Senior thesis preparation usually begins with a trip to the library. For four Scripps College seniors, however, their legwork started outside Denison—3,346 miles away, to be exact—in the rainforests of Costa Rica.
Moriah Lerner, Lia Metzger, Martha Beirut, and Vivian Phan paid a visit as guests of W.M. Keck Science Department Professor of Biology Donald McFarlane. McFarlane established this inaugural, week-long, fully-funded program to immerse students studying ecology and biology in the methods of scientific research. The experience culminates with an integrated capstone project on water pollution in Costa Rican rivers.
“The main topic is water quality,” says Metzger. “Each of us sampled from a different river, and we will each write our own thesis focusing on the river we were assigned.
“Learning to get the samples was just as challenging as analyzing them,” she adds. “Sometimes I had to rethink my approach on-the-spot, especially when crocodiles approached my sampling device thinking it was food.”
Although busy collecting data, Metzger and her cohorts also had time to visit some of the area’s beaches, waterfalls, and hiking trails, where they encountered an abundance of indigenous wildlife like poison dart frogs, monkeys, scorpions, and sloths.
All seven students on the trip – including some from neighbors Claremont McKenna and Pitzer Colleges – were given training in proper field methodology prior to departure. Upon returning to Claremont, the students received additional training on statistical analysis, scientific writing, geographic information systems (GIS) modeling and map-making, and literature searches to prepare them for developing their theses.
In addition to the new capstone experience, summer 2015 marks the ninth year Keck Science Department will host underclassmen for an eight-week research program in Costa Rica. In this program, 4-6 self-motivated students—of any major—research biodiversity-related topics. Participants spend seven weeks independently researching their topic and have one week of travel. Scripps students typically comprise the majority of selected students.
“Thanks to the grant, I gained insight into what it is like to do field research in the area of ecology,” says Charlie Startin ‘16, who took advantage of the project this past summer. “I worked with professors for the first week, but for the remaining two months I was pretty much on my own to do research. I felt responsible and independent – and I was able to practice my Spanish!”
In addition to teaching students the art of independent scientific research, both programs allow students develop a closer relationship to Keck faculty.
“Inevitably, you learn more about your students when you are with them for the greater part of every day,” says McFarlane. “After these experiences, I am often able to write thorough Watson and Fulbright recommendations for students who participate in these programs.”
For more information on the programs, visit the W.M. Keck Science Department website.