Getting Into Undergraduate Research¶
Last verified: October 2026.
Research is optional, underused, and easier to get into than it looks. Most professors are happy to talk to an undergrad who has actually read their work. If grad school is on the table, it's the main thing your application is built on; if it isn't, a summer of paid research is still a real job on your resume.
When to start¶
Second year is ideal. You have 174/175 (and maybe 201/204) behind you and two or three years left to do something meaningful. Third year is fine. Fourth year is late: projects take a term to ramp up, and the funding cycle below means you need a supervisor lined up almost a year ahead.
Don't wait until you feel ready.
Finding a supervisor¶
Browse Research Areas and Groups and the department's research area pages. Pick two or three people whose work genuinely interests you. A less famous professor who gives you real ownership of a project (and writes you a detailed reference) is usually worth more than peripheral involvement in a famous lab.
Check each person's directory profile first. Several say whether they take undergrads, and some have a "read this before emailing me" page. Follow it.
If you're stuck, the Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI) has advisors who help you find a supervisor (book via campusBRIDGE).
How to email a professor¶
This is where most students blow it: either they never reach out, or they send a generic mass email that gets ignored.
Before you email: read one or two of their recent papers (last 2-3 years). You don't need to understand everything; you need to understand the problem, why it matters, and their approach. Check their lab page and Google Scholar.
The email (four to six sentences, max):
- Who you are: name, year, program.
- One or two sentences showing you know their work. Be specific. "I found your paper on continual learning interesting" is vague; "Your paper on experience replay in non-stationary environments raised a question for me about how the replay buffer handles distribution shift" is specific.
- Relevant coursework or projects, in one sentence.
- The ask: a 15-minute meeting, or whether they're taking undergrad RAs this summer (and whether they'd support a funding application, see below).
Subject line: Undergraduate Research Interest: [Your Name] - [Specific Topic]
Follow up once after 1-2 weeks if you hear nothing. Professors miss emails. After that, move on.
In person works too. If you did well in someone's course and talked with them, asking after class or in office hours is often better than a cold email.
Don't:
- Send the same email to fifteen professors. They can tell.
- Open with "Dear Professor" and zero personalization.
- Ask to "learn anything." Name the area.
- Attach your full transcript in the first email. Wait until they ask.
Three ways to do research¶
1. Volunteer¶
Many professors take unpaid volunteers, especially first- and second-years. It gets your foot in the door, shows a professor you're serious before the funding deadline, and sometimes turns into a paid position.
2. Course credit: CMPUT 399 and 499¶
CMPUT 399 and CMPUT 499 are 3-unit "one on one individual study" courses between you and an instructor. The department's process:
- Agree on a topic with a professor. The professor submits a proposal to the Associate Chair (Undergraduate) at least one week before the term starts.
- Normally only one individual study course is approved per student per term, and it won't be approved if it duplicates a course offered that term.
- The undergraduate advisor confirms whether it counts toward your program requirements.
You can't normally hold a research award for a course-based project (URI), so a 399/499 and a funded summer project should be different things.
3. Paid research awards¶
All three awards below go through one URI cycle with a February deadline. You need a confirmed supervisor before you apply, and you apply for projects starting the following Summer, Fall, or Winter.
| Award | Value | Who | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSERC USRA | $6,000 from NSERC + at least $2,400 supervisor top-up = at least $8,400 for 16 weeks | Canadian citizens, PRs, Protected Persons; cumulative average normally at least B- (NSERC) | Full-time research. Max three USRAs over your degree. Separate application (NSERC Form 202 + URI Google Form) |
| URI Undergraduate Researcher Stipend | $7,500 for a 4-12 month project | Current UofA undergrads in their first degree, any year; satisfactory standing (normally 2.0 GPA) | GPA is not considered in adjudication. One per lifetime. No citizenship requirement is listed, so this is the main option for international students |
| Alberta Innovates Summer Research Studentship | $1,875/month for 2-4 months, May-August (up to $7,500) | Undergrads at a Canadian institution; minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA | Health research only. CS projects fit the "Digital Health + Data-Driven Systems" priority area (e.g. evaluating clinical AI/ML models) |
The URI Stipend and Alberta Innovates studentship share one URI Streamlined Application on AwardsHub: a plain-language research proposal and personal statement (you write them) plus a mentorship plan (your supervisor writes it). In the last cycle, 237 of 588 applicants (40%) got an offer. Each supervisor can back at most four students in the streamlined competition.
2026-27 timeline:
| When | What |
|---|---|
| October-November 2026 | Find a supervisor. This is the step people leave too late |
| November 2026 | URI info sessions and application template released (details) |
| January 2027 | Book a URI advising appointment early; they fill up |
| February 2027 (exact date TBA) | Deadline for both USRA and the streamlined application (URI funding page). Last year's was February 2 |
| Late March 2027 | Decisions |
If you don't get funded, URI suggests asking your supervisor about paying you from a grant or converting the project to course credit, and reapplying next year.
These awards also appear on Scholarships and Awards.
On your resume¶
List the lab, your supervisor, and one line on what you built or found. Name the award (USRA, URI Stipend) if you held one; it signals you were selected competitively. Posters and co-authored papers go in their own section.