Science Research Opportunities

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At Bard, we believe that science is learned best through the experience of doing research.

Photo by Karl Rabe

Options for Bard Students

We offer research opportunities to Bard students throughout their college careers. We also offer intensive experiences for students who want to work on their projects full time.

Students in the Bard Summer Research Program conduct eight-week investigations with Bard faculty during the summer months. Juniors can apply to participate in the Bard-Rockefeller Semester in Science Program (BRSS) during the spring semester. BRSS students live in New York City, work 20–25 hours per week in the lab with Rockefeller University faculty, and take specially designed classes at Rockefeller and at Bard’s Globalization and International Affairs Program.

In their final year, all students at Bard complete a Senior Project for which they design, conduct, analyze, interpret, and present a scientific investigation of their own.

More Opportunities

The Bard-Rockefeller Semester in Science

The Bard-Rockefeller Semester in Science (BRSS) is a one-semester program designed for advanced science students, particularly in the fields of neuroscience, biochemistry, molecular biology, developmental biology, biophysics, and genetics. Students spend a semester in New York City working in the lab with Rockefeller University faculty and taking specially designed classes at Rockefeller and at Bard’s Globalization and International Affairs Program. BRSS takes place in the spring semester; students apply to BRSS in early fall and decisions are made by late fall.

Bard College Laboratory for Algebraic and Symbolic Computation

The Bard College Laboratory for Algebraic and Symbolic Computation is committed to the advancement of the state of mathematical knowledge through computing. The ASC Lab's goal is to extend the capabilities of existing theorem provers, model searchers, and computer algebra systems through improved connectivity and knowledge management. Current domains of interest include universal algebra and the constraint satisfaction problem. At ASC, Bard faculty, students, and staff work together to produce new theorems and algorithms, solve intricate problems within metadata design, and develop websites that integrate several complex software systems.
Contact: Robert McGrail

Research Experience for Undergraduates

The federally funded Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program offers students the opportunity to participate in research at various institutions across the country. Many recent Bard science and mathematics students have applied successfully for places in this highly competitive national program. They have spent their summers in REU programs at Harvard University, Stanford University, University of Minnesota–Duluth, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and many other institutions.

Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF)

Rockefeller University reserves places for qualified Bard students in its Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF) program.

Field Ecology Research Opportunities

Located on campus at the conjunction of the Hudson River and the Saw Kill, the Bard College Field Station affords research and teaching access to freshwater tidal marshes and the Hudson River National Estuarine Reserve of the Tivoli Bays. A library, herbarium, laboratories, classroom, and offices are open to undergraduate and graduate students and faculty. Hudsonia Ltd., a nonprofit institute for environmental research and education, is also based at the field station. Campus employment and internships are available through these organizations. The Institute of Ecosystem Studies (IES), in nearby Millbrook, New York, offers additional opportunities for undergraduates to pursue ecological research through laboratory and field work. The IES also offers REU positions for Bard students.

Computer Science and Mathematics

Students and faculty in computer science regularly attend the annual meeting of the Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges, eastern region, and students participate in the programming conference at the conference. Also, students participate in the Association for Computing Machinery’s International Collegiate Programming Contest. Each year students in mathematics participate in the William Lowell Putnam Competition. The Hudson River Undergraduate Mathematics Conference is held each spring at a different college in the region and is always well attended by students and faculty in mathematics.

Neuroscience

Courses in the field of neuroscience are taught primarily in the Psychology Program, with some additional research participation by biology faculty. Students interested in neuroscience research can help design and conduct laboratory projects in developmental psychopharmacology, neurochemistry, neuroanatomy, and/or neurobehavioral teratology.

Engineering 3+2 Program

Students wishing to pursue a degree in engineering can spend three years studying science at Bard, then transfer for two additional years to the School of Engineering at Columbia University, Washington University in St. Louis, or Dartmouth College. After five years students receive a B.A. from Bard and a B.S. from the other institution. Learn more about Bard's 3+2, 4+1, and dual-degree programs.

Environmental Policy 4+1 Program

The Bard Center for Environmental Policy offers qualified undergraduate students accelerated master's degree options that allow them to receive an M.S. in environmental policy or climate science and policy, or an M.Ed. in environmental education in an accelerated period of time, in combination with their undergraduate degree.