Botany/Plant Science

College Majors
1

<p>Hi, I'm interested in studying any field related with plants, but I have no experience with this area! I'm starting my senior year in high school, and I am unsure what kind of career I should focus on. Hopefully, I can enter college with a general idea of a major. Biology just seems a little too broad, and the last time I took biology was in 9th grade. I've been concentrating on physics, but I don't express as much interest in it as biology.</p>

<p>With plants (not necessarily agriculture), the things that really catch my attention are biotechnology, genetic engineering (food engineering), biofuels, or pharmaceutical/medicinal properties. I don't know if I want to pursue a medical path yet because the idea of working in a hospital seems stifling to me. Being an engineer behind a desk all the time in an office is even less appealing. I like to balance indoor and outdoor work!</p>

<p>Where should I direct my career during my undergrad years? Should I pick a good research school to apply early?</p>

<p>More specifically, what are some of the best schools for the plant sciences? It's difficult to find rankings for such an obscure major.</p>

2

<p>The beauty of college is that you will find out what you truly love while there. So, go in with the mindset of biology, and find an area you will find interesting. Basically, take classes all around and who knows-maybe you’ll love neurobiology?</p>

3

<p>Though some general biology departments offer a specialty track in botany. stand-alone botany departments tend to be found at large state landgrant universities. As plant science majors usually are found in colleges of agriculture, the landgrant universities also are the schools to consider. You can find good botany and/or plant science programs at a number of these universities. I would focus on the ones that have the best overall balance of strong academics and fit (social, location, finances, etc.). Start with the landgrant university in your home state. Some of the better landgrant universities are Cornell, Wisconsin, Illinois, UC-Davis, Purdue, and Minnesota. You can also do a search on this forum for previous threads that list the better programs in botany.</p>

4

<p>Look into landscape architecture.</p>

5

<p>Thanks! Would it be better to take a general biology major at a private college instead?</p>

6

<p>Those are two separate issues: public vs. private and botany/plant sciences vs. general biology. As for the first issue: I don’t know whether you’re referring to a small, private liberal arts college or to a medium to large, private research university. It’s a matter of the best fit for you academically, socially, financially, etc. Numerous threads on this forum explore these differences. </p>

<p>As for the second issue: I only mentioned landgrant universities since you have a strong interest primary in botany/plant sciences and a range of rather specialized applied interests, at that. So that type of university was more likely to encompass more options related to your interests.</p>

<p>The “positive” side of pursuing a general biology major: Some people would discourage specializing too soon as it may preclude pursuing other interests within and outside your major, and your future graduate study might benefit from greater opportunities to take additional basic courses in related sciences and other subfields of biology. Your interests also could change as you’re exposed to other areas. A lot of your basic science courses will be the same in both a general biology and a botany/plant science major: You still need gen biology, gen genetics, gen & org chemistry, biochemistry, gen physics, calculus, etc. You can always specialize in a basic or applied plant science field in grad school. Just make sure the school you choose has some of the basic botany courses in its subfields—plant anatomy, plant physiology, etc. and professors with a good research program in those areas. Some general biology majors also may offer a sub-concentration in botany. You also possibly can arrange an internship or summer study at a specialized program like the Missouri Botanic Garden [Home[/url</a>] or similar organizations; or a pharmaceutical company [url=<a href=“http://www.wri.org/publication/content/8210]A”>http://www.wri.org/publication/content/8210]A</a> sample of companies active in plant and other natural product collection and screening | World Resources Institute](<a href=“William L. Brown Center”>http://www.wlbcenter.org/) etc.</p>

<p>The “negative” side of pursuing a general biology major: you may find limited advanced course offerings in botany; fewer professors and students with an interest in plants; fewer research opportunities in botany; fewer applied course offerings, especially in related fields such as plant genetics, plant pathology, biofuels, etc.; you “might” find a more difficult entry into a specialized basic or applied plant science grad program; and, since biology is a broad area, you do have to focus your interests somewhat and plants science itself is a broad, multifaceted area—you may be quite sure where your interests lie (though with limited exposure, I’m not sure how you can be that certain at this stage).</p>

<p>BTW, you don’t necessarily have to go to a private college or uni to pursue a general biology major. You also can pursue botany at a non-landgrant public uni.
Also, note that many universities do not have a single biology department—many are split into separate departments of molecular biology and ecology and evolution (or similar names)—and plant related courses and research may be conducted in both.</p>

<p>Others can probably identify several other possible “pros” and “cons” of these different pathways.</p>

<p>You should look at some specific schools both to get a better idea of the environment that fits you best and to see what types of programs really appeal to you. See if you can arrange a tour of some departments that interest you, and talk to some current majors. Check out the websites of some undergrad and graduate programs in areas that interest you to et an idea of the admission requirements and required coursework. Also, check out the websites of the general and specialized professional associations in the fields that interest you. Ofen they have publications online regarding educational requirements and career opportunities. Here’s one from the Botanical Society of America and another from the journal, Science:
[Requirements</a> for a Career in Botany](<a href=“http://www.plant-biology.net/bsa/careers/car-req.html]Requirements”>http://www.plant-biology.net/bsa/careers/car-req.html)</p>

