Wild Caught Nematode Identification and Early Embryo Development: An accessible undergraduate research experience

Ample evidence suggests that participation in undergraduate research in community college is critical for stimulating interest and retention in STEM careers. Guided skill development and practice in a collaborative lab setting allows students to be competitive when applying to future research opportunities. The goals of this undergraduate research experience (URE) was for student-driven discovery with unknown outcomes including: introduction to primary literature, developmental biology, developing hypotheses, learning worm maintenance, microscopy, PCR, and sequencing analysis. The use of C. elegans and wild caught nematodes facilitated an exciting and affordable project that can be built on in future UREs.