HNF | Student Research

Baton Rouge, Louisiana |

Home >Research>Student Research

Research Opportunities for Undergraduates
Have you ever wondered where all the nutrition and health information you hear about comes from? It comes from research. Universities are one of the principal research venues. LSU is a Research 1 Institution; this means that many of the faculty have research programs. It also means that students interested in research have an opportunity to develop a close working relationship with a faculty mentor, as they work together on research projects. All of the graduates who have worked on research projects as undergraduates have gone on to do a dietetic internship, enter graduate school, or both!

What are the research opportunities available to you? Students can choose to work with members of the faculty on research projects in different ways.

The Courses
HUEC 3091 Reading and Research in Human Ecology (1-6). Students choose a faculty member with whom they wish to work on a topic that interests them both. Topics and expectations are flexible!

HNRS 3991/3992 Thesis (3/3). For students in the Honors College, their thesis work constitutes a major research program. It is written formally in thesis style, similar in scope and presentation to a Master’s thesis, and is defended by the student to their thesis committee.

The Programs
Chancellor’s Future Leaders in Research Program (http://www.research.lsu.edu/cflr.html) provides research opportunities in all of the LSU programs that offer undergraduate degrees. Students are partnered with a member of the faculty and conduct research with them and help prepare for their careers. All incoming freshman who are Chancellor Alumni Scholars, Top 100 Scholars, National Merit Finalists, or National Merit Achievement Awardees are eligible for this program.

The College of Agriculture (http://www.coa.lsu.edu/research/research.html) has an undergraduate research program in which students write research proposals to help fund research projects with the faculty. Students can receive academic credit for their research by enrolling in HUEC 3091 or HNRS 3991/3992.

The Ronald E. McNair Program (http://appl003.lsu.edu/slas/ronaldmcnair.nsf/index) primary purpose is to increase the enrollment of students who are first-generation, low-income, and who are members of a group under-represented at the post-graduate level, into a graduate program. Students in the McNair program have the opportunity to do research with a faculty member—usually through HUEC 3091.

Louis Stokes— Louisiana Alliance for Minority Participation (LAMP) (http://www.lsu.edu/lamp) helps minority students earning baccalaureate degrees in science, mathematics, engineering and technology in several ways, including through undergraduate research.

What happens after the research is finished?
Students have the opportunity to present their data at local, national, or even international meetings and to publish with their mentors! Students in the undergraduate programs in the Division of Human Nutrition and Food have presented at the American Dietetic Association and Institute of Food Technologists National Meetings, as well as the International Congress of Dietetics in Edinburgh Scotland!! Some student (bold type) abstracts and publications are:

Monroe PA, O’Neil CE, Tiller VV, Fuller M, Ohaegbulam N, Smith J. Nutrient intake at the beginning and end of the monthly resource cycle (RC) in low socio-economic women (SES) in rural Louisiana (LA) food insecure (FI) and food secure (FS) women. The FASEB Journal (Abstracts Part 1) 2003;17:A289.

May MC, Colona HC, Duhé S, McCutcheon KL, Francis AR, O’Neil CE, Keenan MJ, Hegsted M. The effects of soy protein on bone mineral density in ovariectomized retired breeder rats. The FASEB Journal (Abstracts Part 1) 2003;17:A298.

David S, O'Neil CE, Smith J, Tiller V, Monroe PA. Nutritional and Monetary Impact of Fast Food on Low Socioeconomic Status Women. Jour Am Diet Assoc 102 (Suppl 2): A-47, 2002.

O'Neil CE, David S, Smith J, LSU Community Nutrition Class, Tiller V, Monroe PA. Food Spending Patterns by Low Income Women who Receive or do not Receive Food Stamps or who are Food Secure or Insecure. Jour Am Diet Assoc 102 (Suppl 2): A-48, 2002.

Seab S, Smith S, O’Neil CE, Tiller V, Monroe PA. Diet quality and number of eating episodes (EE) in low socio-economic (SES) Louisiana (LA) women receiving or not receiving food stamps (FS). The FASEB Journal (Abstracts Part 1) 2002;16:A252.

Lindbergh K, O’Neil CE. Attitudes and practices about weight, weight management, and the association of these factors with the development of chronic disease in a convenience sample of dietetics students. Jour Am Dietetic Assoc 101 (Suppl): 2001.

Baldwin C, O’Neil CE, Hegsted M. Intra- and inter-variability in glycemic responsiveness to a white bread standard. IFT Book of Abstracts p. 69, 2001

Elks C, Duhe S, Daigle K, Mihalache G, O’Neil CE, Keenan MJ, Melton, S, Hegsted M. Rice bran oil and low levels of soy protein increase high-density lipoprotein levels, but not total cholesterol levels or triglyceride levels in ovariectomized retired breeder rats. IFT Book of Abstracts p. 69, 2001.

O’Neil C, Richard A, Cross E. Dietetics students’ and Registered Dietitians’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices about herbs/botanicals and the groups’ perceptions of the ethical ramifications of recommending herbs. In: Book of Abstracts. XIIIth International Congress of Dietetics. Edinburgh Scotland, July 2000. O49.