<p>[Fruitful</a> Pursuits: Research Careers in Plant Science - Science Careers - Biotech, Pharmaceutical, Faculty, Postdoc jobs on Science Careers](<a href=“http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2006_02_10/fruitful_pursuits_research_careers_in_plant_science]Fruitful”>http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2006_02_10/fruitful_pursuits_research_careers_in_plant_science)</p>

<p>I don’t know of a master list of botany or plant science departments, but this list has links to the website of all US colleges and universities: [U.S</a>. Universities, by State](<a href=“http://www.utexas.edu/world/univ/state/]U.S”>http://www.utexas.edu/world/univ/state/)
Here’s a list of landgrant universities:
[List</a> of land-grant universities - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_land-grant_universities]List”>List of land-grant universities - Wikipedia)</p>

7

<p>Hey smyrna07! Spot here for the ranking of botany major amongUS universities!</p>

<p>1 University of California，Davis
2 University of Texas at Austin
3 Cornell University
4 University of California，Berkeley
5 University of Wisconsin，Madison
6 Yale University
7 Duke University
8 Michigan State University
9 University of California，Riverside
10 University of Illinois at Urbana—Champaign
11 University of Georgia
12 University of Minnesota
13 University of Michigan
14 University of Massachusetts
15 University of North Carolina
16 Washington University， St. Louis
17 Claremont College
18 Florida State University
19 Indiana University
20 Purdue University</p>

8

<p>A bio major is a good match for someone interested in botany. Bio, as I have learned, cannot by any means be judged from a high school course (unless it’s AP). Once I took AP Bio, I realized that Bio was not simply “homeostasis” and that it interests me a lot. It depends on the professor, but I’d say a good 25% of bio deals with plants. Of course, you’ll have to take some courses completely unrelated to botany (neuroscience, endocrinology, marine science are some that are required by schools), but almost everything else (ecology, physiology, cell bio, molecular bio, evolution, especially genetics) deals with plants.
The only way to know whether you enjoy bio, though, is to take an actual bio class (ie. at the college level). Or simply check out Campbell’s Biology (a textbook widely used in introductory bio courses–and one of the best bio textbooks), which has four or five chapters completely devoted to plants. You can probably get it for $10 online used.</p>

9

<p>Thanks NuMonaG! I can only study Bio by myself because as a senior, I have no room for AP Bio. I’m taking physics instead. Is it worth taking the AP Bio or the SAT II Bio even if I study the subject myself?</p>

<p>Also, most people I have talked to strongly recommend that if I take a B.S. in Bio (I think Botany majors are too specialized to start at the undergrad level) I should pursue a medical career. I’m not too thrilled about that. It has a great job outlook, security, and pay, but I’m still not sure where to go in Biology…</p>

<p>If I take genetics, will this obligate me to study human genetics as well?</p>

10

<p>I recently read a book called, “Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty” <a href=“http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=enough%2C+hunger&x=0&y=0[/url]”>http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=enough%2C+hunger&x=0&y=0&lt;/a&gt;. I had heard of the “Green Revolution” that occurred in the 1960s, in which new varieties of high yield food plants (e.g., rice) averted famine in countries like India. However, I had never known the story of plant pathologist-geneticist, Norman Borlung, who is considered the father of the Green Revolution. His discoveries are credited with saving the lives of over 245 million people, and he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970. The first chapter of “Enough” details the contributions of this amazing man. Anyone concerned about world hunger or interested in a possible career in applied plant sciences will be absolutely inspired by Dr. Borlaug’s story. Lately, I’ve heard news reports calling for a second Green Revolution as there is much work yet to be done in this field.</p>

11

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<p>I think you can get the best of both worlds by looking for a biology-centered major that has a concentration in the plant/botany field that you’re most interested in. Using UC Davis as an example (since I’m familiar with it; I’m transferring there this fall), their “general biology” major (Biological Science) offers an emphasis in Plant Biology. So, you could get the more general Bio degree (allowing you some flexibility in what you do after your B.S.) while getting a good grounding in the plant-focused science that you eventually want to work with.</p>

<p>(The inevitable pitch: UC Davis is also one of the UC’s that’s working closely with the state government in Sacramento on alternative fuel development, so you could get a chance to work on that aspect (as you mentioned in your original post). I also know you don’t specifically want to work with agriculture, but UCD’s pretty high-end in that regard, too.)</p>

<p>Best of luck to you in solving the challenges of making decisions. :)</p>

12

<p>(I don’t mean to hijack threads, but… there’s a new subforum dedicated to questions about science majors. In a good-faith effort to keep that subforum alive and well, I would suggest that future science questions be posted there. Thanks!)</p>

13

<p>Sad news. The great plant scientist, Norman Borlaug, has died.</p>

<p>[The</a> Liberty Papers Blog Archive Norman Borlaug: The Man Who Saved A Billion People](<a href=“http://www.thelibertypapers.org/2009/09/13/norman-borlaug-the-man-who-saved-a-billion-people/]The”>Norman Borlaug: The Man Who Saved A Billion People - The Liberty Papers)</p>

14

<p>Look up Oaksterdam University.</p>