Student Research

Students elsewhere have to wait until graduate school to do the type of research projects Occidental students carry out as undergraduates. Our students collaborate on research with their professors in the lab, at other local institutions, including the City of Hope National Cancer Research Center, and even overseas. While research in the sciences has led the way, students from all disciplines participate.

Funding comes from a variety of sources – our Undergraduate Research Center, the Richter Trusts, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and faculty research grants. Over the past five years, more than 280 students received funding to undertake joint research with faculty—research that often results in co-authored publication in peer-reviewed journals.

Our students traditionally make up the largest contingent of presenters at the annual Southern California Conference on Undergraduate Research. Research has played an important role in positioning our students to win prestigious national awards on a regular basis.