As an undergraduate, Braeden engaged in several lines of research with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. In Hawaii, he connected sound and spatial ecology in the Palila, helping to shape approaches
for conserving this critically-endangered honeycreeper species. He also earned an honors distinction for completing a senior thesis on the oxidative physiology of black-throated blue warblers, a small songbird common to Eastern North America. In addition to research, Braeden was a teaching assistant for field ornithology and oceanography courses.