  While the positive outcomes of undergraduate research experiences (UREs) have
been extensively categorized, the mechanisms for those outcomes are less
understood. Through lightly structured focus group interviews, we have
extracted the cognitive tasks that students identify as engaging in during
their UREs. We also use their many comparative statements about their
coursework, especially lab courses, to evaluate their experimental
physics-related cognitive tasks in those environments. We find there are a
number of cognitive tasks consistently encountered in physics UREs that are
present in most experimental research. These are seldom encountered in lab or
lecture courses, with some notable exceptions. Having time to reflect and fix
or revise, and having a sense of autonomy, were both repeatedly cited as key
enablers of the benefits of UREs. We also identify tasks encountered in actual
experimental research that are not encountered in UREs. We use these findings
to identify opportunities for better integration of the cognitive tasks in UREs
and lab courses, as well as discussing the barriers that exist. This work
responds to extensive calls for science education to better develop students'
scientific skills and practices, as well as calls to expose more students to
scientific research.
