Join Our Team

Undergraduate research assistants

If you are an undergraduate interested in gaining research experience in developmental psychology, we’d love to hear from you. Our research aims to promote social equity and preempt the formation of social biases during childhood. No prior research experience is required; students interested in developmental psychology and coding are especially encouraged to apply. Our main recruitment runs March through May for the following fall, and RAs commit to at least two semesters (also the minimum for a letter of recommendation). Applicants hear back by email within 3 to 5 business days. Questions: demlab@illinois.edu.

RAs earn course credit through PSYC 290 (1 credit hour = 3 hours in the lab per week; most RAs take 3 credits, about 9 hours a week of shifts, team meetings, and an optional lab meeting). Course credit forms

What RAs do. All undergraduates join as research assistants. Responsibilities grow with experience: new RAs learn lab basics with the lab manager team (video checking on Developing Minds Online, coding, beginner R and Unity, social media), then take on more project work with a graduate mentor (study materials, data cleaning and coding, analyses). Experienced RAs can, with approval, pursue a Psychology honors thesis or capstone.

New RAs take PSYC 405, Game Development in the Context of Educational and Psychological Research, with Dr. Rizzo (offered in the fall). The course teaches students to build research studies in the Unity game engine, the method used on lab projects.

Master’s (MSPS) students

MSPS students in the Developing Equitable Minds Lab (DEML) complete either a Registered Replication or a Registered Report on a topic within developmental psychology, using the lab’s Developing Minds Online (DMO) platform.

• First year: students identify a research topic and learn how to build and program their study using Unity and C#. No prior experience with Unity or C# is expected, but students must commit to learning them to complete the MSPS program in the DEML lab.
• Second year: students conduct their project and report their results. They may also mentor undergraduate research assistants working on their project.

MSPS students meet monthly with Dr. Rizzo, weekly with a Ph.D. mentor in the DEML lab, and attend weekly DEML lab meetings. MSPS students apply on the same cycle as Ph.D. students, through the department’s program.

• MSPS program information
• MSPS application information

Ph.D. applicants

• Ph.D. application requirements
• Developmental Psychology area
• Ph.D. life advice and Ph.D. application guide by Ya’el Courtney