Coursework and Credit

Participants of the Australia program earned two Biological Sciences credits (BSCI288). The course requirements were as follows:

• Two group meetings prior to departure
  
• An individual presentation: each student was assigned an organism (e.g kangaroo, funnel web spider, saltwater crocodile, cassowary bird, etc.) on which to give a brief presentation while in Australia. This was a way to teach the group more details about the plants and animals that they saw-or at least hoped to see-while abroad.
  
• A journal: students recorded their daily observations in a journal; they later turned these in to be graded. What new birds did they identify? How was this snorkeling site different from the last? What did they notice about the mangrove environment? The journal as meant to record scientific observations and comparisons as well as personal experiences and thoughts.
  
• A research project: on Lizard Island, students broke into groups and conducted research projects. These ranged from tracking the Island's goyana lizards to comparing diversity and quantity of life in the island's rubble zones.