STEM Research

Female student looking at textbook with computer in front of her with DNA strand on the screen.

Program Type

Minor
School

School of Arts & Sciences

Sharpen your research skills in science, technology, engineering, and math-related fields. Prepare for graduate, professional, or medical school.

What You’ll Learn

You’ll develop skills necessary for designing and conducting experiments and performing data analysis and interpretation. You’ll have research opportunities in areas such as visual neuroscience, HIV-inhibiting drugs, autism detection and monitoring, mosquitoes and insecticides, phage virus discovery, computer simulations of molecular dynamics, paleontology and fossil characterization, tardigrades, and more.

Conduct Supervised Research: You’ll have opportunities to conduct original research under the mentorship of leading faculty. These collaborations give our students the opportunity to work on a research team and publish and present original research.
Complete a SURVE Internship: In the Summer Undergraduate Research Vocation Experience (SURVE), students conduct original research in a laboratory setting, design and carry out experiments, analyze and interpret data, and present results.

Program Information

Please visit our catalog for admission requirements and a full list of our courses.

Careers & Outcomes

Employment Trends

STEM fields — science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — are an increasingly vital engine to the nation’s economy, as technology becomes more intertwined in every aspect of our lives. Students with proven aptitude in STEM fields are in demand as researchers in a wide range of industries and are strong candidates for admission to graduate programs and medical school.

Career Paths

Researcher
Educator
Data Analyst
Medical Researcher
Science Journalist

Featured Faculty

David S. Ronderos, PhD

Chair of Biochemistry, Associate Professor of Biology, Fellow in Catholic Studies

I have been a faculty member in the biology program since 2013. I have taught courses on anatomy & physiology, hematology, cell and molecular biology, HHMI SEA-PHAGES, and I developed our biology capstone course, Evolution and the Integration of Knowledge. I assist in our pre-medicine program, and I'm a Catholic studies fellow and a member of the Society of Catholic Scientists (SCS).

In 2017, I helped launch a unique summer research program called SURVE, which provides paid lab research internship opportunities to students. SURVE has enjoyed funding support from the NIH ND-INBRE program.

View Profile