Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology Option

Our rapidly changing world requires experts trained in global biodiversity and its conservation. The EEOB Option emphasizes organismal diversity, ecology, and evolution in courses with outdoor field experiences and hands-on lab courses.

The EEOB Option is suited for students interested in professional or academic careers in conservation biology, veterinary medicine, environmental biotechnology, or graduate studies in ecology or evolutionary biology.

Courses You'll Take

Take a core of basic courses in biology alongside a wide variety of electives in biodiversity and ecological science. Sample courses include: 

• Principles of Ecology
• Behavioral Ecology
• Form Feeds Function in Vertebrate Morphology
• Invertebrate Zoology
• Plant-Animal Interactions
• Entomology
• Evolutionary Biology 

Career Options

Prepare for a wide variety of careers with applications in biodiversity and conservation. Our graduates have transitioned to jobs, internships, and graduate schools in diverse organizations, including:  

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Tufts University, Conversation Medicine Program
• Virginia Tech School of Plant and Environmental Sciences
• American Museum of Natural History

Undergraduate Research in EEOB

Earn course credit for research with faculty in place of upper-level electives. To learn about research opportunities, contact biology faculty active in EEOB research, including: 

• Richard Hochberg, Ph.D. (Invertebrate Functional Morphology and Biodiversity)
• Christina Kwapich, Ph.D. (Behavioral Ecology and Entomology)
• Nicolai Konow, Ph.D. (Comparative Vertebrate Morphology and Biomechanics)
• Alison Hamilton, Ph.D. (Herpatology and Conservation Genetics)
• Jessica Garb, Ph.D. (Genomics and Evolution)
• Natalie Steinel, Ph.D. (Host-Parasite Co-evolution and Comparative Immunology)