In honor of National Undergraduate Research Week, the Office of Undergraduate Research is excited to feature a series of unique research experiences from just a few of our many WashU undergraduates engaged in research.
Name: Kayce Sorbello
Graduation Year: 2019
Majors: International and Area Studies, Anthropology
Research Funding: WashU Summer Undergraduate Research Award (SURA)
What type of research did you pursue with your funding?
My research focused on a community action project, which addresses crop-raiding in communities surrounding Kibale National Park in western Uganda. This project has been ongoing for a few years, but the data has yet to be analyzed. I mostly worked on cleaning up the data and analyzing it so that the project can continue to adapt to the communities’ needs.
Have there been specific people here at WashU that gave you significant support and/or helped propel your interest in research?
Dr. Jeremy Caddel in International and Area Studies helped me in the beginning stages of my interest in research and guided me on the realities of conducting research, like getting IRB approval, funding opportunities, etc. Once I solidified the logistics, I sought the advice of Dr. Krista Milich in Anthropology who informed me of a project in Uganda she was working on and told me about several research opportunities there. She worked with me to develop a research topic that was not only beneficial to her overarching project, but also one that would be of interest to me and help me prepare for life after graduation.
"Interacting and working with the local community members has profoundly impacted me as I embarked on this research experience."
