BIO 361 (Spring 2025) and BIO 300X (Summer 2025)
Applications will be accepted in Fall 2024. Tentative schedule shown below. Please contact Melanie Stadler for details. (UNCG reserves the right to cancel or alter the program format or to change costs due to conditions beyond its control.)
In cooperation with the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center and the Sea Turtle Conservancy UNCG offers you: BIOLOGY AND CONSERVATION OF SEA TURTLES, a program that consists of two courses. The first course, BIO 361, is a spring seminar and field studies course conducted on campus at UNCG with three weekend field trips in North Carolina. The second course, BIO 300X, is an immersive research experience held in Costa Rica at the Phipps Biological Field Station in Tortuguero, Costa Rica during summer 2025!
To read more about the program and to apply, click here.
| Interest meeting: anyone interested in applying or learning more about the course should attend |
Monday, October 28, 2024
4:30 – 5:00 pm, Sullivan 349
Tuesday, October 29, 2024
4:30 – 5:00 pm, Sullivan 355
|
Interest meetings are for students who are thinking about applying for the course. Meetings will last about 30 minutes. Both meetings cover the same material, so you only need to attend one. This is also a great opportunity to ask questions! |
| Applications Due: complete application using link to Study Abroad page below | December 6, 2024 | Submit Application online here. Apply for a Travel Grant here! |
| Class meetings: scheduled time in Spring 2025 | Fridays 10:00 am – 12:30 pm + required field trip weekends | Location: Room TBD in Sullivan Science Building, UNCG Campus |
| Required Field Trips:
Work at the Sea Turtle Hospital Ocean Advocacy Workshop UNCG/UNCW |
1. Jan 31 – Feb 2, 2025 2. May 10-13, 2025 3. March 28-29, 2025 |
|
| Costa Rica (required) | July 26 – Aug 3, 2025 | Tortuguero, Costa Rica |
Credit Hours: 4: 3 (BIO 361 Spring 2025) + 1 (BIO 300X Summer 2025, Session II)
Enrollment Limit: 10-12 Students
Interested Applicants: Every applicant is expected to attend one of the two Interest Meetings to learn about the course and ask questions (see date, time, and place in table above). The regular class meeting time will be on Fridays.
Apply through UNCG Study Abroad: this is a faculty-led program
Prerequisites: Biology 112 or permission of the instructor
Course Description: Classroom and Field Studies with field work at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City, North Carolina and in Tortuguero, Costa Rica.
The sea turtle hospital is one of only a few facilities in the US dedicated entirely to sea turtles. The mission is to rescue, rehabilitate, and release sick and injured sea turtles.
Students will assist in the care of the turtles and will learn more about the causes of decline in US waters.
Costa Rica: Students will participate in the oldest on-going sea turtle research program of its kind. Initiated by Dr. Archie Carr in the late 1950s, the tagging project is now coordinated by the Sea Turtle Conservancy (STC). Students will participate in all aspects of data collection on the green turtles that come to nest on the beach at night. Students will need to be physically fit, as tagging the turtles will require five or more miles of walking each night in a tropical climate with lots of humidity and bugs!
Housing will be at the STC’s Tortuguero Biological Field Station. Tortuguero is a remote road-less area on the Caribbean coast, at the edge of a tropical rain forest that is criss-crossed by rivers and streams. Access is only by boat, or plane, but we will be arriving and departing by boat. The field station is located adjacent to the small village of Tortuguero and the 20,000-hectare Tortuguero National Park. Students will help measure nesting turtles, count eggs and assist in flipper tagging and recording data. In addition to working with the turtles, students will have the opportunity to meet the people of the local village, a Caribbean coastal community, and work with local school children. On day trips, students may explore the rain forest of the National Park and other ecosystems of the northern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.
Classroom Studies: Classroom studies constitute a very important part of the course. These classes will involve presentations by faculty, students, and guest speakers. There will be tests, reports and papers. This time is also used to prepare students for travel and field work.
Cost: Exact cost is TBD, but expected cost at this time is $2200.00. Transportation, lodging, meals, and planned trips in Costa Rica are included in the cost. Air fare to San Jose, Costa Rica and passport fees are not included.
Not included in cost: Transportation to Surf City and meals. Air fare to/from San Jose, Costa Rica (estimated $800), passport (about $130), airport exit tax in Costa Rica (about $30.00), tips (about $50.00), and personal items. Special field trips may be offered at a small additional cost with in Costa Rica.
Financial Aid: Most students are not eligible for financial aid for the summer 2025 BIO 300X course because 1) their financial aid money was all used for fall and spring or 2) students are not enrolled in enough summer hours to qualify. However, Travel Grants are available through Study Abroad, and you do qualify for those!! Apply today!
Contact:
Melanie Stadler
429 Eberhart Building
Email: mmstadle@uncg.edu
The Department of Biology
UNC Greensboro
Office Hours:
By Phone: 8am-5pm
Virtual: by appointment
Physical Address:
312 Eberhart Building
321 McIver Street
Greensboro, NC 27412
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 26170
Greensboro, NC 27402
Phone: 336.334.5391
Fax: 336.334.5839
Email: bio@uncg.edu
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