Microbiology is the study of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Microbes have a profound impact on human societies and the environment.
What makes Microbiology unique at UCR?
Microbiology is the only major with a research-based capstone course – Experimental Microbiology (MCBL 125) – which provides theoretical and hands-on training on how to become a scientist. This includes developing skills in: Formulating hypotheses, Designing experiments, Performing experiments, Analyzing data, and Presenting results. Some students who take this course also earn authorship on papers published in scientific journals.
In general, what are Microbiology professors investigating?
- How microbes can both cause and prevent human diseases
- How microbes can be used to transform waste into energy
- How to best use microbes to create foods such as bread & cheese
- How microbes can be used to cleanup environmental spills
- How microbes can both cause and prevent plant diseases
- How microbes can be used as sources of new pharmaceuticals and to manufacture drugs
Why Microbiology at UCR?
Microbiology provides training and experience enabling students to be highly competitive for admission to post-graduate programs such as medical school, specialty training programs such as Clinical Laboratory Science, as well as MS and Ph.D. programs focused on research or teaching. It provides training enabling students to obtain higher-paying jobs. It has a research-based Capstone Course. It offers a wide variety of lecture and lab courses covering many different topics. It offers the greatest number of lab courses in the life sciences, enabling students to obtain highly valued CSI-like molecular skills.
4+1 Program
The Undergraduate and Graduate Programs in Microbiology offers a combined B.S. + M.S. program in Microbiology designed to lead to a Bachelor of Science degree as well as a Master of Science degree in five years.
Microbiology research at UCR
- How microbes can both cause and prevent human diseases
- How microbes can both cause and prevent plant diseases
- How microbes can influence environmental recovery after wildfires as well as cleanup environmental pollutants and ameliorate climate change
What industries can I get into with a Microbiology degree?
- Profession schools including medical school, pharmacy school, veterinarian school, among others
- Specialty training programs such as Clinical Laboratory Science
- MS and Ph.D. programs focused on research or teaching certificates
- Law school for careers in patent law or governmental regulation and policy
- Biotechnology companies focused on human medicine
- Biotechnology companies focused on agriculture
- Biotechnology companies focused on food production such as bread and cheese
- Biotechnology companies focused on cleaning up environmental spills
- Biotechnology companies focused on creating climate change solutions
- Governmental jobs at the United States Department of Agricultural (USDA)
- Governmental jobs at the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Governmental jobs at the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Advice for success
Students should take advantage of campus resources which provide a range of services from helping students obtain their academic goals to helping students connect with each other.