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Undergraduate Research in Australia

What do we mean by Undergraduate Research?

'Undergraduate research is an inquiry or investigation conducted by an undergraduate that makes and original, intellectual or creative contribution to the discipline' (Council on Undergraduate research, 2003).

An interesting paper by Mary Beckham and Nancy Hensel prepared for the Carnegie Foundation's CASTL leadership group on undergraduate research highlights a number of tensions in various aspects of undergraduate research which, they argue, have to be taken into account in any definition:

Tensions in Undergraduate Research diagram

For further discussion see Beckman & Hensel (no date) (DOC, 52kb)