Ani

Please provide a brief summary of your research.
Last summer, I had the privilege of working with Professor Larissa Buchholz to create a systematic literature review for her research project on the globalization of art and cultural production. Literature reviews are an essential first step in any research project because they help the research team gauge how much information is available on their topics of interest, as well as the types of questions that have already been asked. Using the online platform Endnote, I developed of bibliographical archive of all the pre-existing research and writing that was relevant to art and globalization. Towards the end of the summer, I worked on analyzing all this literature, identifying common themes and significant patterns that guided Professor Buchholz in her own research the following fall.

What made you initially interested in researching your project in particular?
I was initially drawn to this research project because of my interests in International Affairs and my background in the arts world. I was a ballet dancer all throughout high school (and briefly into college!), and I felt that Professor Buchholz’s work was the perfect blend of this particular passion and my separate academic pursuits. In the classroom, I have studied quite a bit how globalization has impacted the world economy, politics, and social activism–however, before joining this project, I had yet to truly explore the intersection of globalization and art forms (such as dance, poetry, painting, films, music, etc.). It is truly fascinating to question what motivates humans around the world to share, invent, and mimic these different practices. Professor Buchholz’s project allowed me to explore a field of study I was both extremely unfamiliar with and highly curious about.

What made you interested in pursuing (interdisciplinary) research more broadly?
I am a firm believer that the research process teaches valuable practices that can be applied to almost any career path. I knew that by pursuing some form of research, I would help to improve my organizational, collaborative, and analytical skills enormously.

Describe your experiences with research thus far. Was it tricky? What skills do you think you’ve gained?
My experience was definitely not easy. Prior to this research, I did not have much experience with coding or computer software tools, and it took a good amount of practice to get to a place where I was comfortable inputting all of our work into various online databases. Nonetheless, this just reminded me of my ability to learn quickly and adapt to changes, even well into my college career. I walked away from this experience feeling much more confident using technology as a means for more efficient research collection and analysis.

Any tips or advice you have for students similar to you that are interested in pursuing undergraduate research?
Even if you do not think it will be an important aspect of your career later on, give undergraduate research a try! There’s no better time to try new kinds of work and learning than in college. You have nothing to lose with research–only skills to be gained.