Kenny Go
Kenny Go’s Story
Kenny’s experience with research during his undergraduate degree started while he was a student in APBI 398 Research Methods in Applied Biology. He first heard about the course from talking with other students and alumni from the Applied Biology program who recommended it, and reading up on the course. In this class, undergraduate students like Kenny get paired with researchers to contribute to a project and learn about the research process. Kenny helped a graduate student with a project on cow-calf rearing methods by conducting a literature review and an analysis of some of the qualitative data collected. The professors leading the course, Drs Dan Weary and Nina von Keyserlingk, were very helpful with connecting Kenny to a student that was in need of help with their research and made the course a great learning experience!
The research helped Kenny improve his organization and presentation skills by learning how to condense four months of research into a comprehensive presentation. Kenny’s participation in research was especially helpful for preparing him for professional work and other internships. For example, skills learned through conducting environmental scans for background research were applicable to carrying out a literature review in other topics.
Kenny’s advice for students interested in undergraduate research is to pursue it, even if you don’t fully know what you’re getting yourself into! Look for a great support team to help you with your learning. Come into class with an open mind; although you may have a topic that you want to research, use the opportunity to learn from your fellow peers and find inspiration from their work as well.
Please note that APBI 398 Research Methods in Applied Biology is a required course for APBI Honours students and is also open to other APBI students. It is open to non-APBI students with the permission of the instructor.