Beyond the Classroom: Summer Research at Oxford
Summer at Oxford College looks different for every student. While some students leave campus to travel the world or take on exciting internships, others spend the season answering scientific questions, examining museum ethics, or mapping issues of religious freedom.
Through Oxford's Summer Oxford Research Scholars (SORS) and Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) programs, students turn curiosity into discovery in a variety of disciplines.
Ethan Miller
“I got involved in Dr. Scharf’s research after taking CHEM 202 with him; from there, I did research throughout the year and then was asked by Dr. Scharf to apply to SURE,” he explains.
After learning more about the program, he decided to submit an application.
“I applied for the SURE program to gain further experience in synthetic organic chemistry techniques and to conclude my research program for the school year,” he explains.
This summer, his research consists of bench work in which he continues to synthesize novel dipyrrins to analyze their optical properties.
“A typical week consists of setting up reactions and purifying our products by recrystallization, trituration, and column chromatography. From there, we analyze the purity of our products using NMR and troubleshoot our reactions to improve yield and purity,”
Oxford SURE researchers also commute to the Atlanta campus once a week to attend a responsible research conduct class, ensuring they build strong research ethics.
Thus far, he has learned a lot about purification by column chromatography and the importance of optimizing chemical reaction processes. This has been instrumental in building up his chemistry techniques as an aspiring PhD candidate in medicinal chemistry.
He recommends that aspiring SURE participants “communicate with your PI and fully understand the research you’re doing prior to applying to SURE.”
While Ethan's research takes place in a chemistry lab, our next student, Claudia Fodor’s work explores questions of ethics, history, and museum stewardship.
Claudia Fodor
“Because we are still in the early stages of the project, my work has focused primarily on reviewing professional guidelines and institutional policies and comparing how different museums approach these issues,” she describes.
She first learned about the SORS program while discussing summer internship opportunities with her professor, Dr. Tasha Dobbin-Bennett, Chair of the Humanities Division and Associate Professor of Art History and Studio Art.
“I had reached out to ask for a recommendation letter, and during our conversation, she asked if I would consider participating in SORS because of my interests in museum studies and previous research projects she had advised me on. After learning more about the program, I was super excited about the opportunity to gain hands-on research experience while still at Oxford.”
She believes summer is the perfect time to pursue research because, unlike the Fall and Spring, she would not need to balance other extracurricular commitments. Ultimately, this opportunity has allowed her to dedicate her energy to a longer-term project and to engage more deeply with the research process and her academic interests.
Claudia is also helping develop documentation standards and a metadata framework for organizing information about human remains in museum collections, using one museum as a case study.
“One of the long-term goals of this work is to explore how this information could eventually be incorporated into a more centralized repository or database. Because information about human remains is spread across different institutions and documented in different ways, creating a standardized system could make it easier for researchers to locate and understand collection data while still respecting ethical and professional guidelines.”
This work is also critical to her career aspirations.
“I am interested in pursuing a master's degree or Ph.D. in Art History or Archaeology. This research experience has given me a deeper understanding of museum practices and the sensitive ethical responsibilities involved in caring for cultural heritage. At the same time, it has helped me build skills such as critical reading, policy analysis, and academic writing that will be useful no matter where my career takes me.”
Most importantly, this opportunity has allowed Claudia to understand the importance of analyzing information rather than simply collecting it.
“I have found that I am much more effective when I stop rushing through information and instead take the opportunity to fully understand it and think about why it matters.”
This sentiment also holds true with research in the intersection of technology and society, which Anish Thota explores through his research with Dr. Pohl.
Anish Thota
After the semester concluded, Anish reached out to Dr. Pohl to see if he could help with the project, and Dr. Pohl recommended that he apply for the SORS program.
He was particularly drawn to the SORS program because he knew it would be flexible regarding the hours he could devote to a project of his choice.
“Ultimately, I liked the idea of pursuing my research project under an existing program while retaining freedom over my research mentor and my project,”
His research project consists of transferring data from an outdated geographic information system (GIS) platform, Omeka, to a more sophisticated platform, ArcGIS, and adding narratives and information to StoryMaps. The purpose of this is to develop a full map of the cases of resistance to mosque/Islamic cemetery construction.
“The data consists of instances of aggression and opposition against places of worship such as mosques, cemeteries, etc., for those who practice Islam,” Anish reports.
So far, Anish has “mapped out the steps needed for this project and learned the general functionality behind the ArcGIS and Storymaps, and what visualizations work best for each platform.”
In addition to his research project with Dr. Pohl, whom he meets with weekly, Anish also works as a grassroots team organizer to help the Georgia Democrats prepare for the midterm elections. He balances these two opportunities by designating mornings and late evenings for research and afternoons for his work with the Georgia Democrats.
These opportunities have allowed Anish to engage with fields he hopes to work in.
“At this point, I’m interested in the intersection of tech and law, and the project I am undertaking involves using technology to map data that can assist civil liberty groups and other legal and political organizations in protecting minority groups’ access to the practice of their respective religions.
Although their projects differ widely, each student shares a common goal: asking meaningful questions and seeking evidence-based answers. Through SORS and SURE, Oxford students aren't simply learning about research—they're contributing to it. Whether in a laboratory, museum archive, or digital mapping platform, they're developing the curiosity, analytical thinking, and problem-solving skills that define an Oxford education.
To learn more about Oxford’s research offerings, check out this page