Courses provide students an opportunity to study plants and animals in both laboratory and field environments. Field courses primarily have focused on animals and have included extended field trips to various parts of the United States, Mexico, Trinidad, and Belize.

These courses take classes to new and exotic habitats and are the experience of a lifetime for many students. Students get the chance to see first-hand the ecological principles that they learned in the classroom. They use state-of-the-art field techniques to design and conduct experiments in classes such as General Biology and Wildlife Ecology or develop their own research projects in one-on-one mentorship arrangements with research faculty.

During the summer, several courses are offered which include Field Techniques in Vertebrate Ecology, River and Stream Ecology, and Local Floral of Tennessee. Students comment that besides being informative and enriching, courses that include extended periods in the field provide them with some of the most unique and lasting memories they have of their college experience. Course work is available through the Department of Biology to meet the requirements for B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees.

Graduates of this program now occupy prestigious professional positions throughout the world, including directors of federal research and extension programs, university professors, state and federal fisheries and wildlife biologists, research positions at museums, zoos, and international programs.