The Office of Student Research (OSR) in the Division of Research & Innovation is committed to fostering a community to help emerging undergraduate researchers flourish early in their academic career. The many hours of physical, mental, and emotional work that goes into the completion of the research projects and scholarly dissemination from the student researchers and the faculty mentors are something we at PVAMU sincerely appreciate and understand. With the guidance of their faculty mentors, these students learned firsthand the skills and dedication required to conduct cutting edge experiments, whether in a laboratory or the field. They learned the importance of research dissemination that contributes to the global body of work in their disciplines. This wealth of knowledge, training, and experience has established a strong foundation and positioned them for a successful career.

Dissemination of research through publications and presentations to a broader community is one of the most important stages of conducting research. OSR provides training to the undergraduate researchers toward the research publications through presentations, reports, and journal manuscripts.

The research publication is the final step in the research process to disseminate the work. Students usually fulfill this step by presenting at local, regional, or national conferences. Although these activities are essential, undergraduate students can also consider disseminating the work by publishing their findings in academic journals. It is possible to conduct research as a student and have it published before you earn your degree. The publishing process aids in developing writing skills, the opportunity to learn from constructive feedback provided by reviewers., and shows evidence of your abilities in methodology as well as data collection and analyses, which are the critical skills that graduate programs look for in applicants. And if students are not interested in graduate school immediately upon graduation, the publication process develops abilities valued by future employers.

When submitting a manuscript for publication in a journal, you will want to ensure the paper adheres to A.P.A. style, pay careful attention to details such as formatting of headers, in-text citations, spacing, and other style mechanics. Also, you can improve the quality of your manuscript by checking the appropriate use of punctuation, grammar, and spelling and by avoiding run-on sentences. Although this sounds like a no-brainer, it is always best to double-check these issues before submitting them.

It is always recommended that you collaborate and get support from your mentor, who will likely read the manuscript and make suggestions for improvement before submitting it. When you both believe the paper is ready to be sent, you will find many journals in the field, specifically looking for submissions from undergraduate students and their mentors. Remember, you should only submit the manuscript to one journal at a time for consideration.

The scholarly journal, “PURSUE”, provides undergraduates an avenue to publish their original research articles in the following areas: (but not limited to) psychology, sociology, biology, chemistry, physics, engineering, computer science, mathematics, humanities, agriculture, architecture, business, and education.

The original research articles included in this journal are peer-reviewed and selected by the journal’s Editorial Board. The review process allows undergraduate researchers to receive feedback from notable scientists in their field of study and teach them about the publication process. Publishing their work will not only inform the scientific community but also impact the greater society.

The journal is housed at Prairie View A&M University, a Historically Black University, and is available to all young scientists conducting research. This journal also serves as a means for faculty to extend knowledge beyond the classroom and encourage other students to conduct quality research. All undergraduate research is produced in conjunction with a faculty mentor and is peer reviewed. The journal is open to undergraduates from all Colleges and Universities.

For more information regarding PURSUE please contact

Dr. Yolander Youngblood
Executive Editor
Assistant Professor of Biology
Prairie View A&M University
yryoungblood@pvamu.edu