uky.edu. Their web address is http://www.uky.edu/DisabilityResourceCenter. DRC accommodations are not retroactive and should therefore be established with the DRC as early in the semester as is feasible.
• For undergraduate students, midterm grades will be posted through myUK by the deadline established in the Academic Calendar: https://registrar.uky.edu/academic-calendars/university
• Please refer to your current student bulletin and the UK Fall Schedule of Classes for details about drop/add dates, course withdrawal procedures, and any other general UK academic course policies.
• For approved Academic Policy Statements used at UK please see and review the information on the following website: https://provost.uky.edu/proposals/guidance-course-proposals/standard-academic-policy-statements.
• All students in CHS must be familiar with the behavioral and technical standards of the college and the program.
• UK offers students a wide array of resources to aid their growth, well-being, and success. A full listing of these services can be found on this website: https://studentsuccess.uky.edu/get-help

Illness and Excused Absence Policy

• In case you are ill or have an emergency on the day of an exam/quiz or due date for an assignment, please let me know of your status within 24 hours after the missed quiz or assignment date by e-mail. If you do so and have the proper documentation, you will be allowed to make up the quiz or assessment or turn in your assignment without any penalty.
• For sudden illnesses, documentation must be in the form of an excuse slip or an email/written note from the UK Health Center or from your personal physician, urgent care, ER room, or similar facility.
• Verification of Absences: Students may be asked to verify their absences for them to be considered excused. Administrative Regulation — Academic and Student Affairs states that faculty have the right to request appropriate verification when students claim an excused absence due to significant illness; death in the household, trips for classes, trips sponsored by an educational unit and trips for participation related to intercollegiate athletic events; and interviews for full-time job opportunities after graduation and interviews for graduate and professional school. (Appropriate notification of absences due to university-related trips is required prior to the absence when feasible and in no case more than one week after the absence.)
• Students should notify the professor of absences PRIOR to class when possible. Some form of documentation is required for ALL excused absences.
• Appropriate notification of absences due to University-related trips is required prior to the absence when feasible and in no case more than one week after the absence.
• Students missing any graded work (late assignments) during an absence bear the responsibility of setting up a time with me to discuss a means of completing the missed work. You have one week from the absence date to make these arrangements with me. If this timeline is not met, the ability to make up any work will be at the discretion of the faculty.
• Students will have the opportunity to make up the work and/or missed exams due to an excused absence, ONLY during the semester in which the absence occurred. Excused absences will be allowed as long as some form of reasonable documentation is provided.

Religious Observances

• Students anticipating an absence or late work due to a major religious holiday are responsible for notifying the instructor in writing of anticipated absences. Two weeks prior to the absence is reasonable but should not be given any later. Information regarding major religious holidays may be obtained through the UK Ombud (859-257-3737, https://ombud.uky.edu/students)
• In the event that a course requirement (assignment, quiz, or activity) falls on the date of a religious observance, you will be given the opportunity to make up work and/or the quiz if you notify the instructor that religious observances prevented you from doing the work at its scheduled time. Notify me at least two weeks prior to such an absence in order to be allowed to make up the assignment or quiz.

Discrimination And Harassment Statement

• UK is committed to providing a safe learning, living, and working environment for all members of the University community. The University maintains a comprehensive program that protects all members from discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct. For complete information about UK’s prohibition on discrimination and harassment on aspects such as race, color, ethnic origin, national origin, creed, religion, political belief, sex, and sexual orientation, please see the electronic version of UK’s Administrative Regulation 6:1 (“Policy on Discrimination and Harassment”).

