Get paid: Research opportunities and on-campus jobs | CU Boulder Today

From university research studies to part-time jobs, there are plenty of opportunities to make extra money on campus. See what’s open.

Students only

Survey on AI

The Center for Teaching and Learning is very interested in helping faculty at CU Boulder improve their teaching and policy with respect to AI. Collecting the student perspective on AI is critical to this effort!

If you are 18 or over and a CU Boulder undergraduate, we want to hear from you—whether you use AI or not. In return for completing our survey, you can enter a raffle for one of 30 $25 Amazon gift cards.*

Your answers will be anonymous, unless you choose to provide your contact information for follow-up. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes. Tell us what you really think!

Access the survey here.

*Students in participating classes can choose to receive extra credit instead of entering the raffle. Contact 
etra@colorado.edu with questions.

Survey on effects of peer mentorship

The PIEES Study (Peer-Mentorship’s Impacts on Engagement, Emotion, and Stress) is recruiting participants! The purpose of the study is to explore the effect of peer mentorship on engagement, stress and emotion in students. Simply complete a 29- to 39-minute survey to get a $15 gift card! You must be 18 years or older and a CU student to participate. Contact grace.lajoie@colorado.edu with questions or get started.

Study on stress, coping

Are you a first-year student at CU Boulder? Interested in a research study on stress and coping in CU students?

The Research on Affective Disorders and Development Lab is conducting research on stress coping in first year CU students. We want to understand what helps CU students cope with stress during major transitions, including the transition to college and across semesters.

The study includes a few different parts that happen over the three-semester study period:

• There are two in-person research sessions, each of which takes about four–six hours. During these sessions, you will play some computer games while we monitor physical functioning (for example, your heart rate). You will also complete a set of interviews and surveys that ask about stress, behavior, mood and health.
• There are three 21-day periods in which we will send you a daily “micro survey” (less than five minutes to answer) asking about your behavior and mood using an app.
• There are two one-hour online surveys that we will send to your email.

The study takes place over the course of three semesters, and you will be compensated for your participation (maximum of $446–$470 for completing all parts of the study).

If you want to learn more, contact the RADD lab at raddlab@colorado.edu or fill out our initial eligibility screening. 

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Part-time jobs

Work in Student Affairs

Working on campus is a great way for students to gain professional experience and discover new passions. Through your student job, you may learn that you enjoy working one-on-one with others or that your natural strengths work well for certain roles (like event planning or mentorship). Whatever department you work in, your student job can help you explore career paths, build your resume and shape your future. Explore jobs on Handshake.

Work in Campus Dining Services

Campus Dining Services offers students the chance to learn and build skills for success at CU and beyond. Our students work in a diverse, inclusive and fun space, and there are jobs that work with your schedule. There are also personal and professional development opportunities to develop skills like teamwork, communication, leadership and more.

• Flexible hours and convenient locations
• Competitive pay rates (starting at $16/hour)
• Work-study opportunities for eligible students
• Leadership and advancement opportunities
• Make new friends while building community
• Work in diverse and inclusive environments

Explore Jobs on Handshake.

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Studies for adults

Study on emotions in young adults of Mexican heritage

Do you identify as being of Mexican, Mexican-American or Chicano/a heritage? Interested in your emotions and moods? Participate in a paid study to understand your own emotions and mental health in the CU Department of Psychology and Neuroscience (IRB#24-0303)!

Study includes some or all of the following parts (EARN UP TO $30 GIFT CARD)

• Part A: Online Survey – Answer online questionnaires about your emotions, cultural values, mood and psychological health. Pays $20 for approximately 45 minutes.
• Optional Part B: Emotion Recall Task – Complete an online emotion memory task and additional questionnaires about your current emotions. Pays an extra $10 for approximately 15 minutes.

To qualify, you must be of Mexican heritage, between the ages of 18 and 25 years old, and fluent in English.

Interested in participating? Please complete this brief prescreen survey to apply.

Have any questions? Please email leap-study@colorado.edu and name the subject line (“LEAP Study”) or give us a call at 303-735-7547.

Thank you very much for your time and interest!

TENS, walking performance in older adults

Researchers from the Neurophysiology of Movement Laboratory at CU Boulder are conducting a study to investigate the influence of light electrical stimulation (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) on walking performance in older adults. Individuals who are aged between 65 and 85, with no recent lower-body injuries, free from neurological impairments and able to walk unaided for six minutes may be eligible to participate in our study.

The study involves two evaluation visits to CU Boulder Main Campus. The two sessions (each ~1.5 hours each) will be separated by three to seven days. Walking will be tested while transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is applied over leg muscles and controlled by a foot switch.

