Tips for Remote Research

Let’s be real: even for the most well-prepared students, the coronavirus has thrown a wrench into all of our plans. Along with summer travel plans and on-campus classes, COVID-19 has even taken out in-person research — restrictions are so tough that even the most hardcore pre-meds can’t get into a physical lab. Even though you envision test tubes and beakers when you think of a lab, there are plenty of remote research opportunities available at Harvard. If you’re looking to get involved in a lab or work for a professor, check out ways you can maximize your remote research experience below!

LinkedIn Learning

Who knew every Harvard student’s favorite social media site could be so useful? LinkedIn Learning is a free platform that offers over 15,000 on-demand courses to learn valuable skills such as Python for data science, R, Excel, market data analysis, and more. Hopefully you learn something new, but at worst, you’ll be able to brag about it to your 300+ connections.

BioRender

For the artistically challenged, BioRender is the perfect tool to create beautiful figures for your research projects or when you’re just feeling bored during class. Tried and true Flyby hack: try to make your professor’s face out of the provided icons when you’re bored during lecture.

Ask a Librarian

Our favorite and often most underutilized resources! The Harvard librarians have set up a live chat option operating from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or just submit a question over email.

Library Shenanigans

No, we are not referring to the stacks. To use the libraries ~properly~, check out the research guides that are fit for a variety of disciplines, digital library collections that allow you to study over six million digital objects, and Lean Library, a browser extension that gives you access to digital content available through Hollis.

If you’re struggling with remote research, we feel you! Even though this is a new challenge, hopefully Flyby has equipped you with the tools you need to get started. And if not, don’t worry — your Nobel will still be waiting for you.