Research

Partners in discovery

As a Bridgewater student, you can work closely with a faculty member to conduct cutting-edge research. And you don’t have to wait until you’re a junior or senior—you can get started almost immediately.

Independent study, honors projects and summer research opportunities are all available to you. Our signature summer research options, funded by donors, are The Research Experience @ Bridgewater and the Martin Summer Science Research Institute.

You might present your research at state and national conferences. Or publish your research as a paper in a prestigious publication. All as an undergraduate! Contact your department chair or academic advisor for more information about opportunities in your field.

A professor and student holding books and smiling

The Research Experience @ Bridgewater

Interested in stream restoration and habitat contamination? How about combining laser Doppler vibrometry and mathematical models to identify individuals at a distance? Have you wondered whether addicts view the causes of their addictions differently than do healthcare providers?

Supported by donors, The Research Experience @ Bridgewater (TREB) provides funding for teams of BC faculty and undergraduate students to spend the summer in collaborative research in any field. While assisting faculty in their scholarly pursuits, student participants receive a stipend and free housing on campus if applicable. Think what you might explore.

Endineering student at Bridgewater College working on research project

Martin Science Research Institute

Want to partner with a faculty member on projects in engineering, chemistry, biology and more? Through the Martin Science Research Institute, student and faculty teams receive up to $5,000 to conduct a summer research project in the natural sciences. A stipend and free housing on campus enables students to make their summer job one of research and exploration.

You’ll be guided by faculty in an area they know well and have opportunities that go way beyond a typical class. You never know what you might discover.

Student pouring a liquid into a tube a professor is holding for a summer research project

Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC)

The VFIC awards $2,000 for a supervised undergraduate summer research project in the sciences. Applications are typically due in March. Contact your advisor for additional information.

Student Research

Summer Research Suggests Humans Still Beat AI at Party Games

“We learned that you could change the player experience based on whether you are playing against AI or not,” Dr. Sam Hamilton said. […]

Student and professor playing Apples to Apples

Students Receive Funding to Research AI and More

Eighteen Bridgewater College students have been awarded funding to conduct fulltime research this summer under the mentorship of faculty members. […]

Students Reimagine the American West at ASPIRE

Five students presented on a range of topics from the cultural significance of West Coast hip hop to the institutionalization of Yellowstone National Park at a panel entitled Reimagining the U.S. West: Power, Culture, and Identity Across Time last week. […]

Health and exercise student at Bridgewater college working on research project with a student on a bike hooked up to equipment to measure fatigue

BC Offers Transformational Experiences

What makes the Bridgewater experience special? It’s the first-year student who gets the chance to work on a research project with a professor outside of class. It’s the faculty mentor who inspires hundreds of students, some of whom go on to work on life-changing research of their own.

Research student pointing to monitor with image of crystals to professor

Faculty Research

Bridgewater College offers faculty a range of research support options, including internal grants, conference travel funding, access to external fellowships like the VFIC Mednick Memorial Fellowship and more.

Learn more about Faculty Research Opportunities

Questions? Contact us!

Dr. Elizabeth MacDougall
Director of Student Research
emacdougall@bridgewater.edu
540-828-8095