Kelly suggests, “Initially, create a checklist of field equipment and a data collection sheet. The sheet can include everything that’s needed in the field and a list of all the data that needs to be collected (time, what measurements, date, who etc). This can prevent many errors and will save a lot of time.”
Mark says, “Be persistent. If the data does not turn out the way you wanted it to, try to think about what the data is telling you. Getting data that is not what you expected is not bad, it just simply means that the environment you are testing is different somehow and you must find a way to explain the data that you have collected.”
Anja’s tips are:
- Come up with a well-organized plan. Where will you get samples from (e.g. 5 feet or 200 feet from a stream?) and how far apart will they be (make sure that they are representative of the entire area you’re studying)?
- Try not to take all of your measurements or sample on one day since this may not be representative of long-term conditions. Try to spread them out over time. For example, if you have two sites from which you’re getting soil samples, get a few from each site on one day and then come back again and get more samples from each site.
- Try to take into account weather conditions and how this might affect your data. Unless you’re studying hydrology during or right after rainstorms, you may want to wait until conditions have been sunny and normal for at least a few days.
- Take some pictures of the study area and your field work so that you can put these in a presentations.