Biological Sciences

The College offers the Stephen Hatten Pre-Medical Externship for pre-medical students and a comparable Pre-Dental Externship for pre-dental students. Advisors can also help students find other internship opportunities.

Opportunities for research are available in almost every area of biology for both Honors and non-Honors undergraduates. In addition to faculty-funded research, the Mississippi IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) and USM's Drapeau Center for Undergraduate Research fund a number of research projects and summer activities.

The School has dozens of scholarships for students in biology, some specifically tailored for different emphases (e.g., pre-medical, pre-dental, microbiology), hometowns, or year of study.

Tropical Ecology in Belize - 2 weeks, January Intersession

This program will consist of two weeks in the field during the January intersession in Belize,  where you will study tropical flora and fauna in several different ecosystems: coral reefs, pine savannahs, rainforests, and mangrove swamps. You will interact with groups working on the conservation of plants and animals in Central America and with locals who practice subsistence farming. Students will earn 3 hours of BSC 404LCA or BSC 504LCA.

British Studies Program - 4 weeks, Summer

Students who participate in this Biogeography course will earn 6 hours of GHY 499ca or GHY 599ca while truly getting to know the city of London. They will leave this study abroad experience, no longer a tourist, but as an experienced traveler who understands and appreciates the rich human history and environmental evolution that created this wonderfully complex city. At its most simplistic though, London is just a river town, and the class material will begin at the end of the last ice age, when the River Thames broke through the Chiltern Hills and started flowing down its current path. We will then look at centuries of changing biogeography and human settlement patterns starting with the Romans and continuing through the development happening presently. Along the way, we will encounter wars, diseases, fires, as well as stories of natural and human resilience that make London the global city it is today. Students will achieve this understanding through historic map analysis, and a series of walking tours and field excursions. Then, for the last week of the course, we will travel to Edinburgh, Scotland. Students will compare and contrast the landscape of northern Great Britain to that of southern England, and see first-hand the vastly different human-environmental histories that shaped the cities of Edinburgh and London.

International Internship Program - 7 weeks, Summer

Gain professional experience and earn six credits of BSC 492ca by interning in Dublin! Travel with a group of USM students to Ireland this summer.  You’ll learn about Dublin and the Irish work culture during the first week.  Then, for the next six weeks, you’ll spend 32 hours per week working in a field corresponding to your field of interest. 

Student Testimonial, Internship 2023

"Interning abroad is easily one of the best decisions I have ever made. As a biological sciences major, I was offered to intern at the Irish Heart Foundation, where I cultivated lifelong relationships with dedicated healthcare coordinators.  Not only did I make personal connections with the people I worked with, but I was able to experience a side of healthcare that I hadn't been exposed to before.  I realized how much work really goes into patient care after hospital discharge, and I have a new appreciation for organizations like theirs.  I believe having a deeper understanding of the various formats of patient care will help me to better treat my future patients, working as a Physician Assistant.  If I were given the chance to do it all again, I wouldn't hesitate in saying yes!" - Madison Trahan

To learn more about any study abroad program, visit StudyAbroad.USM.edu.