Elizabeth Walshe, PhD

Through this experience, I developed a deeper understanding of data analysis and how research is conducted within injury science. Prior to this, I had no experience in research and did not know how my Statistics major could be applied to research.

Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2022)

During the summer of 2022, I had the opportunity to be a part of the Injury Science REU program at CIRP under the mentorship of Elizabeth Walshe, PhD. The main project I worked on focused on analyzing the feedback about implementing a virtual driving assessment (VDA) within driving schools in Ohio.

I developed many skills relating to data analysis, such as coding in R and using Excel. For this project, I ran the datasets through R to generate charts about the demographic information of the VDA users. I also generated tables about the feedback for the VDA system using Excel. These tables were used in the mid-year report that was delivered to Ohio. Because of the skills I learned from this project, I was able to create tables in Excel for an additional project and run a statistical analysis test on a separate dataset.

Through this experience, I developed a deeper understanding of data analysis and how research is conducted within injury science. Prior to this, I had no experience in research and did not know how my Statistics major could be applied to research. The supportive and collaborative environment at CIRP gave me the opportunity to grow and learn more about data analytics and what it takes to be a researcher. I am now more certain about pursuing a higher degree in Statistics. I could not have spent my first research experience in a better place.