Borderless classrooms, endless opportunities

Life Sciences represents the full spectrum of experiential and classroom studies of the natural world.

Lab coats and goggles give way to waders and sunglasses. Many courses in VCU Life Sciences allow our students to immerse themselves in experiential learning. Whether it is navigating the whitewater rapids on the Salmon River, banding birds on top of a mountain in Panama or gathering water quality data down the road at VCU Rice Rivers Center, our pathway to an education in the life sciences takes students to the research.

It's not where you start, it's where you finish. 

Not every one of our graduates began their educational journey with VCU Life Sciences. Our students have joined us from community colleges, four-year universities, even other fields of study within VCU. Our alumni can be found working at places like NASA, NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency, National Institutes of Health and the Army Corp of Engineers. Whether they are taking wildlife photos for National Geographic or tracking Atlantic Sturgeon in the James River, their paths led them through our hallways. Hands-on student opportunities often lead to top-tier jobs as alumni.

four scenes: a person standing on a pier overlooking a body of water, a v.c.u. student group posing outside in a mountainous area, students working in a lab, and a group of people whitewater rafting

News

Jennoa Fleming, a senior environmental studies major at VCU, researches the James River rock pools, focusing on a small aquatic snail. (Kevin Morley, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

March 27, 2024

How I found my research: Jennoa Fleming studies the small wonders of the rock pools to understand our future on Earth

Fleming has been researching the rock pools of the James River since she was a high school student. ‘Ecology is where I truly belong,’ she said. ‘I can’t imagine doing anything else.’

The majority of bird strikes occur during migratory periods (especially in the fall), when a variety of conditions bring birds into contact with human structures. (Getty Images)

March 18, 2024

Celebrity owl Flaco’s recent death in NYC highlights how bird strikes with buildings are strikingly common, including in Virginia

At VCU, avian ecologist Lesley Bulluck offers a window into how windows and migration are a dangerous mix – and how VCU students are advancing data collection.

VCU Honors College students Arya Kalathil (left) and Simrah Ansari (right) lead students in the WHAM (Wellness, Happiness and Mindfulness) class at Open High School in some yoga moves. (Kevin Morley, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

Feb. 19, 2024

In VCU Honors College, students get teaching and tutoring experience through partnership with Richmond public high school

Now in its eighth year, the Open-Honors Connect program enhances undergraduate learning while expanding course offerings for the city school system.