Is Notre Dame or UCLA better for undergraduate research opportunities?

UCLA has the edge for undergraduate research opportunities. It is one of the country’s biggest research universities, it offers a large volume of labs and faculty projects across many disciplines, and undergrads can plug into established programs like the Undergraduate Research Centers and the Summer Undergraduate Research Program. If your main question is where there is simply more research happening and more types of projects available, UCLA stands out.

Scale is the clearest difference. UCLA’s size and research activity mean more labs in fields like biology, engineering, psychology, public health, and the social sciences, plus access to graduate schools, medical research, and nearby industry partnerships in Los Angeles. That breadth matters if you are still exploring, because it increases the odds that you can find a niche area or pivot between interests without running out of options.

Notre Dame is still very strong, and in some ways it can be more undergraduate-friendly. Because it is smaller and places a lot of emphasis on undergraduate teaching, students often find faculty access more personal and mentorship more direct. Notre Dame also funds undergraduate research through centers and summer grants, so motivated students can absolutely do substantial work there, especially if they want a tighter campus community and closer professor relationships.

What tips this toward UCLA is not that Notre Dame lacks research, but that UCLA offers a deeper bench of opportunities across more departments and professional schools. For a student prioritizing undergraduate research above most other factors, UCLA usually gives you more pathways, more active projects, and more room to specialize early.