Education - College Courses

Minor Program in Origins of Life

Rensselaer offers a minor B.S. degree program in Origins of Life. Undergraduates majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Geology or Physics will have the opportunity to minor in Origins of Life. In addition to satisfying the requirements for the major in their choice of field, students must accumulate a total of 16 credits as specified below:

1. ASTR-4510: Origin of Life: A Cosmic Perspective (4 credits)
2. ISCI-4510: Origins of Life Seminar (2 x 1 credit)
3. ISCI-4500: Topics in Origins of Life (4 credits)
4. A minimum of 6 further credits in courses outside the major field, selected from the courses listed below:
   • ENVE-2100: Environmental Engineering Fundamentals
   • BIOL-4320: Geomicrobiology
   • BIOL-4440: Microbial Ecology
   • BIOL-4620: Molecular Biology
   • BIOL-4760: Molecular Biochemistry I
   • BIOL-2310: Microbiology
   • BIOL-4370: Introduction to Microbial Physiology
   • CHEM-2250: Organic Chemistry I
   • CHEM-4810: Chemistry of the Environment
   • ERTH-4540: Organic Geochemistry
   • ERTH-4070: Sedimentology
   • ERTH-4600: Introduction to Planetary Science
   • ASTR-2050: Introductory Astronomy and Astrophysics

See the Rensselaer Catalog for further information.

Undergraduate Research

Excellent opportunities exist for undergraduate students to participate in frontier research programs. During the fall, spring or summer semesters, students may enroll for individual research projects under the supervision of one or more of the principal scientists of the Center. Although each student normally pursues an independent research topic, teamwork is a distinctive factor of the program, with postdoctoral and graduate researchers working in related fields participating actively in the supervision and training of undergraduates. Undergraduates will be involved in the preparation and publication of journal articles on their results whenever appropriate.

Graduate Research

Excellent opportunities exist for graduate research leading to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Biology, Chemistry, Earth and Environmental Sciences or Physics, with specialization in Origins of Life. Graduate students associated with the Center carry out research under the direction of one of the principal scientists at Rensselaer or the University at Albany.

Candidates for the Masters degree must, in addition to satisfying the course requirements for their discipline, carry out a minimum of 3 credits of research in Origins of Life, and participate in the Origins of Life Seminar for a minimum of 2 semesters (2 x 1 credit). Students who have not taken a similar course before as part of their undergraduate curriculum are also recommended to take the undergraduate course Origin of Life: A Cosmic Perspective.

Candidates for the Doctorate degree must, in addition to satisfying the degree requirements for their discipline, must carry out significant original research in Origins of Life, and submit a thesis based on their results. Candidates must also participate in the Origins of Life Seminar for a minimum of 4 semesters. Students who have not taken a similar course before as part of their undergraduate curriculum are also recommended to take the undergraduate course Origin of Life: A Cosmic Perspective during their first 2 years of graduate study.