The University of Mississippi College of Liberal Arts Prospective Student Guide—Natural Sciences

ES AL SCIENC

N

A

R TU

COLLEGE of LIBERAL ARTS

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI

VENTRESS HALL

Science & Mathematics Majors Allied H ealth Studies (BA) Biological Sc ience (BA

or

BS)

Bioch emistry (BA) Com put e r Sc ience (BA) Ch emistry (BA) Ch emistry (BS) Bioch emistry em phasis Envi ronm ental ch emistry em phasis Ch emical Ph ysics E m phasis Forensic Ch emistry (BS) Math ematics (BA

or

BS)

M edical T echnology 3+1 (BS) Ph ysics (BA

Welcome

to a dynamic and caring community of scientists who are passionate about our fields and love to teach.

No matter your interest or career

or

BS)

We will meet you where you are and guide you where you want to go.

goal, you can take charge of your

Many majors offer both bachelor of

college experience.

science and bachelor of arts degree options. The BA degree allows greater flexibility with other areas of study while the more specialized

Scan this QR code to see all your choices

BS degree requires higher level math, more science courses, and deeper training in the major.

W e know you want to make a difference

and you can. u yo

can

choose f ro m

more than

65

m i n o r f i e l ds t o c o m b i n e w i t h yo u r m aj o r

Developing

better materials for capturing and storing solar energy

Investigating

virtual reality technology

Creating

new ways to improve the use of antibiotics

Here are a few of our students’ favorites.

Astronomy

Ethics & Values

Biological Science

higher education

Chemistry Computer Science

Intelligence and Security Studies

Criminal Justice

Mathematics

Disaster Sciences

Manufacturing

Education

Neuroscience

Engineering

Physics

Entrepreneurship

Professional W riting

Environmental Studies

Society & Health

Using

supercomputers to explore the interaction of light and molecules in space

Analyzing

microplastic contamination in our fresh water sources

Tracking

the impact of climate change on coral reefs

Helping

agencies analyze DNA to catch criminals

college of liberal arts

ALLIED HEALTH STUDIES

Sabrina defines community.

Sabrina Ramirez is committed to improving community health. She volunteers at a women’s clinic in Oxford, where she shadows a nurse practioner and helps meet the needs of patients by collecting and sorting through donations of clothing for their children.

Community health is synonymous with her passion for expanding access to healthcare.

When Sabrina Ramirez was in high school, she’d sometimes have to miss classes to accompany family members to appointments at health clinics so that she could translate for them.

At the clinics, her family got medical care, and Sabrina found role models, the nurses and nurse practitioners who cared for underserved people.

“I was inspired by how well they cared for people who cannot afford medical services,” she says.

She also found role models in the nurses she shadowed in Los Angeles at UCLA’s medical center, where she attended a Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHEP), which she found through UM’s Health Professions Advising Office. SHEP students take classes, work alongside health professionals, and do research at top medical centers across the country.

“Among Hispanic women, there’s a lack of knowledge about their bodies and prevention of HIV, STD’s,” she says. “That’s the community I want to serve.”

Sabrina is pursuing an accelerated master’s degree at Johns Hopkins.

I N 2 0 2 0 o u r st u d e n t s w h o m e t w i t h h pao 5 t i m e s o r m o r e ac h i e v e d a

DENTAL SCHOOL

91%

MEDICAL SCHOOL

(50% national avg.)

(43% national avg.)

acceptance rate

SABRINA RAMIREZ

78% acceptance rate

a n d t h i s i s h ow w e g e t yo u T h e r e

BA A L L I E D H E A LT H S T U D I E S

r i d g e la n d, m i ss i ss i p p i Personalized guidance beginning at new student orientation Section-by-section review of professional school applications Specific advisors for each health profession HPAO scholarships and free testing support Extensive programs to explore health care fields

To s e e t h e i m p r e ssi v e ran g e o f p rog ram s an d s e rv i c e s ,

h e a lt h p r o f e s s i o n s . o l e m i s s . e d u

BIOLOGY D E PA R T M E N T O F

BA

AND

BS OF BIOLOGICA L SC I ENCE

Together, we’ll make

discoveries

through active research in: cell and molecular biology conservation and restoration biology evolution, biodiversity, and systematics freshwater, marine, and wetland ecology neurobiology, behavior, and physiology symbioses and species interactions microbiology

SHADE SMITH

M o o r h ea d, m i ss i ss i p p i

Shade cultivates mentorship.

