Community-Based Research Courses
As a student you have a unique opportunity to take what you’ve learned in your courses and apply it to real-world challenges through community-based research. Unlike traditional or basic research, the researcher does not autonomously derive the research question, but instead works collaboratively with a community organization to come up with a question of use to the community organization. At CSJ, we encourage students to engage in CBR through classes and sponsored internships. This is because research often is a multi-year endeavor, and requires substantive knowledge from different disciplines. Typically through courses faculty and staff are able to meet the needs of the organizations by engaging individuals with different skills to complete the overall project. If you are interested in CBR, we offer a number of resources to assist you, including the following:
CBR COURSES:
Project DC:Urban Research Internship
CSJ supports this Sociology (cross-listed with Psychology) course that challenges students to undertake an intensive collaborative research project that assists a community and/or community organization. Through this 2-semester course, students write a major research paper based on their project (senior thesis for Sociology Majors).
Introduction to Community Psychology (optional)
Social Justice Analysis (optional)
RESEARCH INTERNSHIP PROGRAM:
The Office of Research sponsors an internship program for students who want to:
learn about social issues in the District of Columbia, and
Share these lessons with other students and faculty at Georgetown.
Student interns investigate specific social issues through traditional research methods and through developing relationships with community organizations working on those issues. Interns are currently exploring Affordable Housing and D.C.’s Public Educational System.
INFORMATIONAL WORKSHOPS:
Each semester, staff at CSJ is available to share CBR resources with student groups, courses, academic organizations and other interested parties. These presentations can focus on: CBR, the District of Columbia generally, social issues in the D.C. Metro area and on the activities of local community-based organizations.
RESOURCES ABOUT WASHINGTON DC:
Brochures with sociodemographic information about each ward.
DC Portal
CSJ Community Tours
