Biology | Overview | Alumni @ Work
The goal of the biology department is to promote the discovery and transmission of biological knowledge. The department is committed to teaching and to empowering its community of learners. It provides a challenging environment distinguished by sensitivity to the intellectual, personal, and professional needs of students, staff, and faculty, all within a liberal arts context.
The biology program provides its majors with academic and professional preparation for post-baccalaureate endeavors in a wide array of disciplines, including cell biology, ecology, environmental biology, environmental toxicology, microbiology, molecular biology, and zoology. Graduates in biology may also be prepared to pursue careers in health-related fields, such as medicine, dentistry, veterinary science, cytotechnology, nuclear medicine technology, pharmacology, physical therapy, and optometry. In addition, the biology department meets the needs of non-science majors with a selection of general education courses that expose them to the assumptions and methodologies of the scientific process and provide them with an awareness of contemporary biological problems.
In keeping with the understanding that biology as a science is an activity as much as a body of knowledge, the biology program strives to provide students with hands-on proficiency in laboratory and field procedures as appropriate to the specific major. This culminates for most biology majors in an independent research project and the writing of a senior thesis. The thesis demonstrates the student’s ability to explain a problem, the methods used to address it, the results of the investigation, and the conclusions that are reached.
General Department Goals
- To provide biology majors with adequate academic and professional preparation for post-baccalaureate endeavors;
- To provide biology majors with proficiency in the use of laboratory and/or field equipment and techniques;
- To provide biology and environmental biology majors with the ability to conduct original biological research and the skills necessary to write a scientific thesis containing an explanation of the problem, the methods employed, an analysis of data, and the conclusions; and
- To offer a selection of specifically designed general education courses that meet the needs of non-science majors.
Biology students may participate in a variety of activities outside of the classroom, including the biology department seminar series, the journal club, the biology club, and the Saint Mary’s chapter of the national biological honor society, Beta Beta Beta. The biology department also sponsors an annual undergraduate research symposium.
Why Saint Mary's
- At Saint Mary’s, biology students gain hands on experience beginning in freshmen-level courses.
- Our students benefit from small class sizes and personal attention from faculty and staff.
- Faculty have work experience in the areas that they teach and spend summers participating in research and furthering their scholarly knowledge.
- We offer a biology seminar series, journal club, biology club, and a chapter of the national honor society, Beta Beta Beta.
- Our campus, nestled in the bluffs of Winona and bordered by a trout stream, is an environmental biologist’s dream, with lakes, wildlife refuges, state parks, and the Mississippi River not far away.
- A variety of study abroad programs are available, allowing our students to gain global perspectives.
- We have a long tradition of student research, leading to senior bachelor’s thesis.
- The Saint Mary’s Alumni Association works hard to maintain relationships with our graduates.
Internships
Saint Mary’s is located close to major medical facilities like Winona Health, Gunderson Lutheran Hospital and the Mayo Clinic, which provide internship and other learning opportunities.
Accreditation
Saint Mary's Nuclear Medicine Technology Major is accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Educational Programs in Nuclear Medicine Technology.
Second Avenue East, Suite C,
Polson, Montana 59860-2320
(406) 883-0003