Getting started · Undergraduates

Welcome to the BIRD Lab at UC Davis! 🎉 This is a step-by-step guide to getting up and running. You belong here, and everyone in the lab started exactly where you are now. Work through it at your own pace during your first quarter, and ask when you’re unsure.

🔑Week 1Orientation & access

🎯Weeks 1–2Goals & mentoring

🌱OngoingResearch & growth

At a glance

Time commitmentWe request around 8 hours/week as a volunteer, growing if you enroll in EME/EAE 199 or want to take on more, agreed together and only as long as it benefits you. We understand you're volunteering your time and are grateful for it.

What you'll doHelp with data collection and processing, basic analyses, and/or literature review, guided by a grad student or postdoc.

What to expect from usA defined mentor, regular check-ins, and support learning tools and research skills.

What we expect from youShow up reliably, communicate clearly, ask questions, and keep your work organized and backed up.

Choosing how to take part? Undergraduates can volunteer or enroll for EME/EAE 199 credit; see Join the Lab for what each path involves.

Orientation & access Week 1

1. Skim the lab guide.

• Skim the Lab Guide to see what’s where; return to pages as you need them.

2. Complete the Slack onboarding workflow.

• Ask Christina or your mentor to add you to the BIRD Lab Slack.
• Complete the onboarding workflow; it collects your info and the access you need, so you don’t email anyone separately.
• (If you’re not enrolled at UC Davis) fill out the Volunteer Form and return it to Christina.
• For project-specific computer access, follow the Request Access canvas in Slack.

New undergrads: check with Christina or your mentor before starting the onboarding workflow. Onboarding questions go to the onboarding officer (see Lab operations roles).

3. Complete safety training.

• After the workflow, you’ll be added to the #safety Slack channel; complete the safety workflows there.
• See Lab safety for the full list of trainings.

Undergrads are not given office keys and are not to be in the facilities alone.

If your project involves animals, complete the required training early; see Animal care & ethics.

4. Install core tools and set up data backups.

• Set up UC Davis Microsoft 365, a synced Google Calendar, and the Box Desktop App.
• Set up your backups and version control as described in Data management.

See Data management for the full backup policy and Code for our Git practices.

Recommended (ask your mentor which you’ll use this quarter):

• Zotero and its Word plugin.
• Git and a GitHub account; if you’re new, do Introduction to GitHub.
• The programming environment your project uses: R & RStudio and/or Python & VS Code.

5. Set up mentor check-ins. Arrange regular check-ins with your day-to-day mentor (a grad student or postdoc), and agree the cadence together. See Meetings.

Goals & mentoring Weeks 1–2

1. Consider your goals. Spend some time reflecting (maybe over a coffee or tea), then set your quarterly goals; see Goal setting. Review them with your mentor.

Research & growth Ongoing

1. Present in a lab meeting.

• Pick one paper from ~3 options your mentor provides.
• Read it and note what you understood and what confused you.
• Prepare a strict 5-minute talk: the big picture, one or two key figures, and one question you still have.
• On your first slide, introduce who you are (name, year, major), why you joined, and what you hope to learn.

Your mentor can help you design the slides and practice; see Presentations for tips.

2. Settle in.

• Understand what’s expected of your time; see Work expectations.
• Find help when you need it; see Support resources.
• Wrapping up at the end of a quarter or your time here? See Leaving the lab.

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Last updated July 31, 2026

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