Biology
Degree
Bachelor of Science, Major, Minor
School/College
College of Arts & Sciences
The Biology Department at Fairfield University is dedicated to delivering an excellent, comprehensive education to our students. Throughout their course of study, students are given innovative classroom instruction along with hands-on experience in labs, providing them with a deep appreciation and understanding of the diversity of living things, their adaptations to the environment, and their evolutionary and ecological relationships.
STEM at Fairfield
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Contact Us
Undergraduate Admission
admis@fairfield.edu
(203) 254-4100
Internships
Internships provide the opportunity for practical experience in a career field related to your major. Most departments offer credit for internships in appropriate agencies and business firms. This experience is optional in the senior year for qualified students and may be undertaken for a maximum of 6 academic credits for a year-long program. Research and internship experiences are extra courses and do not count towards the biology major degree requirements.
Recent Placements
- St. Vincent's and Bridgeport hospitals
- Hartford, Danbury, Norwalk, Waterbury and Stamford hospitals
- The Hospital of St. Raphael in New Haven
- Fairfield County Rehabilitation Center
- The Maritime Center in Norwalk
- Bridgeport Regional Aquaculture School
- Bridgeport Hydraulic Company
- Stratford Conservation Commission
- Connecticut Audubon Society
- Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo
- Earthplace
- Environment CT and ConnPIRG
- The offices of various medical practitioners
“I would recommend exploring all the different branches of Biology; Fairfield offers a diverse range of biology courses and there is a great variety to choose from.”
- Caitlin Fanella ‘25
Dr. Donald J. Ross Sr. Biology Lecture Series
The Dr. Donald J. Ross Sr. Biology Lecture Series, established in 2011, honors the legacy of Professor Emeritus Donald Ross, a founding member of Fairfield University's Biology Department. The series continues to engage students in scientific inquiry through virtual and hybrid events featuring faculty, alumni, and guest speakers. This fall, the monthly lectures will cover diverse topics such as predator-prey interactions and research on C. elegans.
For lecture series event links and details, visit Life@Fairfield.
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Cancer Cell Research
Undergraduate biology students Maggie Xie ’20, Isabelle Seppa ’20, Brenna McAllister ’21, and Giulia Crosio ‘20 spent summer break conducting a variety of innovative cancer cell research in Dr. Shelley Phelan’s biology lab.Their potentially groundbreaking studies included discovering new ways to detect cancer cell aggressiveness using natural fluorescents, determining the ability to grow breast cancer cells on 3D printed polylactic acid scaffolds, and analyzing the effects of olive leaf chemical compounds on the death of leukemia cancer cells.
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Algal Blooms
Biology students Katherine Biardi ’19 and Teresa Sauer ’20 teamed up with faculty mentor Jennifer Klug, PhD, to study the effects of algal blooms in Lake Lillinonah. Biardi’s research focused on an analysis of water quality data collected from 2010 to 2018, to determine long-term water quality trends at the lake. Sauer’s research focused on analyzing the effect of high river inflow on the lake’s water quality to better understand how the health and recreation potential of Lake Lillinonah is influenced by severe precipitation events.
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Worm Genetics
Biology undergraduate Giulia Crosio ’20 and faculty mentor Anita Fernandez, PhD, conducted a recent study using C. elegans, a tiny nematode worm with similar genes to humans and other animals, to examine the roles of different genes and how they collaborate to promote fertility.
