Research Collaboration

Students occasionally collaborate on research projects with scientists at major research institutions.  In recent years, students have done collaborative work with scientists at Tufts University (Medford, Mass.), Princeton University, Barry University (Miami, Fla.), University of Nebraska - Lincoln and the Shanghai Institutes of Biological Sciences. In addition to the knowledge and experience gained through these projects, these projects provide opportunities to make professional connections all over the world. Professors also maintain connections at other institutions - for example, Tim McDaniel, assistant professor of mathematics and business, teaches graduate courses at the University of Michigan and has twice taught as a visiting professor at Uppsala University in Sweden.

Engineering Dual-Degree Program with Washington University

Through the dual-degree program, students study any subject at BVU and engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., to receive degrees from both institutions. The program's goal is to produce "liberally educated engineers" who are able to apply skills from multiple disciplines to engineering challenges in research and industry. All students in good standing are eligible to apply, while the physics program has a curriculum track specifically geared to the program. "The dual-degree structure is beneficial because students see the relevance of what they're doing," says Dr. Shawn Stone, associate professor of physics. "Our students who go to Washington University understand what the equations they're working with mean - when they will work, when they won't - and why."

More information is available on the program's Web page on Washington University's site. 

Travel Courses

The School of Science offers courses during January term and in the summer that take students to distant locales to study flora, fauna and culture on site. In some travel courses, students produce short research projects. Recent destinations and subjects of trips co-led by professors from the School of Science have included:

• Costa Rica 
• Egypt
• Wolves and Other Large Predators (Northern Minn.)
• Australia and Fiji

A biology trip to South Africa offered every few years in May-June occurs in the summer during the African dry season - the best time to view animals and avoid tropical heat - and includes visits to several national parks.

A Professor On Five Continents

Over the years as a biology professor at Buena Vista University, Dr. Rick Lampe estimates that he’s taught 4,000 students. “They are what keep me doing it,” he says. “If I had become a researcher, I’m sure I wouldn’t have become as happy or as successful.”

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