Participants will earn $60 for completing the two sessions. If interested, please contact Rehab Aljaafari to learn more about the study: phone 720-687-7148 or email real5810@colorado.edu.

Study on visual memory

Research participants wanted! A study in the Institute of Cognitive Science is investigating the brain activity involved in encoding and retrieving visual memories.

Eligibility:

• Right-handed
• 18–50 years old
• No history of neurological disorders or brain damage
• Vision that is normal or corrected-to-normal

Entails one visit of two hours, including an MRI screening followed by memory tasks during an MRI scan. The scan duration is 90 minutes.

You will be paid $60. If your home address is more than 15 miles from the CU Boulder scanner, we will pay an additional $15 for travel.

If you are interested in participating, please fill out this form. Email jego7755@colorado.edu with questions.

Study on semaglutide medications

Are you on a semaglutide medication? Our research team is interested to hear about your experience! Our study is open to users of any form of semaglutide or GLP-1 agonist medication (including Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, Trulicity, etc.) and involves one 30-45-minute study visit in our Boulder lab.

Participants will be compensated $25.

If you are interested in participating or have any questions for us, please email semaglutideresearch@gmail.com. 

Study on wellness in young adults

Interested in emotions and well-being? Want to help researchers understand psychological wellness and mental health? Participate in an engaging and fun paid study to understand your own emotions in the CU Department of Psychology and Neuroscience (IRB#24-0426) and earn up to $30!

Study includes some or all of the following parts:

• Part A: Remote online survey—Answer online questionnaires about your emotions, social and psychological well-being. Pays $10 for a 30-minute survey with choice of Amazon, Target or King Soopers gift card.
• Part B: In-person immersive experience—Come in person to complete a brief 15- to 20-minute walk, followed immediately by a brief (approximately) 15-minute survey. Pays $20 with choice of Amazon, Target or King Soopers gift card.

To qualify, you must be between the ages of 18 and 25 years old, fluent in English and able to walk 15–20 minutes unassisted without difficulty.

Interested in participating? Please complete the survey.

Have any questions? To participate or ask questions email us at awesome-study@colorado.edu and name the subject line “AWESOME Study.”

Bipolar disorder in young adults

Join the Young Emerging Adult Research Study (YEARS) study at CU Boulder and CU Anschutz (IRB# 23-2067) to understand emotions. Earn $25 per hour (up to approximately $400 total) for up to three study session phases (1 3/4 hours). Must be 18–25 years, be able to attend in-person sessions, and have a personal history of bipolar disorder or no mental health history.

Apply now by completing the prescreen survey. Email years-study@colorado.edu or call 720-378-8075 if you have any questions.

Study on music listening in young adults

Do you love listening to music? Are you curious about what music others are listening to? The Brain Music Lab at CU Boulder is currently recruiting participants for a research study investigating music listening, sharing and enjoyment behaviors in young adults (IRB # 24-0658).

Participating involves completing an online survey, followed by one visit to the Brain Music Lab (Roser ATLAS building) on CU Boulder’s Main Campus where you will listen to music, answer questions on a computer and have a short interview about your experience.

The total expected time commitment is two hours. Individuals who complete the study will be compensated with a $20 Amazon gift certificate and be entered in a drawing for an additional $50 Amazon gift certificate.

To participate, you must be between the ages of 18–25 and have normal or corrected-to-normal hearing.

Interested in participating or have any questions? Please email Sophia Mehdizadeh (some4995@colorado.edu) or complete this form.

Astronaut training research

Advancing and Validating Galvanic Disorientation Simulation Trainer: In this experiment, you will wear a galvanic vestibular stimulation headset. This system senses how you are tilted and stimulates your vestibular system with small amounts of electrical current through electrodes based behind your ears, near your forehand and back of your head. The system is intended to make you feel like an astronaut returning from spaceflight. During the experiment, you will perform tasks like reporting how you feel you are tilted, standing balance, walking or using a joystick to keep yourself upright in a chair.

You will be paid for the time you spend participating in this study.

If you have questions, would like additional information or are interested in participating, please email cu.gvspost@gmail.com. The principal investigator for this study is Torin Clark. You must be 18–65 years old to participate.

Study on learning, decision-making

The Neuromechanics Lab at CU Boulder is looking for volunteers to take part in a research study that investigates the role of how individuals navigate a dynamic and ambiguous decision-making task.

To take part you must:

• Be English-speaking
• Be between 18–36 years old
• Have normal vision or wear glasses/contacts that make your vision normal
• Have no neurological or other problems that affect your movement control
• Complete the pre-screen survey

This study is expected to last at most two hours. Participants will receive a digital Amazon gift card as compensation, worth between $15 and $25. All procedures take place in the campus laboratory (Engineering Center, ECSL 1B21).

