Research Courses

Students will find that departments have varying rules and principles on whether research may be done for credit or pay.  Rarely would a department allow a student to receive both course credit and pay for a project.  These principles are based on the ethical beliefs of a department and its faculty.  Explore the department’s expectations with your faculty mentor or associate dean.

Undergraduate Research Courses (USU 4900)

Undergraduate research is heavily supported here at Utah State, and many degrees require some form of research involvement. Many departments have their own course prefix/number for undergraduate credit (i.e. ENGR 1000). For those departments that do not, the university number can be used (USU 4900). Grades are submitted by the Associate Vice President, and the work is evaluated by a faculty member. For more information about what course number is best for your degree, please contact your advisor.

Accounting: ACCT 4900, ACCT 6900

Agricultural Systems Technology and Education: ASTE 4900

Animal, Dairy and Veterinary Sciences: ADVS 4800

Applied Economics: APEC 4900

Art History: ARTH 4800, 4900

Biological Engineering: BENG 1000

Biology: BIOL 5323, 5800

Business: BUSN 2988

Chemistry: CHEM 4800

Civil and Environmental Engineering: CEE 5930

Communication Studies: CMST 4470

Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education: COMD 4600

Computer Science: CS 4950

Economics: ECN 4900

Engineering: ENGR 1500, 3500

English: ENGL 3470

Environment and Society: ENVS 4970

Human Development and Family Studies: HDFS 4400, 4830

Finance: FIN 4900

Geography: GEOG 4950

Health Education and Promotion: HEP 5950

History: HIST 4990

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences: ITLS 4910

Interdisciplinary Studies: ITDS 4900

Journalism and Communication: JCOM 4520

Kinesiology: KIN 5910

Language: LANG 3990

Management: MGT 4800

Marketing and Strategy: MSLE 4800

Music: MUSC 4320 (Music Therapy)

Natural Resources: NR 4250

Parks and Recreation Professional: PRP 5900, 5910

Philosophy: PHIL 4910, 4930, 4990

Physics: PHYS 4900

Plants, Soils, and Climate: PSC 4970

Political Science: POLS 4990

Psychology: PSY 4910, 4950

Religious Studies: RELS 4990

Secondary Education: SCED 4900

Sociology: SOC 4600

Special Education: SPED 4910

Watershed Sciences: WATS 4931, 4970

Women and Gender Studies: WGS 4900

Wildland Resources: WILD 4970

Research Integrity Courses (USU 6900)

Participants in this course will receive training required by key Federal agencies to participate in their grant programs, and successful completion will include both responsible conduct of research (RCR) and institutional review board (IRB) certification.  The course will provide an overview of approaches to moral reasoning and of core research integrity issues including:

  • Ethical treatment of human subjects in research
  • Ethical care and use of animals in research
  • Data management
  • Authorship and publication practices
  • Peer review
  • Conflicts of interest
  • Collaborative science
  • Mentor/trainee relationships
  • Research misconduct

The course uses a case-based learning approach, with required readings and preparation and analysis of one case. Advanced undergraduates and graduates may enroll.