UCLA’s first research opportunity fair next week aims to assist undergraduates in exploring the university’s ongoing research projects.

Presented by the Undergraduate Students Association Council and supported by the UCLA Career Center, the fair will be held free to all students Tuesday from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Ackerman Student Union second floor lounge.

Various groups will provide information on the volunteer, research and internship opportunities they offer, while panelists such as the Undergraduate Research Center and the Student Research Program will hold presentations about the typical research application process.

Some of the groups planning to set up booths include the Neuroscience Undergraduate Society, the School of Nursing and the Center of Community Learning.

“Research experience makes for more highly competitive applications to professional schools, but much of it is not formally advertised at UCLA,” said Kathy Sims, director of the Career Center.

Daniel Chikanov, a USAC general representative and third-year psychobiology student, first envisioned the fair and approached the Career Center in May to help make it a reality.

He said that while the event will showcase South Campus research, the highlighted opportunities could still appeal to North Campus students with a cross-campus interest.

During his second year, Chikanov’s desire to enter into research faced the challenge of a large campus with decentralized and competitive opportunities, he said. The hunt for finding a position both open and attractive led him outside of UCLA to a biokinesiology lab at the University of Southern California.

Chikanov said he wants UCLA students to save time and gas by learning how to attain research experience on campus without having to look elsewhere.

“A lot of students may complain about not finding what they want (on campus), but they just have to know where and how to look,” he said.

The fair, however, will not include the presence of research professors. Sims said her faculty and USAC decided research professors would either feel pressured to recruit students or be too busy to attend.

“This (fair) is a test to see how the faculty feel about the promotion of their opportunities,” Sims said. “We’re hoping they’ll be more open about getting to know students they wouldn’t typically connect with.”

Whether the fair will return in the future depends on USAC support, rather than student turnout, Sims said.

She added that if USAC does not hold the event again, the Career Center might sponsor it on its own to help students.

“There’s no set formula (on finding research), and people have to go out and find their own way. And I think that’s the toughest part,” said Noel Ayoub, a fourth-year physiological sciences student.

Ayoub said the fair would have been a helpful resource for him when he was a confused freshman. He’ll be attending the event as a coordinator of the Student Stroke Team, which helps conduct research and evaluate stroke patients in the emergency room.