Students will participate for one or two years in the SFSU-UMEB project. In the first summer they will participate as members of research teams in ongoing projects. In the second year, students will develop, execute, analyze, interpret, write-up, and present a project of their own design with supervision of their mentor. The science conducted by students in the program will focus on the impact of urbanization and agriculture via habitat loss, fragmentation, and degradation, and the effects of introduced species on native species and communities. We will introduce students to research scientists and to environmental professionals in seminars and informal gatherings to provide a basis for students to imagine themselves with a career in environmental biology. SFSU-UMEB students will be recruited to enter the program in April. They will then be exposed to the range of research opportunities available by receiving presentations, taking field, trips, or by laboratory demonstrations given by the faculty mentors. Students will then select a mentor and enter the mentor’s lab as a research assistant in an ongoing project during the first summer.

During the summer students will participate in UMEB group activities, and they will be involved in their mentor’s lab. Three activities will occur on the group activities day: 1) meetings of UMEB students and mentors to share successes and challenges of the ongoing research, and to discuss any problems or changes to the calendar of activities, 2) an informal meeting with an environmental professional to discuss their research and/or career choices, 3) a group session to learn to read scientific literature critically. Students will also participate in a one-week intensive field course at SFSU’s Sierra Nevada Field Campus in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. This course is titled “Field Methods in Ecology” and is designed to teach students the basic elements of designing experiments and sampling programs for field studies.

In the fall and winter, students will continue as research assistants in their mentor’s lab, and begin the process of selecting a project for their second year research experience. Students will work approximately 10-15 hrs each week in the mentor’s lab, and continue to participate in the seminars and informal gatherings to meet with environmental professionals. During the fall semester students, with their mentor’s guidance, will identify and schedule at least 6 units of coursework pertinent to their research experiences and 6 units of Biology 699 (Special Study in Biology) that they will take prior to graduation.

During the second summer, students will participate in group activities, and they will be involved in their mentor’s lab. Three activities will occur on the group activities day: 1) meeting of UMEB students and mentor’s to share successes and challenges of the ongoing research, and to discuss any problems or changes to the calendar of activities, 2) an informal meeting with an environmental professional to discuss their research and/or career choices, 3) workshops to learn how to report results in written and oral formats.

During the fall and winter of the second year, students will continue research 10-15 hrs per week in their mentor’s lab, primarily by completing any sample processing, analyzing data, and writing a paper based on their research. Students will present a poster at the College of Science Research Forum in April of the second year, and will be encouraged to present their research at a regional or national scientific meeting.