Sophomore Research Program

The Sophomore Research Program (SOREP) provides opportunities for students to work as paid research assistants to Wooster faculty members. Through this program students become true partners with faculty in the research process and acquire an understanding of the process involved in conducting research.

Timeline for Summer SRA Applications & Hiring

  • Monday, March 4: Call sent to Faculty to complete SOREP Application Form
  • Wednesday, April 3: Faculty Application Form submissions close
  • Thursday, April 4 and Friday, April 5: Faculty Notified of Approvals
  • Friday, April 19: Job Descriptions due to Morgan Lee-Barton (mlee-barton@wooster.edu)
  • Monday, April 22: Message will go to all eligible students to encourage applications (students will be directed to Handshake to apply)
  • 4/22-5/13: Faculty interview and select students and submit Student Employment Action Form (SEAF) to HR (Reach out to department AC for assistance with SEAFs)

Look for Current SRA Positions:

SRA positions will be posted on Handshake, the College’s new platform for all student employment.

Students

Students are eligible to participate in the program from the second semester of their first year through the first semester of their junior year. Sophomore Research Assistants (SRAs) generally work 3-7 hours per week for the semester and 20-40 hours per week during the summer. Students may also be eligible to earn course credit for work as a SRA, much like an internship.  

Additional benefits for participants in this program include:

  • providing excellent preparation for future academic endeavors, such as Independent Study.
  • orientation physical and digital resources through the College Library
  • gaining technical skills through lab work and/or digital technologies
  • enhancing critical thinking and writing skills
  • building strong mentoring relationships with faculty members

Faculty

All full-time faculty members are eligible to apply for a Sophomore Research Assistant.

The types of tasks an SRA can perform are varied, but might include: 

  • Performing a literature search and gather materials 
  • Lab assistance
  • Conducting structured interviews
  • Transcribing or editing interviews 
  • Coding and/or analyzing data for themes 
  • Fact-checking and assistance with proofreading a manuscript 
  • Formatting citations for an article 
  • Organizing a folder of PDFs into a library in Zotero
  • Creating presentation slides and posters on faculty research (via PowerPoint or other programs) 
  • Assistance with setting up a WordPress professional website  

Please contact Morgan Lee-Barton (x2576) or Dean Christa Craven with any questions.