Alpha Research Program
What is the Alpha Research Program?
The Alpha Research Program was designed by Alexis Applequist, a University of Arkansas (U of A) biomedical engineering (BMEG) undergraduate, and Bladen Ketron, a U of A marketing undergraduate. It was set up and launched through the U of A Biomedical Engineering Society with the help of BMEG undergraduates, Ashley Fernandez and Smit Patel. This program is an opportunity for any undergraduate at the U of A to engage in research regardless of experience level. Spring 2021 was the first active semester of the program.
Why was the program created?
A large need exists for more research positions outside of general classwork in the college of engineering. While formal university labs offer a hands-on approach to research and learning in state-of the art labs, the positions available are scarce due to funding and available training. For example, in 2018, one BMEG university lab received 32 applications, interviewed 16 undergraduates, and accepted only four into the lab. Clearly, the demand for undergraduate research positions far exceeds the supply. University labs also typically require a certain number of hours per week researching. Due to students’ busy academic and extracurricular schedules, many are turned off from research because of these taxing requirements. Overall, formal labs and the Alpha Research Program offer students experience with lab equipment and software, real-world applications of class content, networking opportunities, interdisciplinary collaboration, and further exploration of current topics of interest in the BMEG field, and should be available to all undergraduates.
How does the program work?
Each semester, students indicate their research fields’ interests within the department of biomedical engineering (i.e. tissue, cardiovascular, and genetic engineering). Mentors, individuals with extensive research experience willing to graciously donate time to the program, are gathered from different fields: industry professionals, UARK professors (BMEG and other fields of study), and graduate students. Each research team consists of four to six student researchers and one mentor to guide their research journey. The current Alpha program does not perform wet-lab activities, rather, teams work to develop computer models through coding and innovate new biomedical devices and services. There are no minimum hour requirements, but researchers are asked to track their hours in a log for personal use. Each group presents during a full lab meeting halfway through the semester. The end of each academic year wraps up with a Research Poster Symposium. This is an opportunity for each group to design a poster and present its work to colleagues, friends, and family.
What does the future hold for the program?
Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) leaders of the Alpha Research Program are working with the U of A department of biomedical engineering to offer optional credit for students’ research as a BMEG elective in the future. It is a possibility that honors theses may also be based on this research. The program is exploring presenting posters within the BMEG department annual undergraduate research poster symposium. Possible entries into the BMES Annual Conference are also an opportunity for future groups.
What about the members’ experiences?
 Nick Burdolski, researcher, first-year U of A Biomedical Engineering |
“…the program is excellent. It has offered me an opportunity to get involved with meaningful research at the beginning of my college career and has allowed me to work with and make connections with fantastic mentors. It has opened doors for me that will allow me to continue to succeed in the future… Working with Dr. Ingels has been great, he is a fantastic mentor. I’ve been in contact with him and Dr. Jensen, and I may be joining the Mitral Valve project [in Dr. Jensen’s university lab] next year which I am really looking forward to!” |
 Dr. Neil Ingels, mentor, U of A Biomedical Engineering Adjunct Professor |
“This BMES program has been a success. We meet regularly and have worked on the challenging problem of monitoring persons who are living alone so that loved ones can be notified and take action (call, notify neighbors, etc.) if the person living alone has not moved in their home for the past several hours (and thus could possibly be in distress). We have developed a working prototype that has increased our knowledge of Arduino computer hardware and C++ programming, passive infrared sensing, WiFi connectivity, IFTTT/Webhooks-triggered messaging, and statistical pattern recognition. This project provides a real-world application that ties together a number of concepts that are taught more abstractly in important Biomedical Engineering courses.“ |
 Brenda Hernandez, researcher, fourth-year U of A Biomedical Engineering |
“The Alpha Research Program has given me the opportunity to collaborate with like-minded peers and gain valuable training experience from my own professors. Being able to work directly with medical innovations in the making has been a one-of-a-kind experience!” |
 Dr. Karl Schubert, mentor, U of A Data Science Professor (COE, WCOB, ARSC) |
“The Alpha Research Program is an outstanding student-conceived, student-led, student-managed, and student-driven initiative. The students participating in the program have an opportunity to pursue areas of research and innovation that are meaningful to their career goals and the betterment of society. And, thanks to the recruitment of faculty mentors, the students also have a unique opportunity to actually be mentored on their own research by an expert in their field… I am fortunate to be mentoring an outstanding student team who is focused on the parallel to ‘food insecurity’: ‘medical care insecurity’ which they have called ‘HealthcARe for All.’ Their project has the potential for significantly improving the awareness of and access to healthcare to those in our community (locally, regionally, and statewide) and to, as a result, improve the health of many children and adults. I am honored to have the opportunity to provide advice and counsel to this team!” |
Information link to attach: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XvBXmlZrPeLCqIHO94BjsmjBhADrkWnh/view?usp=sharing