UNC student starts interdisciplinary research journal

Undergraduates looking for a way to publish their original research now have a new option. UNC JOURney’s first issue will be released to the public in fall 2017 — submissions are due Feb. 15.

Gabi Stein, a UNC sophomore and editor-in-chief of the journal, spearheaded the project.

“I think this is a really cool outlet because it’s interdisciplinary,” Stein said. “It’s not just one department, so you’re able to see all the different types of research being done across campus, and I think that’s how ideas are able to collide and a lot of people are able to meet who have not met before.”

Stein said as a first-year, she was dissatisfied with UNC’s lack of an interdisciplinary undergraduate research journal. She said she decided to turn her dissatisfaction into a plan.

“I thought this would be a really good way for students to learn about the peer-review process and about the publishing world if they haven’t gotten exposed to it as an undergraduate researcher.”

Stein said one of the biggest challenges in the journal’s start up was receiving funding from the Office for Undergraduate Research. To do this, Stein visited other universities to see how their undergraduate research journals are run.

Through her research, Stein was introduced to professor Troy Blackburn, interim associate dean of undergraduate research at UNC.

“We discussed the logistics of doing it, and then we have some discretionary funding within the Office of Undergraduate Research that allows us to fund this initiative,” Blackburn said.

Stein’s plan of action was enough to convince him UNC JOURney could succeed.

“He’s more of like an overarching advisor. I meet with him regularly,” Stein said.

Stein said Blackburn has provided a crucial guiding hand in the project, helping with legal issues and funding, but he insisted that Stein is responsible for the bulk of the project’s work. Blackburn said he is relatively quiet in the day-to-day operations, respecting the autonomy of the students.

Stein assembled a team of undergraduate editors, readers and peer reviewers during fall 2016. The group is responsible for deciding what submissions make it into the journal, which is divided into natural sciences, social sciences and humanities.

The journal’s chief goal is to merge different fields into one publication, Stein said.

“It’s the first journal where students can come from a variety of backgrounds and majors and find work that is pertinent to what they are studying,” said humanities co-editor Rebekah Cockram. “I think it’s especially relevant at a liberal arts university where we are encouraged to think broadly about different subjects.”

Stein said she hopes the journal will prosper after her undergraduate career.

“My goal is for it to keep going strong and to be a place for students to publish and learn about the peer review process,” she said.

university@dailytarheel.com