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Student Researcher Profiles - Neda Padilla
An Interview with UNCG student Neda Padilla
Conducted Spring 2008
Year in School: Senior
Major: Public Health Education
How did you find out about the research of the faculty member you worked with?
My faculty supervisor contacted me, because one of my professors had given her my names as a potential candidate for a undergraduate research assistant.
Did you receive academic credit and/or pay for doing your research?
I received pay for doing my research.
How long did your research project last?
I was involved with the research project for 2 semesters.
How has your involvement in the research project helped you with respect to your college experience?
I think I have more respect for what goes into a research project. All the paperwork, the community networking, recruiting of participants, IRB reviews, etc.
Has your research helped you with respect to understanding the content in the courses that you have taken? Can you give a specific example?
I have a lot more understanding of the content in my courses. One example I can use is understanding what interviews, focus groups and qualitative data analysis.
What was the most positive aspect of your research project? The most negative?
It is hard to pin point the most positive aspect of my research project, but one of the most positive was that I gain an interest in research as a career. I am a curious person by nature but I would not have known how you could develop it into a research project. I don't think I can think of a negative aspect because I believed I learned and grew from all the challenges that my research assistantship provided me.
What is the title of your research? Briefly describe what your research is about.
I worked on two projects, Building Relationships Involves Growing Healthy Together (BRIGHT). The project involved conducting interviews with mothers and adolescent daughters about the challenges of the transitioning years from a child to a young woman. The other project was Women's Ways, Women's Days. This project involved interviews and focus groups talking to mothers about the challenges they had being mothers and what strategies the used to deal with those challenges.
What do you plan to do after graduation? Has this research experience influenced that decision at all? If so, how?
My plans for after graduation at this point are to attain a job in health education hopefully with a research field. My research experience has definitely influenced my decision because I hope to stay in the public health research field and hopefully it become part of my future career.
