Biology - Ecology and Environmental Biology Emphasis
The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire's biology – ecology and environmental biology emphasis bachelor's degree is an excellent major for those curious about nature, passionate about doing science in the great outdoors, and eager to make the world a better place.
Gain Experience in Our On-Campus Greenhouse and 230 Acres of Natural Area
Through lab work, field experience, and real-world projects, you'll explore new places, pursue novel ideas, and solve global environmental problems. Access to an on-campus greenhouse, as well as Eau Claire's abundance of lakes, streams, forests, and wildlife areas, offers new perspectives and ways of learning.
Research and exploring the unknown is highly encouraged in this program. Opportunities to collaborate with faculty and partnerships with major organizations give you the power and freedom to discover the next big thing.
You'll also make a difference. Your knowledge of environmental science can be applied to important societal concerns in the management of wildlife and fisheries, protection and restoration of habitats, environmental law and policy, and environmental education. Whether you're preparing for a career in education, research, consulting or natural resource management, you'll gain the knowledge, skills, and experience needed to succeed.
Program Details
As a UW-Eau Claire ecology and environmental biology major, you'll be able to work in spaces that inspire you. Our on-campus greenhouse — exclusively reserved for biology majors — provides a space for you to grow your own plants and conduct research. We're also just a quick walk away from Putnam Park State Natural Area.
Explore hundreds of thousands of specimens right on campus. UW-Eau Claire is home to extensive collections of amphibians, reptiles, fish, insects, invertebrates, mammals, and birds as well as saltwater aquaria and a herbarium.
Limitless research opportunities await you at UW-Eau Claire. The biology department's faculty-student research program has given students the opportunity to work on projects across the state, the country, and internationally. Many biology students have then used their research to conduct independent studies, co-author publications, and present results at professional scientific meetings.
Explore unique and interesting topics like animal behavior, Wisconsin wildlife, eDNA, wildflowers, GIS, and more. You'll also have opportunities to study abroad, participate in national student exchanges and secure an internship. Field course experiences may take you to places like Belize, Costa Rica, the Rocky Mountains, the Great Lakes, or the Bahamas.
Blugold Stories
UW-Eau Claire has brought me valuable, hands-on experience and knowledge to set me up for success in my career field. I studied abroad in Scotland and traveled all around Europe. I worked with cockroaches, butterflies, sharks, stingrays and a variety of Wisconsin vegetation. I did all of this while meeting some of the most amazing people along the way.
Julia Inman knew from her biology classes that common and glossy buckthorn are invasive plants that can disrupt the ecosystem, harming native plants and wildlife. However, spending an afternoon identifying and removing the invasive plants from the natural area that runs through campus took the Blugold’s understanding to a whole new level.
Students in an animal behavior class analyzed the differences between herding and toy breeds, male and female dogs, and rescued and non-rescued pets. This unique research gave Blugolds experience in the field and a close look at how domestication can affect an animal’s biology.
I knew that UWEC had a lot of undergraduate research opportunities, but I did not expect to leave the state — let alone the continent — for those projects.
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Where can the ecology and environmental biology program lead me after graduation?
Many UW-Eau Claire alumni are out in the field on a daily basis exploring and discovering the unknown.
Example Careers
- Environmental consultant
- Research scientist and assistants
- Park naturalist
- Restoration ecologist
- Natural resource manager
- Field technician
- Wildlife or fish biologist
- University professor
Recent Graduates
Natural Resources Educator
Willow River State Park
Wisconsin
Planner
Department of Natural Resources
Wisconsin
Regional Plant Biologist
Department of Natural Resources
Minnesota
Endangered Wildlife Biologist
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Minnesota
The bachelor’s degree program in ecology and environmental biology provides engaging, field-oriented learning that will provide you with the quantitative and qualitative skills necessary for scientific inquiry, conservation and ecological application. Our goal is to foster your curiosity and set you up with the knowledge necessary to find a career you will love.
Here are a few courses in Biology - Ecology and Environmental Biology Emphasis at UW-Eau Claire.
BIOL 180
Environmental Biology and Conservation
An introduction to natural resource conservation. Problems associated with the use and abuse of America's resources are studied in an ecological framework. Resource management methods are explored.
BIOL 321
Ecology
Core concepts and theories in ecology at the individual, population, community, and ecosystems levels and their applications.
BIOL 365
Animal Behavior
Study of animal behavior with emphasis on evolutionary approaches; topics include feeding adaptations, predator-prey interactions, habitat selection, communication, sociality, and mating strategies. Students work together on lab/field exercises and conduct a semi-independent research project.
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