Hello! I’m an incoming senior looking to apply to colleges soon and I have formulated my “almost-official” College List 2.0. below. If you could help eliminate or add colleges to my list that would be fantastic!
For those who have read my past thread, welcome back! I have decided to focus my undergraduate years on the study/conservation of animals. I may even double major in environmental studies. (Maybe pursue vet school if I find out that this career is not right for me)
After much thought, I finally settled on the following criteria for my potential colleges:
- I am extremely interesting in doing undergraduate research and don't want overwhelming competition with graduate students, although I'm sure they deserve it much more than I do. I want a university which gives time, money, and attention to its undergraduates (or as much as possible).
- I want colleges with facilities/programs/internships which can give me a lot of hands on experience, especially because I am a hands on learner and want to gain as much experience as possible! I'm interested in nearby forests/national parks, aquariums/zoos, museums, research vessels/stations, marine labs, and animal search+rescue/research groups such as Allied Whale at College of the Atlantic.
- In terms of college life and location, I'm pretty open to anything! I am from SoCal, but I'm willing to bundle up if necessary. Probably my only requirements are that the college is more towards the liberal side because I'd like to live in a really open minded, accepting community. One other condition is that I go to a school which is not overly competitive to the point where there are cutthroat students who refuse to hold a harmless study session together. I really love bonding with my peers and wouldn't do well in an environment which has students pitting themselves against each other. I also prefer smaller class sizes, but that is definitely not a rule breaker for me and I'm willing to attend a college with large class sizes as well.
- Ultimately I am a looking for a place which can provide me with a top notch education. Although prestige schools are extremely intimidating, I understand they are prestigious for a reason. If any of my reaches are not suitable for my future goals, please let me know. I'd love to eliminate it from my list and have one less application fee to pay (or rejection letter to cry over?).
Thank you for reading this far and (hopefully) helping me with my college search! If you were wondering about any of my “stats” as a high school student, here is my previous thread where I have commented with the information: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1791091-college-list-for-student-interested-in-working-with-animals-p1.html
Safety:
College of the Atlantic- Marine Studies or Field Ecology/Conservation Biology
CO State University- Fish, Wildlife & Conservation Biology/Zoology
Eckerd College- Marine Biology/Science
Match:
UC Davis- Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology/Animal Science
UC Santa Barbara- Aquatic Biology/Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
UC Santa Cruz- Marine Biology/Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
U of Miami- Marine Science/Biology
SUNY ESF- Wildlife Science/Conservation Biology
U of Vermont- Wildlife and Fisheries Biology/Zoology
U of Wisconsin Madison- Conservation Biology/Forest and Wildlife Ecology/Zoology
Reach:
Bowdoin- Biology/Environmental Studies
UC Berkeley- Integrative Biology
Swarthmore College- Biology/Environmental Studies
Duke University- Marine Science & Conservation/Evolutionary Anthropology/Environmental Sciences
Middlebury College- Environmental Studies/Biology
Princeton University- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Stanford University- Biology
Wash U in St Louis- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology/Environmental Studies
Yale University- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Note: I have created my list so that even my safeties are 100% viable college options. I’d be happy to go to any of these schools!
Cornell’s animal science program fits a lot of your criteria. And since you’re from SoCal, UCSD might be a good one for your list (I’m pretty sure they have a good program/hands-on experience with the Scripps Institute of Oceanography).
Of course, your list is plenty long already and you should probably focus on cutting it rather than adding to it, but whichever schools you choose to cut are entirely up to you.
You’ve done a good job with your research. Just some suggestions: compare course offerings between the schools, check and see when you can take the courses in your major (some of the schools you have listed you must take core courses for the first 2 years and start courses in your major as a junior, some of the universities have lab courses taught by graduate students and have larger student/professor ratios, the university settings may be more cut throat and you will compete with grad students for lab time.
If you want more info regarding Eckerd, you can PM me. My daughter graduated from there 2 years ago, she volunteers and is a team leader at a primate sanctuary, she is actually out in the field, (in the bay) today, working with her mentor on a research project that she has been working on for 5 years. She still trains students and interns for her mentor and is applying to Vet school. She graduated with a BS in Marine Bio.
You will receive a wonderful education at any of the schools you have on your list.
@Ranza123 - Is Cornell’s animal science program focused more on the medicinal aspect of animals? While that is one of my interests, I was really hoping on focusing on conservation/research for my undergraduate years. Could you tell me a bit more about their animal science program? I may have misunderstood it.
I was also interested in UCSD, because people have been raving about their amazing marine biology program. However, I also heard that it was mainly for graduate students and I didn’t want that to detract from my opportunities as an undergraduate. But I am considering it for graduate school.
@ECmotherx2 - Thank you for the suggestions! I haven’t even thought about how long my core courses might take… I also really don’t want to compete with grad students for lab time, so do you know which ones have an excessive amount of competition? I am okay with a little, but would be disappointed if a large majority were given to graduate students. And I actually did not know that Eckerd had a primate sanctuary! I thought they were primarily a marine science-oriented school. I’d love to PM you about some questions. 
annielee0134, Eckerd is not affiliated with the primate sanctuary but they arrrange for students to volunteer there for their community service hours. My daughter fell in love with working with exotic animals and has remained working there. Eckerd is also known for their environmental studies major.They work with Tampa Bay Watch, Florida Aquarium, etc.
I think that it is important to look at the descriptions that each university has regarding the opportunities for undergrad. research. Those universities that offer grad. degrees in the marine sciences usually give preference to grad. students for lab time. In some cases, you may be able to assist a grad student. Most of the labs are taught by grads. UC Santa Barbara states that you must complete all 12 prereq. courses before you can be accepted to “major” in aquatic bio.They offer independent directed study. It’s hard to determine how much lab research time you will be allowed.
@ECmotherx2 - Affiliations still work for me They all sound great! If I do decide to go to Eckerd, I may consider majoring in marine biology AND environmental studies now.
Also, great tips about looking for marine science graduate degrees! Are the 12 prereq. courses counted towards a major in general biology? Or are they a diversity of classes in humanities, math, science, etc. (more of a general education)
I’m not in Cornell’s animal science program so I can’t give you any first-hand knowledge, but I do believe it goes beyond just the medicinal aspect of animals. From the department of animal science page:
“The Department of Animal Science offers undergraduate and graduate programs on the biology and management of food, laboratory, and companion animal species. Our research programs advance our understanding of animal biology and address local and global issues facing animal industries today. Our goals are to discover and develop new techniques and information to benefit animals, agriculture, and human health. The Department’s 19 faculty members, many internationally recognized, have diverse interests in animal management, breeding, genetics, physiology, nutrition, growth biology, and microbiology.”
In addition to animal science, Cornell offers a biology major and an “environmental and sustainable sciences” major, one of which might be a better fit for you than animal science (or you could do a double major or major/minor scenario).
But your list is balanced enough already without the addition of any more colleges! You can look into these programs but obviously there’s no pressure on you to apply to them.
@Ranza123 - Oops! Totally thought I responded to this already??? But after a bit more research I’ve finally added Cornell back onto my list!
**I constantly feel like I need to cut down on my schools, but my mom said I should put more match schools which are private, not public because they offer better financial aid. So I’m back to doing even more research…
Any opinions on the following schools? Rankings from best to worst (according to my interests) would also be greatly appreciated
Davidson / Occidental / Colby / Carleton**
Ohio Wesleyan University offers four different zoology tracks and is generous with merit aid.