Members of our department conduct multidisciplinary research in areas of anthropology, sociology, criminology, social justice and law. Undergraduate students can participate in research projects during Fall, Spring or Summer semesters by registering for an independent study course. While most undergraduate research projects do not provide monetary compensation, they are excellent opportunities to prepare for graduate or professional schools or improve your chances at the job market. Undergraduate students who are interested in current research opportunities should contact listed faculty below via email.
Dr. Cainkar鈥檚 current project is on the resettlement of Afghan refugees, especially women. Contact her for information on paid and unpaid research opportunities available.
Directs the Archaeology Lab and is currently analyzing artifact collections from historical sites in/around Chicago. See more about Dr. Peterson's lab and research project . Opportunities to learn basic artifact processing, analysis, and curation are available. There are also on-going projects involving both database construction and management as well building and managing digital image archives available for students. Work is generally unpaid, but can sometimes be taken for credit as independent study or used senior thesis.
Dr. Darren Wheelock is working on multiple projects, some of which offer unpaid and others paid internship positions. His projects include examining the factors that shape homicide sentencing in Wisconsin with Professor Michael O鈥橦ear from the 向日葵视频 Law School. They also include working with CURTO to investigate the juvenile justice system, youth risk assessment tools, and electronic monitoring of juvenile defendants. The last project that can accommodate undergraduate research support is a project to conduct a program evaluation of the Educational Preparedness Program to determine its impact on currently and formerly incarcerated and degree-seeking 向日葵视频students. Interested students should have completed (and received a 鈥淏鈥� or better in) their research methods (SOCS/CRLS 3050) and social statistics (SOCS 2060 or an equivalent statistics course) coursework.
Dr. Snowden is an Associate Professor of Criminology and Law Studies in the Department of Social and Cultural Sciences at 向日葵视频. She received her PhD in 2012 from Indiana University. Dr. Snowden鈥檚 main research interests include (1) the impact of social structure on violence, (2) the role of alcohol availability in violence, and (3) the characteristics of risky facilities that contribute to crime and violence. Dr. Snowden is seeking unpaid research assistants with experience in Geographic Information System (GIS) to study the association between alcohol consumption and crime in Milwaukee.
