During Winter Quarter 2023, the UCI Postsecondary Education Research & Implementation Institute (PERI²) hosted its first Introduction to Higher Education Research Workshop Series. This series, designed for faculty and postdoctoral scholars, included five, 90-minute sessions focused on helping participants select a research question, develop a study outline, identify appropriate methods for their study, plan data collection, and learn about coding and data analysis. Workshop participants also received personalized support from PERI² staff to execute their research plan. The workshop instructors included Kameryn Denaro (PERI² Research Scientist), Veronika Rozhenkova (PERI² Postdoctoral Scholar), and Sabrina Solanki (PERI² Senior Research Associate).
The inaugural cohort of workshop participants included faculty and instructional staff from a number of departments across campus, including representatives from the School of Biological Sciences, School of Social Ecology, and School of Humanities. Overall, participants’ experiences were positive with one participant stating:
“I enjoyed working with Sabrina, Veronika, and Kameryn over this quarter. This workshop series has given me the tools and confidence to pursue higher education research in my field.”
Another participant shared:
“As someone transitioning from research within my discipline to discipline-based education research, it has been helpful to get an introduction to some of the basics of qualitative and quantitative research. It is also really helpful to have office hours and to know who to contact with my questions about research projects. Even with only a few sessions, this workshop has helped me realize how to fix some problems and develop better plans for my research projects.”
Finally, another participant added:
“As a ‘wet bench’ neuroscience researcher, I enrolled in the workshop with no experience in pedagogical research and was intimidated to start in this new area. I came to the workshop with a project in mind for a new class I am teaching but did not know where to begin to start the study. I found the PERI² workshop to be incredibly helpful to begin to understand the relevant issues regarding experimental design and methodological approaches used in pedagogical research. Sabrina, Veronika, and Kameryn did a fantastic job setting up this informative workshop series!”
PERI² is offering the Introduction to Higher Education Research Workshop Series virtually during Spring Quarter 2023. The five-session series will kick off on Wednesday, April 19 from 1:30 pm-3:00 pm. Interested parties are encouraged to complete the application by Monday, April 17 to reserve their spot. Participants who complete the series will earn a Discipline-Based Education Research Certificate from the Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation.