Why should I care about research?

Research is something that is done by eccentric professors years into their careers, right? It doesn’t have anything to do with students starting their undergraduate degree, so why should you care about it?

Research is changing things for the better

You’ll be pleased to know that not all researchers have spent years stuck in a laboratory conducting endless experiments and never seeing the light of day. All over the world, researchers of all ages and from all kinds of academic subjects, are playing a crucial role in our future. At the University of Derby, our research teams are making an impact, changing the way we see things for the better on a regional, national and international basis.

Researchers are writing your textbooks

If our researchers are so important, how come you don’t know about them or hear about them in your undergraduate degree? You do, you perhaps just haven’t realised it. Have you ever read a book or a textbook and thought, I wish I could ask the author a question? What if you could because the book you are reading is written by a researcher at the University of Derby? 

Suddenly it makes the researcher feel a little more relevant and a lot more accessible. Our researchers are publishing their work so that everyone can access it, helping to improve knowledge in ground-breaking areas. It is there to help and inform you!

Research can set you apart

So, you have a textbook and you now know the person who wrote it, but is that as far as research influences your undergraduate degree? Well, what if I told you that the research by Professor Stephen Wordsworth and a team of researchers was feeding into the things being taught in BSc (Hons) Operating Department Practice (apprenticeship) course? In other words, you are learning information that is so new that you are at the forefront of knowledge – changes things a little, right?

Ok, now fast forward a few years to when you have finished your undergraduate degree and you are in an interview. The interviewer throws a curve ball at you with a question around audio engineering. But instead of panicking about the question like every other candidate does, you can provide a detailed, relevant and knowledgeable answer because your teaching was based on the most up-to-date research – congratulations, you have just set yourself apart from the field.

Research matters

In a nutshell, research does matter to you, it’s about all aspects of life - criminology, arts, coral reefs or something completely different. It is the ground-breaking research that is being fed into your curriculum that will provide you with the most relevant and comprehensive knowledge you could ask for. That is why you should care about research – research matters.