Why register for variable-unit courses?
Registration in variable-unit courses for undergraduate research benefits students in many ways:
- Special study courses recognize research as an education experience — not just as an extracurricular activity.
- Academic credit provides graduate and professional schools an official record of research experiences.
- Course records make the university’s commitment to undergraduate research visible and trackable for the Undergraduate Research Center. This helps the center assess what campus resources should be provided to support students in their research efforts.
- Academic credit creates equity in how the university recognizes experiential learning.
- Research units can satisfy minimum progress and, in some majors, count toward degree credits.
Use the right course codes
The 99 and 199 course codes are for research. 99 is for students who completed fewer than 84 units and 199 is for students who completed 84 or more units. 194 is the code for a thesis project. 192 is the course code for an internship, typically a non-UC Davis, off-campus experience.
Afraid to hit unit cap?
Talk to your major advisor about petitioning to waive 199 from the unit cap calculation or consider transcript notation.
Independent research units are pass or no pass.
Steps:
Exact process details may vary depending on the department.
- Obtain a Variable Unit Form. The form may have other names, such as
- 199 form
- research contract
- research units form
The forms are often available found in your lab, the department's website, or through your major's undergraduate academic advisor. Departments may offer different forms, so make sure to use the right form for your department.
- Complete the form with information from your faculty mentor or lab manager, include necessary details such as the research plan, weekly hours expected and criteria for passing.
- Submit the signed form. Your faculty mentor must sign the form first to approve the units requested. Submit the form to your major department's advising office. Exact process may differ between departments, so follow your advisor's instructions or the instructions on the form.
- Get a CRN. The advising office will provide a Course Registration Number, or CRN, for you to use to register for the course.
- Register for the class in Schedule Builder. Make sure to adjust the units to reflect the time you'll spend on research: three hours equals one unit.
- Submit a final report. Most departments require you to submit a report of your accomplishments to earn units.
Student Transcript Notation for Research
If you are in an approved and supervised research internship position, working 40 hours or more per quarter, you can record your research efforts on your official academic transcript through the transcript notation process in Handshake. Transcript notation lists “research internship,” your employer, and the quarter(s) you participated
How To Get Transcript Notation
For step-by-step instructions on how to complete the transcript notation process, view the student Transcript Notation informational document on the Career Center page on Internship Transcript Notation. If your internship employer would like more information about the transcript notation process, please refer them to the employer transcript notation page.
Questions? Email us at [email protected].