For more information, please contact colin.korbisch@colorado.edu.

Sleep studies

The Sleep and Chronobiology Laboratory is recruiting for three sleep studies:

Sleep, circadian rhythms

Researchers are looking for healthy males and females, ages 17–40.

The study is seven weeks long with eight in-person visits. Participants live in the sleep laboratory on two separate occasions for 7.7 days (15.4 days total)

Compensation up to $4,093. Get study details and apply.

Light exposure, meal timing

The purpose of this study is to examine how light exposure and meal timing influences circadian rhythms in healthy people.

The study is seven weeks long with eight in-person visits at CU Boulder.

Participants live in the sleep laboratory on two separate occasions for 7.7 days (15.4 days total)

Compensation is up to $3,785. Get study details and information on how to apply. Contact sleep.study@colorado.edu.

Delayed sleep-wake phase disorder

Researchers are looking for people with delayed sleep-wake phase disorder or people with late bedtimes, or healthy people with typical bedtimes.

The purpose of this study is to improve our understanding of mechanisms of delayed sleep-wake phase disorder (DSWPD).  We are testing patients with DSWPD as well as healthy people without DSWPD. The study is 6.5 weeks long with six in-person visits at CU Boulder.

You may be eligible for this study if you:

• Are ages 16–30
• Have a diagnosis of delayed-sleep wake phase disorder or have late bedtime after 1 a.m., an inability to fall asleep and difficulty awakening when required for school/work
• Or are healthy with typical bedtimes and no sleep concerns

Study activities include:

• Health screening
• Monitor on separate occasions your sleep, mood, eating times for one or two weeks and blood sugar levels while living at home
• Live in the sleep laboratory on two separate occasions for 48–66 hours (approximately 4.75 days in total)
• Blood and saliva sampling and reaction time, mood, and ability to think testing

Compensation is up to $1,725. Get study details and apply. Contact sleep.study@colorado.edu.

Multiple sclerosis clinical trial

Researchers from the Neurophysiology of Movement Laboratory at CU Boulder are conducting a study to investigate if electrical stimulation applied to the legs can reduce fatigue and improve walking in persons with multiple sclerosis.

You may be eligible to participate if you:

• Are between18–65 years of age
• Have clinically confirmed diagnosis of MS
• Are able to walk but have some difficulty walking
• Experience some fatigue during activities of daily living

The 11-week study involves four evaluation visits and 18 treatment sessions (three times/week for six weeks):

• Evaluation sessions (approximately two hours each)
• Answering questionnaires
• Tests of walking, balance and muscle function
• Treatments (approximately 60 minutes each)
• TENS applied to leg muscles while performing weight-lifting exercises
• The treatment will be applied to two muscle groups in each leg

Participants will be paid up to $880 for completing the 11-week trial.

If you are interested, please contact Mélanie Henry by email at melanie.henry@colorado.edu and reference the MS clinical trial.

Cardiovascular research

The Integrative Physiology of Aging Laboratory is recruiting for four studies: 

Novel breathing exercise, ages 50-plus

Researchers are looking for volunteers to study the potential health effects of a new type of breathing exercise (a time-efficient type of exercise) on blood pressure, vascular function and cognitive function.

Requirements:

• Aged 50-plus years
• Systolic blood pressure (top number) ≥ 115 mmHg
• Willing to exercise up to 25 minutes per day, six days a week, for a three-month period

Benefits include:

• Detailed blood panel (cholesterol, glucose, etc.)
• Physician-monitored exercise stress test
• Blood pressure screening
• Bone mineral density test
• Monetary compensation for time

If interested, email IMSTstudy@colorado.edu or call 303-492-2485. Learn more.

Novel breathing exercise, ages 18-plus

Researchers are looking for volunteers to study the potential health effects of a new type of breathing exercise (a time efficient exercise) delivered via a smartphone app on blood pressure and vascular function.

Requirements:

• Aged 18-plus years
• Higher blood pressure (systolic BP 120–160 mmHg)
• Own an Apple or Android smartphone
• Willing to perform breathing exercises five to 10 minutes per day, six days a week, for six weeks

Benefits include:

• Detailed blood panel (cholesterol, glucose, etc.)
• Blood pressure screening
• Monetary compensation for time

If interested, email IMSTapp@colorado.edu or call 303-492-2485.

Potential healthy aging effects of MitoQ

Researchers are looking for volunteers to study the potential healthy aging effects of MitoQ, an antioxidant that is attracted to the mitochondria of cells, supplementation on physiological function.

Requirements:

• Ages 60-plus
• Willing to undergo a three-month period taking MitoQ or placebo pills

Benefits include:

• Detailed blood panel (cholesterol, glucose, etc.)
• Monetary compensation for time

If interested: call 303-735-6410 or email mitoqstudy@colorado.edu. Learn more.

