Prospectus

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Bachelor Research Project Biology (at CML)

Course
2023-2024

Admission requirements

All bachelor students are obliged to do a bachelor research project as the final part in the bachelorprogramme, in principal during the second semester of the third year. Students may deviate from this in consultation with the Study Adviser and internship coordinator. .

-Visit the internship market on 22 September 2023 for orientation and internship possibilities.
-Read the BSc research project booklet (BrightSpace>Opleiding Biologie>’BSc research project ’)

Prior to the start a research project agreement form must be filled out in ProjectMAP together with the supervisor, and approved by the Internship coordinator. ProjectMAP is the online administration tool for IBL research projects (agreements, evaluations and assessments).

-Go to https://science-stage.universiteitleiden.nl/ and log in with your ULCN account. You can also log in via BrightSpace (BrightSpace>Opleiding Biologie>’BSc research project’)
-Go to ‘Aanvragen’ and click on the tab BSc research project.

Description

The bachelor research project is the first acquaintance of students with independently designing and performing scientific research. All aspects of scientific research, from reading relevant literature and formulating a research question until the reporting and presenting of the results will be addressed. During the research project, the student is a member of a research group and participates in the common scientific activities of the research group (such as work discussions) and lectures in the host institute (for instance IBL spotlight seminars).

During the course Academische Vaardigheden: General Research Skills (GRS) familiar skills, such as formulating a research idea, experimental design, statistics, data analysis, and report writing, are highlighted again and applied during the Research Project.

GRS starts prior to, and then runs parallel to the research project. The topics attended to in GRS keep pace with the timing of the research project.

The bachelor research project is in principle carried out at one of the biological institutes of Leiden University (IBL, CML, Naturalis), LUMC, Hortus, or other institutes of the Faculty of Science. External research projects, e.g. in companies, other organisations, or abroad need to be approved by the Board of Examiners.

Research projects at IBL/CML/Naturalis are carried out by students in pairs. External research projects can be carried out in pairs or individually.

Course Objectives

At the end of the course, the student is able to:
1. Acquire in-depth knowledge about a current research project, concepts and approaches in a particular biological research area.
2. Carry out relevant literature research
3. Use relevant methods and techniques to conduct experiments.
4. Formulate a research question and hypothesis.
5. Design and implement a research study under supervision.
6. Critically evaluate the results of scientific publications.
7. Actively report and present research results to a scientific audience.

Timetable

26 February 2024 – 5 July 2023 (17 weeks), fulltime.

Mode of Instruction

  • Consultation and feedback (daily supervisor at least once a week; responsible supervisor at least once a month).

  • Writing a scientific essay/project report.

Assessment method

The final mark for the BSc-research project is calculated as follows:

  • Research proposal 10%

  • Practical work 40%

  • Report 40%

  • Final presentation 10%

Reading list

Scientific literature according to supervisor's instructions.

Registration

Part 1:

Choose the correct version of the 'course': at IBL (4023BST07) or CML (4023BRPCM), then register in MyStudyMap as explained below:

From the academic year 2022-2023 on every student has to register for courses with the new enrollment tool MyStudyMap. There are two registration periods per year: registration for the fall semester opens in July and registration for the spring semester opens in December. Please see this page for more information.

Please note that it is compulsory to register for every exam and retake. Not being registered for a course means that you are not allowed to participate in the final exam of the course.

Extensive FAQ on MyStudymap can be found here.

Part 2:

Registration in ProjectMAP.
Instructions:

  • Go to https://science-stage.universiteitleiden.nl/ and log in with your ULCN account. You could also log in via BrightSpace (BrightSpace>Opleiding Biologie>’BSc research project’)

  • Go to ‘Aanvragen’ and click on the tab BSc research project.

Contact

Contact the internship coordinator via bio-internshipscoordinator@biology.leidenuniv.nl.

Remarks

  • Bachelor Research Project booklet: BrightSpace>Opleiding Biologie>’Bachelor research project’

  • More information about how to look for an internship: BrightSpace>Opleiding Biologie>Informatie per studiejaar bachelor> derde studiejaar