Undergraduate research and intellectual property rights

Most universities today have developed intellectual property policies which clearly establish ownership rights in any commercially valuable process developed by professors and graduate students in a university laboratory. Increasingly, undergraduates are also being encouraged to take an active part in research since this often encourages them to go on to graduate school. It is also, in itself, a valuable learning experience. However, little thought has been given to the ownership rights of these undergraduate researchers. Universities must recognize that undergraduates may have ownership rights in research and must deal with this fact. A number of strategies for doing so are presented.