Heat therapy, blood pressure, vascular function

Researchers are seeking volunteers to participate in a clinical research study. We are looking for adults, ages 40-plus who are willing to participate in water immersion sessions approximately three times per week for 12 weeks and have above normal blood pressure (a top number of 115 or higher; if you are unsure of your blood pressure, please still contact us for screening). 

Benefits for volunteers include: cardiovascular health assessment, exercise stress test, body composition, blood chemistries and monetary compensation for time.

For more information, please email hottubstudy@colorado.edu or call 970-460-8970. Learn more.

Movement learning study with robotics

Come play a game with a robot! The Neuromechanics Lab needs volunteers for a study on effort and motor learning. We are interested in how effort during a movement changes how you learn. The insights from this study will help us design optimize rehabilitation and movement training. 

In the game, you use a robotic handle to guide a cursor to a series of targets. 

You must: 

• Be between 18–35 years old
• Be right-handed
• Have no movement impairments that could impact your ability to complete a reaching task
• Have no upper-arm injuries within the last year

The study will involve about one hour of testing in our campus laboratory (1B21 ECSL, 1111 Engineering Drive, Boulder, CO 80309). We will schedule a 90-minute visit (in case of delays) at your convenience.

You will be compensated for your time and effort with an Amazon gift card. Take the survey to get started. Contact rachel.marbaker@colorado.edu.

Bioastronautics research

Please consider becoming a research participant in our study “Spatial disorientation following a gravity transition.” This study is being led by Torin Clark as part of the Bioastronautics Research Group at CU Boulder.

We are looking for subjects for an upcoming study investigating an active countermeasure triggering mechanism to reduce spatial disorientation in astronauts performing lunar landings. This research will take place in up to two visits and a total of no more than five hours in the Aerospace Engineering Sciences building on East Campus in the Bioastronautics Lab.

You will be paid for your participation at a rate of $15 per hour. More details on the study protocol will be provided in person, prior to beginning the experiment during your session.

To participate in the study, volunteers need to:

• Be between 18–50 years of age
• Have no history of vestibular dysfunction
• Weigh less than 200 lbs
• Complete a pre-screening questionnaire confirming eligibility criteria

If interested, please email sdtriggering@gmail.com to receive more information.

Study on CBD, mood health

The Research on Affective Disorders and Development Lab is conducting research on the effects of cannabidiol (CBD) on mood and behavior. We are recruiting research participants ages 18–35.

The study includes a few different parts:

• You will answer short twice-daily surveys for six weeks on your mobile device.
• You will complete three in-person research visits, each including an interview about life experiences, a set of computer games, and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scan.
• You will select and use a CBD product for up to six weeks.

The study takes place over the course of six to eight weeks, and you will be compensated for your participation (maximum of $863–$1,038 for completing all parts of the study).

If you want to learn more, contact the RADD Lab at raddlab@colorado.edu or 303-735-8306, or fill out the initial eligibility screening.

Surveys for managers/supervisors

Calling all managers/supervisors! Researchers are working on a project to better understand your daily experiences at work. 

For this study, you will be asked to complete three two-minute surveys a day, for a period of 10 days, as well as a 15-minute baseline survey at the beginning of the 10-day period. 

You will receive monetary compensation for each survey you complete, with a total possible compensation of $70 in Tango gift card credit (to be used at a retailer of your choice, including a Visa or Mastercard prepaid card) for completing this study. See all retail options. 

You will receive $5 for your participation in the baseline survey and an additional $1 for participation in each daily survey (three surveys per day for 10 days) and a $2 bonus for every full day you complete (up to $5 each day). If you complete 80% or more of the daily surveys (24 out of 30), you will receive a $15 bonus (in gift card credit). 

Requirements:

• Full-time working professional
• Currently working as a manager with at least one direct report
• Having daily interactions with their direct report(s) (this can be virtual or in-person)
• 18 years of age or older
• Located in the United States
• Able to complete three daily surveys for a period of two work weeks

The daily surveys will be taken once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and once in the evening over a period of two work weeks in July. 

This opportunity is only available to the first 90 participants who sign up and qualify. Take the first survey to see if you are eligible.

Reach out to Christina Lacerenza at christina.lacerenza@colorado.edu or Rebecca Mitchell at remi2720@colorado.edu if you have additional questions. 

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Studies for the family

Child communication research

The Child Research Participant Registry connects families and researchers, so that together they can advance understanding of human communication and methods to diagnose and treat children who have communication-related challenges. They invite families of children with or without communication challenges to join the registry.

To learn more, or to sign up your child, please visit this webpage. The research registry is affiliated with the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences.