This degree is for students who are fascinated by questions of how life has evolved and how organisms function in the nature. Students will have the opportunity to apply knowledge of ecology and evolution to environmental and societal problems and to experience fieldwork among the diverse habitats of the Colorado Plateau. Opportunities to specialize include any of the diverse areas of expertise of our faculty from wildlife to plants to microbes and from evolutionary genetics to population ecology to ecosystem ecology.

This degree is offered by the Department of Biological Sciences, ensuring a well-rounded foundation in the understanding life of earth. In the course of this major, students will identify, describe, and apply the major concepts, theoretical perspectives, and empirical findings in ecology and evolution. Students will master the theory of evolution; examine the genetic and environmental bases of variation in organisms; and describe how populations are regulated, species interact in communities, and the major nutrients cycle in natural ecosystems. These objectives are supported by a comprehensive set of courses addressing ecology, evolution, and genetics in the sophomore year and by research investments in faculty and facilities made by NAU. 

In their upper division coursework, students will apply this knowledge to scientific and societal problems by using quantitative reasoning, synthesizing, and effectively communicating theory and empirical findings in ecology and evolutionary biology. Students will connect this body of knowledge to specific organisms and how they function in nature though examining a group of organisms in depth and conducting field studies on the Colorado Plateau. Students will be poised to contribute to managing the increasing environmental impact of humans on the Colorado Plateau and beyond. The Ecology and Evolutionary Biology degree will assist students in preparing for research and internship experiences to help make them competitive for positions in graduate and professional schools and for jobs in natural resources, public, non-profit, and educational sectors.