USD Professor Wins National Honor

UT San Diego -- When he was an undergraduate student at Rhode Island College, Mitch Malachowski was invited by a professor to help in his lab with some research.

“It had nothing to do with what I ended up doing as a graduate student or what I do now,” said Malachowski, a chemistry professor at the University of San Diego. But it helped a self-described “lost undergraduate” find inspiration to pursue a doctorate degree and embrace an academic career.

He said it also left a lasting impression about how valuable it is to include undergraduates in research, rather than just offering such experiences to graduate students.

In the 30 years he's taught at USD, Malachowski said he’s had about 110 undergraduate students conduct research with him, and he has worked on a national scale to promote a culture of research in undergraduate education. (Full Article)