Problems involved in providing practical research experience in research methods courses are discussed. The two points in the research process where time is most critical are selecting measures and data collection. This paper suggests using a data base from previous research and having students conduct simulated studies based on randomly selected subjects from the data base. Two sample assignments from a doctoral level course at Utah State University are included to illustrate the use of this approach. In the first assignment, called the Team Research Project, a team of students from different courses is formed. The team studies the codebook of the data bank, sets up a problem statement and hypothesis, and conducts a computer search of the available literature. Each student reviews 1 year in the literature, randomly selects 30 or more cases from the data base, analyzes the cases, and writes a results section. The second assignment, called the Individual Research Project, follows very much the same pattern except that each student in the class goes through the entire process individually. (JAZ)