Museums and collections can be central in undergraduate and graduate student learning. For example, the BCEENET (Biological Collections Ecology and Evolution Network) is a community of educators and museum curators devoted to fostering undergraduate scientific exploration using natural history specimen data. Studies have also shown that URM students benefit greatly from courses incorporating specimen-based research experiences.
Specimens from the Biodiversity Museum serve as examples—to observe and study—for an estimated 3,000 SDSU students per year. Our collections are used in several university courses, including Biology of the Algae, Field Botany of San Diego County, Herpetology, Mammology, Ornithology, Plant Systematics, Principles of Organismal Biology, and Terrestrial Arthropod Biology. In addition, the Biodiversity Museum is utilized in teaching & mentorship activities, including special topics studies in collections curation and research projects.