Shade’s life has been focused on two facets of biology: plants and people.

Shade, a budding physician, has spent every summer since he was 14 working on his family’s 4,000-acre farm in the Mississippi Delta. Beginning as a minimum-wage laborer, Shade rose to crew manager, overseeing a fleet of tractors that has numbered over 100.

His focus on people will improve community healthcare in his rural town of Moorhead, which is underserved like many rural parts of the state. His future profession was inspired by his family doctor.

B S b i o log i ca l sc i e n c e

“When I was a little kid, he was joking with me,” Shade says. “He told me ‘If you go to medical school, you’ll be done by the time I’m ready to retire.’”

Shade—who will graduate with a BS in biological science with minors in chemistry and philosophy—is researching his senior honors project, a quick test to determine if different strains of bacteria are resistant to antibiotics. He is also a biology mentor, helping students navigate notoriously challenging introductory biology classes.

“I’ve had an incredible opportunity to learn and to teach here,” he says. “The professors’ doors are open to students, and the resources are amazing.”

DEPARTMENT OF

CHEMISTRY & BIOCHEMISTRY Biochemistry

chemistry of the life process

Environmental chemistry chemical processes that occur in land, water, air, and the effects of human activity on them

Chemical physics application of the concepts and theories of physics to the analysis of chemical systems and their physical behavior

h r c u o

e m i st ry p r o g r am

ranks top

50 i n t h e n at i o n

WHY US?

B S C H E M I S T RY. em p h as i s i n b i o c h em i st ry

» Multiple degrees, majors, and emphases to pursue your interests » Small classes taught by professors, not graduate students. » Access to state-of-theart labs with advanced instrumentation

Margaret is always running.

She spends at least three afternoons a week sprinting down the Whirlpool Trail, a tree-lined expanse of land near campus that draws hikers, bikers, and runners.

Margaret, who was on her high school’s cross-country team, covers three to eleven miles on the trail, depending on how much time she has. It’s her haven not only for exercising but also for thinking.

Margaret also runs experiments at the Hammer Research Group, exploring how molecules interact with water in diacetyl, an organic compound found in foods.

Her lab work reflects just some of her wide-ranging interests. She will get a BS in chemistry with an emphasis in biochemistry, along with minors in mathematics, biological science, and Spanish.

Needless to say, she does a lot of thinking—especially when she runs on the Whirlpool Trail.

“I don’t listen to music,” she says. I like it to be quiet and get into nature.

When I’m running, I do my best problem solving—from a tiff with a roommate to an equation.”

MARGARET BALDWIN B I R M I N G H A M , a l a ba m a

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FI RST- YEA R R ESEA RCH with top faculty

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internship

w i t h stat e a n d f e d e r a l c ri m e labs

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FORENSIC CHEMISTRY PROGRAMS by the Fo r e nsi c S c i e n c e E d u c at i o n C o m m i s s i o n

JASMYN MOSLEY

co l u m b us, m i ss i ss i p p i

B S i n fo r e n s i c c h em i st ry

FORENSIC CHEMISTRY Jasmyn solves problems.

As a member of the UM’s color guard, Jasmyn combined her love of music with dance. Stepping out onto the field, she performed many times in front of thousands of football fans, interpreting and enhancing the band’s music with her choreographed routine.

“My favorite show was choreographed to Justin Timberlake music,” she said. “The audience loved it!”

