Culture of Research at Boston University
Culture of Research @ BUA
Boston University Academy students’ innate ability and drive, coupled with their access to world-class libraries and research facilities on BU’s campus and beyond, puts them in a unique position to positively impact their communities and society at large through research and action that matters – and to discover their purpose in the process. BUA’s scaffolded research curriculum – starting in the 9th grade and continuing through graduation – provides opportunities for students to learn the fundamentals of scholarly research and then to apply that knowledge to intellectual endeavors that hold meaning to them across a broad array of disciplines. These projects, undertaken in partnership with practicing researchers in many fields of inquiry, don’t just exist in a vacuum: they have real impact, on real people, in the real world, today. In enabling students to take action and have experiences that feel meaningful to them while they are still in high school, BUA sets our students up for finding purpose and fulfillment in their adult lives.
Read on to learn more about research opportunities at BUA.
BUA Coursework
The chemistry research project at BUA is a two-month, independent exploration of chemistry’s role in society, designed to deepen students’ research skills and scientific communication abilities. As part of the standard chemistry curriculum, students select a topic that connects chemistry to real-world issues such as the environmental impact of fireworks, the role of battery chemistry in electric vehicles, or the science behind perfumes and scent perception. Using Boston University’s library resources, they engage with academic literature to build a well-supported analysis of their chosen topic. The project culminates in a 10-minute presentation and a formal research paper, emphasizing clear communication, the use of reputable sources, and the ability to connect chemical concepts to broader societal and technological contexts.
10th-Grade Research Seminar
The 10th-grade Introduction to Research Seminar is an opportunity for sophomores to begin to dig into the hows and whys of scholarly, scientific academic research. This course — utilizing the world-class library and database resources available to us as part of Boston University – teaches students a number of skills that are transferable across disciplines and that will bear fruit throughout their academic careers: finding reliable and relevant sources, navigating research databases, and reading journal articles and other academic literature.
Junior Research Seminars
Juniors with defined academic interests may enroll in one of two optional, honors-level seminars. These electives provide students with skills in research methodology, and introduce students to University faculty and research being undertaken at Boston University and beyond. For many students, these seminars become the basis for their Senior Thesis.
In the junior STEM Research Seminar, students read, review, discuss, and present research articles on current topics in science. Aligned with each set of articles, students tour various research labs at BU, MIT, Harvard, and other institutions to explore different disciplines in STEM and consider the various projects they could work on in the summer following junior year. In the spring, students begin to focus on exploring one particular lab in preparation for summer work. The goal of this course is to prepare students for conducting independent research in a STEM lab over the summer under the guidance of a professor, which serves as the basis of many senior theses.
How can we use humanities and social science research to drive change? In the junior Humanities, English, Arts, and Research (HEAR) Seminar, students answer this essential question while exploring adventurously the city of Boston and the resources of Boston University. The seminar includes classroom discussions on research tools and methods, critical analyses of current research, meetings with professionals in social impact fields employing the humanities and social sciences, visits to BU libraries and archives, and field trips to museums and historical societies. By the end of the course, students are prepared to find purpose through research and action that matter.
Senior Thesis
A culminating experience for all BUA students, the Senior Thesis is an independent research project that provides students with the opportunity to follow an intellectual passion in depth with the guidance of a university professor. In recent years, students have studied coral bleaching in the Rotjan Marine Ecology Lab at BU, designed an autonomous underwater data-collecting robot in the Sea Grant Lab at MIT, employed machine learning models to simulate bacterial metabolism in Daniel Segre’s Bioinformatics Lab at BU, and explored the impact of white roofs in mitigating the urban heat island effect at the Environmental Fluid Mechanics Group at BU, to name a few.
The year-long project is designed to demonstrate a student’s ability to read closely, research thoroughly, think analytically, and write coherently in a scholarly fashion. Thesis topics include research in history and politics; literature and music; linguistics and science. Papers are expected to be between 4,000-6,000 words in length and written in accordance with generally accepted scholarly standards.
Senior Thesis culminates with the Senior Thesis Symposium in May, a community-wide event in which students share their research through poster sessions and thesis presentations.
Browse Senior Thesis titles and abstracts from the Class of 2025 here.
Research Highlights and Student Accolades
2025
2024
Research Highlight: Robbie Mulroy ’24 Explores the Role of CREB Binding Protein in Cancer
2023
Research Highlight: Zach Daniel ’25 Presents Paper at Materials Research Society Conference
Three BUA Seniors Selected as Top 300 Scholars in 2023 Regeneron Science Talent Search
2022
BUA Senior Named 2022 Regeneron Science Talent Search Scholar
2021
BUA Senior Named Regeneron Scholar, Semifinalist in US Presidential Scholar’s Program
BUA Junior presents research as part of BU Sustainability Earth Week