Title IX Information & Violence Intervention And Prevention

• In accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the University prohibits discrimination and harassment on the basis of sex in academics, employment, and all of its programs and activities. Sexual misconduct is a form of sexual harassment in which one act is severe enough to create a hostile environment based on sex and is prohibited among members of the University community and shall not be tolerated. For more details, please see the electronic version of Administrative Regulations 6:2 (“Policy and Procedures for Addressing and Resolving Allegations of Sexual Assault, Stalking, Dating Violence, Domestic Violence, and Sexual Exploitation”). Complaints regarding violations of University policies on discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct are handled by the Office of Institutional Equity and Equal Opportunity (IEEO), which is located in 13 Main Building and can be reached by phone at (859) 257-8927. You can also visit the IEEO’s website: https://ieeo.uky.edu/.
• Faculty members are obligated to forward any report made by a student related to IEEO matters to the Office of Institutional Equity and Equal Opportunity. Students can confidentially report alleged incidences through the Violence Intervention and Prevention Center, Counseling Center, or University Health Services.
• If you experience an incident of sex- or gender-based discrimination or interpersonal violence, we encourage you to report it. While you may talk to a faculty member or TA/RA/GA, understand that as a "Responsible Employee" of the University, these individuals MUST report any acts of violence (including verbal bullying and sexual harassment) to the University's Title IX Coordinator in the IEEO Office.
• If you would like to speak with someone who may be able to afford you confidentiality, you can visit the Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) Center’s website (offices located in Frazee Hall, lower level; email them; or call (859) 257-3574), the Counseling Center’s (CC) website 
(106 Frazee Hall), and the University Health Services (UHS) website
; the VIP Center, CC, and UHS are confidential resources on campus. The VIP Center accepts walk-in appointments.
• Please see the University academic policy statements for more information about discrimination and Title IX.
• https://provost.uky.edu/proposals/guidance-course-proposals/standard-academic-policy-statements

Counseling Center

• The UK Counseling Center (UKCC) provides a range of confidential psychological services to students enrolled in 6 credit hours or more, psycho-educational outreach programming (including QPR suicide prevention), and consultation to members of the UK community (students, faculty, staff, administrators, parents, concerned others). Please visit the website https://www.uky.edu/counselingcenter/ for more detailed information, or call 859.257.8701.

Academic Honesty & Information

• The University of Kentucky’s Code on Academic Honestly will be STRICTLY followed for this course.  In summary, all students are responsible for maintaining the highest standards of honesty and integrity in every phase of their academics.  The penalties for academic dishonesty are severe and ignorance is not an acceptable defense. The University of Kentucky Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities defines academic offenses and details procedures for dealing with them.  All students are expected to be familiar with the content of the Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The Code can be viewed electronically on the University's website: https://www.uky.edu/studentconduct/code-student-conduct
• Information on academic offense rules for undergraduate students can be found at https://provost.uky.edu/proposals/guidance-course-proposals/academic-offenses. Please review this information so that you are aware of this policy.
• If you’re caught cheating on any assignment and if this transgression is verified after due process, a zero on the assignment on which the offense occurred will be given. This is the minimum penalty for a first offense. If the offense is considered severe or the student has other academic offenses on their record, more serious penalties, up to suspension from the University may be imposed.
• Cheating is defined by its general usage. It includes but is not limited to, the wrongfully giving, taking, or presenting any information or material by a student with the intent of aiding himself/herself or another on any academic work which is considered in any way in the determination of the final grade. The fact that a student could not have benefited from an action is not by itself proof that the action does not constitute cheating. Any question of definition shall be referred to the University Appeals Board.

Plagiarism

• All academic work, written or otherwise, submitted by students to their instructors or other academic supervisors, is expected to be the result of their own thought, research or self-expression. In cases where students feel unsure about a question of plagiarism involving their work, they are obliged to consult their instructors on the matter before submission. When students submit work purporting to be their own, but which in any way borrows ideas, organization, wording or content from another source without appropriate acknowledgment of the fact, the students are guilty of plagiarism.
• Plagiarism includes reproducing someone else's work (including, but not limited to a published article, a book, a website, computer code or a paper from a friend) without clear attribution. Plagiarism also includes the practice of employing or allowing another person to alter or revise the work which a student submits as their own, whoever that other person may be, except under specific circumstances (e.g. Writing Center review, peer review) allowed by the Instructor of Record or that person’s designee. Plagiarism may also include double submission, self-plagiarism or unauthorized resubmission of one’s own work, as defined by the instructor.
• Students may discuss assignments among themselves or with an instructor or tutor, except where prohibited by the Instructor of Record (e.g. individual take-home exams). However, the actual work must be done by the student, and the student alone, unless collaboration is allowed by the Instructor of Record (e.g. group projects). When a student's assignment involves research in outside sources or information, the student must carefully acknowledge exactly what, where and how they have employed them. If the words of someone else are used, the student must put quotation marks around the passage in question and add an appropriate indication of its origin. Making simple changes while leaving the organization, content and phraseology intact is plagiaristic. However, nothing in this AR shall apply to those ideas which are so generally and freely circulated as to be a part of the public domain.
• Common Knowledge - Common knowledge does not require citations. If a student is in doubt about whether a source needs to be cited, ask the course instructor before submitting the assignment or a draft of the assignment.  Drafts of assignments may be charged with plagiarism.