Elizabethtown College provides many opportunities for students to learn outside of the classroom. One of these opportunities is student research, some of which is able to be published. Many students engage in student-faculty research as undergraduates. This allows them to advance in their fields of study as well as make new information more accessible to the public.

Sophomore Jeremy Eberly wrote a paper in his first year about the cultural shifts in Poland as its economy changed from communist to capitalist over a span of 30 years.

“Other countries interested me from young age [especially] how different other cultures are,” he said.

He looked at Poland’s culture, history, and changes in its economic system, but what was most challenging for him was “finding context for the economic sector.”

It was “difficult and daunting” because as a first-year Eberly had not taken any finance courses.

Eberly thinks it will be interesting to revisit the topic of his paper in the future and possibly come to a new conclusion. Since he will have more experience in finance courses, he hopes to take a more “technical” standpoint.

While not originally planned, Eberly’s research was published.
He received an email from the Etown Honors Program to submit any papers written within the last year for publication. Later, the editorial board of the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC) chose his paper for publication.

Eberly encourages students who want to do research as undergraduates to “research what you’re passionate about,” “maintain a curious open mind,” and “read all that you can about the topic.”

Another student who participated in student-faculty research is senior Marc Unger.

As a political science major, he has participated in country-to-country research on three separate occasions: one was a part of the Summer Scholarship, Creative Arts and Research Program (SCARP) program and the other two were part of his study abroad experience.

The subjects of his research include France, India, China, Myanmar and Colombia.

“Political science gives you the freedom to carve your own path,” Unger said.

“Nationalism and governance seem to be major themes of my research,” he said.

His first paper was about French nationalism, which stemmed from “[his] interest for European politics at the time,” and was advised by Director of the International Studies Minor Dr. Oya Dursun-Özkanca.

He studied abroad in India in the fall 2017 semester where he “dove into the chaos of Asian politics.”

He also wrote another paper on terrorist groups in Japan, inspired by the recent terrorism and counterterrorism course taught at Etown.

“I would say my research focuses were definitely influenced by my professors and a general interest in chaotic political regimes,” Unger said. “I always saw international politics as my soap opera. It’s just so fascinating to me.”

No two research projects are alike, especially since the timelines for projects vary greatly.

Research for class typically takes a semester. Senior theses can last an entire year, but Unger has completed research projects in as little as three weeks.

“You sit down at a computer and explode your tabs with as much academic information on that topic as you possibly can. Then you filter the information to see what can fit into the literature for your paper, and then you can start writing a story,” Unger said in regard to his research process.

“In order to have true academic research that benefits the community, you need to make it interesting, for say, for someone who lives in Elizabethtown.”

Unger has two significant obstacles when conducting research.

“Probably the biggest one is writer’s block,” he explained. “I just won’t have anything to say, and I can only work on a research paper so much in a given time. I need to take little mental breaks.”

The other obstacle is the content that he needs for his projects. Unger is often trying to find sensetive information that the countries he is researching do not want him to discover.

Unger is currently applying for fellowships that involve research in south Asia.

Fellowships are important in building one’s reputation and connections in order to find a job in a research institution such as the State Department.

“The possibilities are endless at Elizabethtown research-wise,” Unger said. “Find what you’re interested in, get to the writing tutor, get your writing skills up, find a professor that you really click with, and start writing.”