Department of Biology

Highlights of Biology at Simmons

• Faculty members are known for outstanding teaching and cutting-edge scholarship.
• Hands-on learning is integrated into all majors, beginning freshman year and culminating in the senior capstone project.
• Our Biochemistry and Neuroscience & Behavior majors are offered jointly with the departments of Chemistry & Physics and Psychology, respectively.
• We have active chapters of several student organizations, including Sigma Xi (National Science Honor Society) and Tri-Beta (National Biological Honor Society).

One of our greatest assets is the students themselves. They are incredibly motivated learners and innovative thinkers.

- Jane Lopilato, Associate Professor of Biology and Department Chair

Outstanding education and training in biological disciplines

• Simmons is making major investments in our campus to provide students with optimized spaces for interdisciplinary teaching, research, and collaborative learning in the sciences.
• Exercise Science is the department’s most popular major and is among the largest at the University, offering excellent preparation for rewarding health and fitness careers.
• Our location provides students with research and internship opportunities at world-class institutions such as the Broad Institute (Harvard/MIT), Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.
• Student research at Simmons reflects a high level of innovative, independent work, and intellectual rigor unusual for undergraduate programs. Seniors have the opportunity to present their capstone projects at the Eastern New England Biological Conference, the Simmons Biology Symposium, and/or the Biology Poster Session.
• Simmons encourages dynamic major/minor combinations, such as neuroscience and music, biology and economics, and biology and computer science.

Careers

Graduates of our department work in biochemistry, genetic counseling, microbiology, environmental science, pharmaceuticals, and many other fields. Others are pursuing doctoral degrees at prestigious schools such as T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University, Cornell University, and Boston University School of Medicine. The Boston-metro area has the highest employment of biological scientists of any area in the nation.

Faculty highlights

• 9 full-time faculty, recognized for outstanding teaching and innovative research.
• Current faculty research includes: anthropogenic impacts on our ecosystems; global regulators of gene expression and antibiotic resistance; formation and function of neuronal connections; effects of natural products and environmental contaminants on cell behavior; applied microbiology, hygiene science, and public health; and the developmental evolution of amphibian neural patterning and formation of appendages.