Exercise science student Amari Musau came to KU knowing he’d have space to explore his interests in sports, health and medicine. 

The surprising part was just how easy it was to get involved.

Amari knew that research was a possibility at KU, but like many undergraduate students, he wasn’t sure where to begin. His experience started with a simple question: What were the possibilities? 

He emailed a few professors to see if they needed help with their projects. To his surprise, several responded with ways to get involved, and Amari chose the project that interested him most.

Now a junior at KU, Amari has worked on research involving Division I athletes, analyzed data, presented his findings alongside other student researchers and earned recognition as the best presenter in his group.

He’s also shadowed health care professionals in Italy, joined student organizations, played intramural sports and continued exploring his future in health care.

We sat down with Amari to talk about undergraduate research, studying exercise science, his experience with Jayhawk Athletic Performance Lab, and his advice for making the most of your time at KU. 

Q: What made you choose KU and the exercise science major?

A: I grew up in Olathe, Kansas so KU was always around me. I was always a big basketball fan and knew a lot about KU growing up. When I started looking at what I wanted to study, exercise science made sense because I had already been involved in a sports medicine program in high school.

I'm interested in pursuing a career in medicine, so I liked that I could study exercise science while continuing to explore where I wanted to go in health care. For me, exercise science is about learning more about the body, human movement and performance.

Right before I came to college, I was in between pre-physician assistant and pre-med. And honestly, the biggest part of going pre-med, was that I decided I'm going to just shoot for the stars and do my best. I just want to see how far I can make it and try and go as far as I can.

Q: How did you get involved in undergraduate research?

A: Before my sophomore year, I started looking at professors and some of the papers they had published. I contacted professors in the School of Education and Human Sciences and asked if they needed help or were taking undergraduate students.

I just cold-emailed to see how it would go, and three professors got back to me. I ended up choosing the project that sounded the most fun to me.

I think students tend to find opportunities like these through their professors. Some professors will tell students about projects they're working on and invite undergraduate students to get involved. You can also ask questions after class, go to office hours or send an email.

Q: What did your undergraduate research actually look like?

A: I did a lot of data analysis, looking at numbers and metrics. My research involved football, and the doctoral students handled most of the testing while my supervisor sent me spreadsheets to analyze.

The project looked at whether hamstring strength was related to sprinting speed. We studied 44 Division I football athletes and compared their strength and sprinting results across different position groups. I helped turn that work into an abstract research paper and presentations, and I could work independently from home when I needed to.

The results were surprising because there were really no significant relationships between hamstring force and the sprinting speed of the athletes. But the biggest finding was that average force in the right limb correlated with top speed, particularly among the skills group, the lightest and fastest group.

Q: Research might be intimidating to some. Do you think students need experience before getting involved? 

A: No, definitely not. Working one on one with my professor, Dr. Quincy Johnson, I really appreciated that he was able to break things down in a way I could understand as a 19-year-old. 

It’s more than just the research piece too. I’m adding something to my resume, and I’ve made great connections. Building closer relationships with some of the doctoral students and the professors within the research lab has been a big upside.

When it comes to research, I say go for it! Get outside your comfort zone and look at every avenue. Look at research, look at volunteering, look at job shadowing. If you feel like you might like it, try it out. At the day you can say that you tried, you gave it a shot, and you always gave it your all.

Q: What was it like presenting your research at the Undergraduate Research Symposium?

A: It was a really good experience. There were about 60 to 70 undergraduate students presenting abstracts from across STEM. There were students presenting research in biochemistry, biology and other areas. I was one of the few presenting about exercise science.

I was honestly worried that I hadn't done very well, but my professor [Dr. Quincy Johnson] and a friend who came to watch both told me I did a good job. Getting positive feedback from the people evaluating the posters also boosted my confidence.

I ended up being selected as the best in my group, so it was really validating to see that the work I had put in paid off.

Q: What did research teach you that you might not have learned in the classroom?

A: Working with a professor and learning time management. I was working with people who were at very different stages of their careers, and I was definitely one of the youngest people in the lab.

It was a different environment, and I had to adapt to different groups and different types of people. Also, just being able to present something that I worked on myself; there’s great self-satisfaction to work on something and see the progress and results.

Q: You also spent six weeks in Italy this summer. What did you do there?

A: It was study abroad, but it felt more like an internship than traditional studying. I spent six weeks shadowing in two different hospitals. I was in Trieste for my first three weeks and at a hospital outside Venice for the other three weeks.

I shadowed in several different departments, including orthopedic surgery, intensive care, neurosurgery and gastrointestinal medicine. I saw so much, and I learned about how health care works in Italy.

By the end of it, I knew I was on the right path. No matter where I end up, I know I want to be involved in medicine.

Q: What else are you involved in at KU?

A: I've met a lot of people through Black Student Union, a couple of pre-medical clubs and Phi Delta Epsilon, which is a co-ed pre-med fraternity. I've also played intramural flag football and basketball with friends.

I think those things are important because they give you opportunities to meet people outside of class. There's a lot to get involved in at KU, and you're probably going to find people who have similar interests to you.

Q: What's your advice for making friends and making the most of your freshman year?

A: Talk to people. I like to go out of my way and start random conversations with people in my classes. Talk to the person sitting next to you, in front of you or behind you. Just get to know people a little bit more. 

I would tell my freshman self to never stay inside my dorm. Always be outside. There are always people down at the soccer field, walking around campus or playing basketball at the rec.

Get yourself out there and be comfortable being uncomfortable. Whether it's approaching your neighbors, walking around campus, joining an intramural sport, or a volunteer group, you're going to meet people who are going through the same things you are. Don't be afraid to put yourself out there.

Q: What would you tell a high school student who's trying to figure out what they want to do?

A: You don't have to know everything right away. Try different things. Look at research, volunteering or job shadowing. Give yourself opportunities to figure out what you like.

My favorite thing about KU is just that really, everybody's the same in so many ways. Everybody's an 18-year-old, trying to figure out what they want to do.

There are always going to be people who are there for you, people on the same track as you. We are all in the same boat, trying to get the same goal!