As a research school, the School of Science encourages all undergraduates to discover new knowledge through research. Each department offers an array of research options, and most School of Science degree programs require a research or capstone experience.

Many School of Science undergraduates, including underclassmen, participate in individual research with faculty mentors. These students often present their findings at national meetings and are published in journals of high scientific significance.

Biology Student Looks for a Cure

Rachel Morgan graduated on May 13, 2007, with a B.S. in biology. She is headed to the University of Michigan, where she will pursue a Ph.D. and continue her genetic research with two of the country's leading experts in spondylitis (spon-dee-lie-tis).

Spondylitis is a chronic disease that causes arthritis of the spine. This sometimes crippling and very painful disease shows up in young adults and seems to have a genetic basis. The disease showed up in Morgan earlier than it had afflicted any of her relatives, including her mother.

Morgan has known since she was six years old that she wanted to go into medical research. She wants to find a cure for the disease that runs her life. This quest to understand her own genetics brought Morgan to the laboratory of Biology assistant professor Anna Malkova.

Morgan has excelled as an undergraduate researcher. For her, that success means research presentations, school and campus recognition, admission to a prestigious graduate school and, ultimately, a cure.