Call for Applications: Humanities EXPLORE Undergraduate Research Fellowship with Dr. Kimberly Adilia Helmer, 2024-2025

Research Assistant: Discourse Analysis (Writing Program)

We encourage work-study and non-work-study students to apply. This role is only open to undergraduate students with a declared or proposed Humanities major or minor and requires work authorization.

Application Deadline: Sunday, February 9, 2025

The Humanities Division and The Humanities Institute are excited to announce an experiential learning opportunity for undergraduates at UC Santa Cruz to work with Writing Program Professor Kimberly Adilia Helmer, PhD.

The Humanities Experiential Learning Opportunities in Research (EXPLORE) Program connects Humanities majors and minors to faculty-led research projects in the division. EXPLORE Fellows are mentored by faculty members to develop skills and knowledge to help them make an impactful intellectual or creative contribution to their field. Students gain practical experience and professional training that builds on their studies in the Humanities. At the same time, faculty benefit from students’ assistance and academic expertise.

Applicants must have a declared or proposed major or minor in the Humanities Division at the time of their application to be eligible. Please see the Humanities Division majors and minors list to check your eligibility before applying. Students in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics are highly encouraged to apply!

About The Project

Student researchers will assist Dr. Helmer in conducting focus group interviews with undergraduate multilingual writers that includes co-creating interview questions, requesting video equipment from Humanities Computing, and recruiting interview participants. After interviews are conducted, research assistants will transcribe focus-group and individual interviews and organize and code classroom data.

The interviewed students will reflect on what they learned in their writing course, “The Happiness Project.” Classroom data come from the same students' class reflections. This study builds off earlier interviews of international students who were in their final quarters at UCSC and reflected back on their writing (and other) experiences, specifically how their first-year writing courses assisted them (or not) with their diverse studies. The methodology used for transcription is Conversation Analysis (CA), a time-intensive but state-of-the-art methodology. Student researchers will learn the theories behind CA and how to do fine-grained transcribing write interview questions, and conduct structured yet free-flowing interviews..

Research Fellows would also be invited to learn how to analyze the "talk" transcribed. Findings from this analysis would help us gain more significant insights into the international student experience and how we can better serve them. One initial finding is their need for greater emotional/psychological support.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND EXPECTATIONS

• Interview Conducting (40%)
  • Understand how to create effective open-ended interview questions
  • Learn how to negotiate a multi-person interview
  • Learn how to use video and recording equipment and uploading digital files
• Interview Transcription (54%):
  • Understand Conversational Analysis (CA) and the transcription style through 2-3 key readings and discussion with Dr. Helmer
  • Learn to use transcription software and foot pedals
  • Listen to interviews and transcribe talk using CA conventions
  • Save work in a shared Google Drive
  • Meet weekly with Dr. Helmer to check progress, discuss work, and answer questions.
• Analysis (6%):
  • Learn to uncover themes in the transcriptions
  • Annotate the transcription with potential themes.
  • Dr. Helmer will conduct the primary analysis, but students will provide valuable additional “insider” insights.
  • Learn to code and create themes from student-written Data
  • Weekly discussions will center on this analysis.

Required Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

• You are a declared or proposed major or minor in a department in the Humanities Division and are in good academic standing. If your major or minor is proposed, you can declare by the end of the academic year in June. [strict eligibility requirement]
  • Eligible majors: Applied Linguistics and Multilingualism, Classical Studies, Critical Race and Ethnic Studies, Feminist Studies, History, Jewish Studies, Language Studies, Linguistics, Literature, Philosophy, Spanish Studies
  • Eligible minors: Black Studies, Classical Studies, East Asian Studies, History of Consciousness, History, Italian Studies, Jewish Studies, Language Studies, Linguistics, Literature, Middle Eastern and North African Studies, Philosophy, Spanish Studies
• You have work authorization. [required]
• You speak English as a primary or secondary language and have high-level English skills.

Preferred Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

• You are a Linguistics or Language and Applied Linguistics major or minor [preferred].
• You are comfortable thinking critically and have some experience with qualitative analysis.
• You are patient and persistent in the face of challenges.
• You are organized and can meet deadlines.
• You’re a proactive communicator with faculty and enjoy collaborating with peers.
• You have an acute attention to detail.
• You can type at a quick pace.
• You can listen attentively to the conversation.
• You can understand Mandarin-accented English.
• You are familiar with using Google Docs and Google Drive.
• You can learn new software fairly quickly and bonus points if you have experience with Inqscribe software.

Position Term: Winter & Spring Quarter 2025

Hours: 10 hours/week

Compensation: $20/hour, depending on experience

Mentorship: You will work closely with and report to Dr. Helmer. They will delegate tasks, review your work, provide coaching, and help you understand professional research. You will meet to check in at least once per week

Apply By Submitting

1. Your updated resume
2. A short cover letter (no more than one page) answering these questions: Why are you interested in this position? How does your academic expertise and skillset prepare you for this role? What are you hoping to gain from this opportunity?
   1. You might include your interest in understanding language use, language acquisition, undergraduate education experience, or qualitative research methods. Feel free to comment on any combination of these topics.

REVIEW these resume and cover letter resources to ensure you are a strong candidate! For application help, see Humanities Career Engagement.

• Address your cover letter to Dr. Helmer

Once the application window closes, there will be an interview process with top candidates. This job is expected to start in February 2025.

APPLY NOW

Please contact the EXPLORE Program coordinator, Kylie Rachwalski, at hum-experiential-learning@ucsc.edu with any questions.

The Mellon Foundation, The Helen and Will Webster Foundation, The Humanities Institute, and the UCSC Humanities Division generously support the Humanities EXPLORE Program.