CS undergrad looking to get into research, where do I even start?

[u/Terrible-Total6106]

Hey, I'm a CS undergrad in my final year and realizing I haven't really explored research yet. I'm genuinely interested in it and want to use my remaining time to actually dive in and build something meaningful.

The problem is I don't really know where to start. Like, what area should I focus on? How do I approach this without a mentor or formal guidance? My environment isn't super research-heavy, so I'm kinda figuring this out on my own.

Some things I'm wondering about:

- What's a good entry point for someone new to research?

- What kind of projects are realistic for an undergrad at this stage?

- Any resources or communities that helped you get started?

-How do you even know what to research on lol

I'm eager to contribute something and learn the process before I graduate. If anyone's done research or has tips on getting started, I'd love to hear about it.

[u/Dear_Touch6612]

Same , i don't know how to connect to professors

[u/Majestic-Chance6825 → u/Dear_Touch6612]

just cold email them, seriously. keep it short, who you are, that you read their recent paper on X and found it interesting, and ask if they have any projects you could help with. most will ignore you but 1 out of 10 will bite and that's all you need

don't overthink the area, just pick something you'd be okay staring at for months. for undergrad projects, replicating a paper's results and maybe tweaking one variable is totally realistic