By her senior year, the weekends and evenings of color guard practice and performance gave way to hours spent pursuing a new passion: forensic research. She now spends long hours in an on-campus lab, exploring innovative ways to find fingerprints on 3D-printed guns—a formidable challenge to law enforcement.

“It’s very different to detect fingerprints on these guns because they are made out of plastic,” she said. “I’m researching which fingerprint powders work best on which parts of the guns.”

Jasmyn, who is minoring in criminal justice, is coordinating with forensic scientists at the Mississippi Forensics

Laboratory in Batesville for her independent research project.

Her goal is to be a forensic pathologist, and she plans to attend medical school to pursue that career. A native of Columbus, MS, she has shadowed a pediatrician in her hometown and also done research in biomedicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

“I’ve always had an interest in forensic science,” she said. “Growing up, I loved watching investigation shows like Forensic Files and CSI Miami, and now I’m doing that work.”

At UM, she has found community through the Increasing Minority Access to Graduate Education (IMAGE) program, which supports STEM majors in their academic journey.

“It was a great academic resource and I’ve made some of my closest friends through IMAGE,” she said.

CO R I N T H, M ississi p p i

BA COM PU T E R SC I ENCE

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COMPUTER SCIENCE

AUSTIN MARSHALL

BACHELOR

BACHELOR

Additional mathematics, science and computing courses

Computer science expertise with key communication and leadership skills

BS COM PU T E R SC I ENCE (S C H O O L O F E N G I N E E R I N G )

BA CO M P U T E R SC I E N C E (C O L L E G E O F L I B E R A L A R T S)

Science

Arts

Austin is 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 cracking the code.

At practices, Austin films approximately three hours a day, five days a week. At games, he and other members of the video staff film approximately 300 plays—and they can’t miss one.

“I have to get the right people in the frame, so I have to know the plays and where they will be,” he says. “My concentration has to be intense for the entire game.”

Originally from Corinth, MS, Austin was the football manager of his high school. When his high school coach was hired by Northwest Mississippi Community College, he brought Austin with him to tape the games there. After graduation, from Northwest, Austin headed for UM, where he made a lot of friends easily in his classes.

Austin feels that as a computer science major, he can keep up with innovations in cybersecurity, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, graphics, data science, and web and mobile app development.

He loves the department’s virtual reality room and the chance to participate in competitions, including programming competitions, hackathons, and esports activities.

As a videographer, he has to anticipate where the action on the field will be—a skill that will be essential to his new job. Just before graduation, he was hired by the Baltimore Ravens to part of the NFL franchise’s video operations staff—and he made history with this hire. He’s the first person in the history of UM ever to go directly from the football video staff to the NFL.

WHY US? » New/enhanced courses in cybersecurity, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, graphics, game development, web and mobile app development and more » International esports champions » Hackathons and programming competitions » State of the art labs, virtual reality room, and project spaces » Flexible curriculum choices

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Austin’s trajectory for his college job and future career is as certain as a football spiraling through the air. He is a videographer on the football staff, digitally capturing the practices and games of the University of Mississippi’s football team. The video is critical to players and coaches, who study them after games.

DEPARTMENT OF

BA b i o c h em i st ry

B s M AT H e m at i c s

MATHEMATICS

DARIAN RAUCHER

ri dg e lan d, M ississi p p i

“I wanted something that would make me perform at my peak in the gym,” he said. “I finally perfected a formula for myself that works best. Because I prepare chemicals

Faculty mentorship.

Small classes. for organic chemistry, I have the skills to brew my own workout concoction.”

Darian is an athlete who loves tennis and plays regularly. He was on a varsity tennis team before transferring to UM after his freshman year.

“I’m from the Jackson area, and I wanted to go to a great university in my state,” he said. “That’s why I came here.”

Next year, Darian is off to medical school, where he will no doubt need the stamina and energy that his handcrafted performance brew provides.

