Internships
& Research Opportunities
What
type of internship opportunities
do you have available?
Why
are internship programs important
to the program?
What
type of equipment do students use
in their laboratory courses?
What
student research opportunities
are available?
Do
students and faculty work together
on research projects?
Do
students present research findings
at national conferences?
Have
your students had work published
recently?
What
types of internship opportunities
do you have available?
Nearly half of students
in the Biology program are involved
in practical learning experiences on-
and off-campus through internships,
research projects, and other hands-on
activities. On-campus teaching internships
are available every semester to upper-level
biology majors for credit.
Off-campus internships
are available to upper division biology
majors. Students complete internships
at local hospitals and medical or veterinary
clinics. In addition, students are
offered internships at several of the
local life science industries in the
St. Joseph area, including Boehringer-Ingelheim
Vetmedica, Inc. and Phoenix Scientific.
Why
are internship programs important
to the program?
Experience
in the field is beneficial to each
student’s
education. Internships provide students
with a valuable hands-on experience
that is difficult to duplicate in the
classroom.
What
labs do students use in their courses?
The
department laboratories are state-of-the-art.
Along with the basic equipment, the
department labs have the capabilities
to perform molecular cloning, DNA
amplification, DNA sequencing and
microarray analysis experiments.
Every classroom room is a “smart
room,” fully equipped with up-to-date
technology for presentations and lecture.
Western has a Global
Positioning Systems base station located
at Agenstein Hall with telemetry equipment
and Global Positioning Systems/Global
Information Systems equipment and software
that is used in field biology research.
What
student research opportunities are
available?
A variety of faculty-sponsored
student research opportunities exists
within the department due to the wide
range of faculty expertise and willingness
of faculty to explore new areas. The
general research areas span molecular,
cellular, organismal and ecological
as well as science education. The mission
of the department is to provide a collaborative
learning environment in which students
and faculty can apply their biological
exploration and discovery experiences
as professionals and as informed citizens.
Do
students and faculty work together
on research projects?
All of our graduates
complete multiple class-related research
projects. Students either work individually
or in small groups on faculty-sponsored
student research projects.
Within the department
there is a great deal of positive interaction
among students and faculty that relates
directly to professional development
in the life sciences. Oftentimes research
projects required for a particular
class are turned into independent student/faculty
investigations due to this positive
interaction.
Do
students present research findings
at national conferences?
Sixteen students presented
19 different research paper or posters
at state, regional and national professional
meetings last year. Some examples include:
- Regional and national meetings
of the Beta Beta Beta National Biological
Honor Society in Missouri and Colorado
- Regional meeting of the Wildlife
Society in Indianapolis
- Missouri Natural Resource Conference
- Annual meeting of the Missouri
Academy of Science
- Federation of Associations for
Experimental Biology in San Diego
Three of our students
won awards at the regional meeting
of Beta Beta Beta and two were awarded
stipend grants to present their work
at the national meeting.
Have
your students had work published
recently?
Two students published a paper
in Cell Biology Education during the
past year. Four students and a biology
professor were co-authors on a paper
in the Transactions of the Missouri Academy
of Science.
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