National Security Major’s Summer Research Reinforced Passion for Middle Eastern Culture

As part of her Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship project, Micaela O’Shea ’21 explored Middle Eastern culture, yielding fascinating findings and a sense of confidence for her future work in the field.

Thanks to the sage guidance of my University’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) faculty mentor, Dr. Patrick Gourley, I was able to combine my interests in the historical and cultural norms of the Middle East and the advancement of women into a research project.

I examined the impact the Arab Spring – a series of anti-government protests, uprisings, and armed rebellions that spread across North Africa and the Middle East in the early 2010s – had on female labor force participation rates in those areas of the world.

My participation in the University’s SURF program has impacted me in countless ways. Prior to SURF, I had little experience in the field of economics – particularly in economic modeling. However, with the supportive mentorship of Dr. Gourley, I pushed myself to research a topic in a field that is outside my comfort zone. This experience showed me that I can overcome obstacles and gave me confidence to continually try new things.

SURF has given me the opportunity to gain invaluable research experience that I will certainly draw from in the future. The research that I have undertaken over the past 10 weeks has been extremely interesting and eye-opening.

"SURF has given me the opportunity to gain invaluable research experience that I will certainly draw from in the future."Micaela O’Shea ’21

I hope to build on this research when I create my Honors thesis. My experience in SURF has reinforced my passion for examining the cultural norms of the Middle East and how they impact different demographics, which is an interest I hope to incorporate in my future career.

The University of New Haven’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program enables students to develop a proposal for a research project, conduct it while working closely with a faculty member, and present their findings to the campus community.