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Darian Raucher is a math and biochemistry double major with minors in biological science and psychology who applies his book learning and lab experience to his own health. When he’s not working on equations and chemical solutions, he is creating his own brew to ramp up his workouts. To improve his performance, he did research on creating a sports drink that was tailored to his body and his needs.

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Darian builds a foundation.

io

EXPERT FACULTY

in mathematics

one professor is a M ath P rog ram Di r ector at th e Nati onal S c i e nce Fou n dati on .

two faculty won G o ld M e dals at th e I nt e rnati onal M ath emati cs O lym p iad.

three faculty w e r e honor e d with th e Ral p h E . Pow e Ju n i or Facu lty awar d.

four faculty ho ld p r esti g i ous t each i n g awards .

DEPARTMENT OF

PHYSICS & ASTRONOMY op

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rt u n i t i e s fo

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a st r o n o m y at t h e ' da r k s i t e '

FI RST-YEA R R ESEA RCH in

C e c i l l e L a b u da A s s o c i at e p r o f e s s s o r

atmos p h e ri c p h ysi cs con de ns e d - matt e r p h ysi cs g ravitati onal p h ysi cs h i g h - e n e rgy p h ysi cs p h ysi cal acousti cs

Physics does not just remain in the classroom or the research lab. Physics is everywhere … in all the places you expect to find it (particle accelerators, safer technologies to generate power and new computing methods) … and in places you don’t (health care and biomedical technology, financial market algorithms and storm tracking).

WHY US? Access to top-rate facilities at the National Center for Physical Acoustics on campus

Access to the Mississippi Center for Supercomputing Research

Access to Kennon Observatory and local dark site for astronomy

NICK KRUSE

cas e y vi l l e, I L l i no is Bs P HYSICS & ch emist ry

Nick knows the galaxy.

Nick Kruse has an epic obsession, and it’s on full display. Walk into his family home, and you’ll see a dining room that’s been transformed into a gallery for more than 250 Lego replicas of all things Star Wars, including an Anakin fighter ship, several Darth Vader ships, and a tank.

“I’ve spent more than half my life building these models,” he said. “I started after I saw

my first Star Wars movie, when I was about eight.”

As he grew older, his fascination with the cinematic propulsion in Star Wars grew into a bona fide love of physics, an aptitude that earned him an academic scholarship to UM, where he double majors in physics and chemistry with an emphasis in chemical physics as well as minors in math and German.

Nick is still obsessed with Legos, but there’s a new passion, too: designing experiments that use the

advanced lab technologies at UM, like a laser in a type of chemical analysis called Raman spectroscopy. His latest original research project is a micro-analysis of the unlisted ingredients in vaping fluid that may be harming our health.

After he graduates, Nick will be heading to a Ph.D. program in chemistry.

“I’m glad I got a scholarship to college,” he said. “There’s no way I could afford all these Lego sets without one!”

You are our #1 priority. we have the resources you neEd »

IMAGE Program [Increasing Minority Access to Graduate Education]

»

Organized group study sessions

»

Free tutoring in HPAO

»

Biology Bootcamp

»

Free MCAT test prep materials

»

Dedicated class preparing medical school applicants

»

Ronald E. McNair Program

»

Faculty advising and mentorship

»

Research opportunities

»

Grove Scholars

»

FASTrack learning community

OUR REACH IS GLOBAL Our science & math alumni work in all kinds of fields.

Here are the top 6.

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40% LT H CA

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19% H

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11% ST EM

R1

Our research is among the best in the country.

We are proud to say that the University of Mississippi is classified as an R1 research university, placing us among the top 2.5% research universities in the country. And, unlike many R1 universities, our extraordinary faculty are teaching and mentoring undergraduates! They are trained at top universities like Oxford, Cornell, Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Vanderbilt, UCLA, Columbia, Emory, Duke, Michigan and many more.

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S IN I N E S S F I N AA E S S // F I N

4% K

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We will meet you where you are, and guide you where you want to go.

BUILD YOUR LEGACY olemiss.edu/libarts