Here are some of the musings of our students after completing the URECA programme…
Choosing to take on URECA is definitely one of my best choices during university. It is a one of a kind experience that is unlike other. My mentors have always given me their support and guidance, and helped me to improve my writing and statistical software skills. It is really eye-opening to be part of a research project where I got to brainstorm for the project’s methodology, participate in data collection and coding, create a poster, and write a research paper for my project. I would definitely recommend my juniors to take on URECA to learn more about research and benefit from URECA. –Rachel Chan Si Hui
I am happy to say that my journey through URECA has provided insight into what the life of a researcher really entails. When I first began my journey, I did not know what to expect as I have never done proper research from scratch – from the collection of data, to the analysis of the collected data, to writing a whole research paper on the topic. URECA also allowed me to apply the psychological theories that I learned and ultimately helped me better understand these theories. –Darren Sim Kah Ho
What made URECA an enriching experience was the mentorship that was provided to us. Our mentors were well-versed and had loads of experience in this field and provided a great deal of support and guidance throughout the research process, allowing me to learn the ropes of research with greater ease. Being a part of the lab also allowed me to get to know individuals who are passionate about a similar topic as I am, making this experience much more enjoyable as well. All in all, I feel that URECA is an experience I would recommend to any aspiring researcher as it has provided me with great opportunities to hone the skillsets of a researcher and to experience the demands of the role as a researcher. –Chua Pei Fen Athena
Engaging in URECA extends much further than just being a research assistant. In addition to participant recruitment, conducting surveys and testing, data entry and analysis, we were also given the opportunity to summarise our research findings into a poster, to present our results to other URECA students and professors, and to write a research report that is a culmination of our semester’s worth of research efforts. –Lin Xiao Wen
Right at the start, I remembered how difficult it was to understand the literature and the statistical analysis used. I became anxious when I needed to submit the pre-registration form and present the pilot study results in a poster format. Also, I came to realise that careful thought is required especially when preparing the stimuli or designing the procedure. For instance, I did not expect the task of creating a set of standardised dance moves to be so tricky. Yet, over time, I started to enjoy the problem-solving process and I learnt to see things beyond the surface level. –Ng Wan Zhyi
My first URECA experience was useful in giving me a head start in gaining experience on the writing and time management skills that would eventually be needed for my FYP. From this opportunity, I gained a better understanding of my FYP topic earlier than my peers who did not take up URECA. Overall, I really enjoyed my time with ECL. I think the lab is organised in a way such that there are structures and resources (e.g., research procedure guides for each projects, observation periods) available to supports students who may be new to research. –Ng Chen Ying Heather
My FYP-URECA experience has been unlike any other! It gave me a unique platform to develop my research interests and allowed me to pick up skills in project management. In the past year, I learnt a lot from coordinating with research partners, developing tools and conducting analyses on findings. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the classroom with the student participants. Overall, the FYP-URECA experience helped grow in my confidence and capabilities as a researcher. –Ng Kai Lun Jessica