Dr. Bassichis shakes hands with Dr. Gates

Heads of the Class

Former Texas A&M University President Dr. Robert M. Gates (left) congratulates Physics' Dr. William H. Bassichis as one of two inaugural winners of the Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence Award, initiated by Gates in 2003 to underscore the importance of teaching at a major research university. In 2006, Chemistry's Dr. David E. Bergbreiter also merited the coveted honor, followed by fellow chemist Dr. John L. Hogg in 2007, helping to distinguish the College of Science as one of only two Texas A&M academic units with three recipients of the University's most prestigious award for classroom excellence.

Teaching

Perhaps more so than any other college at Texas A&M University, the College of Science embodies all of the many different forms of teaching inherent in a major research university. From providing introductory courses to every major on campus as well as advanced courses to our majors, to directing the Ph.D. research of mathematical and laboratory scientists and helping to solve problems affecting preK-12 education, we're at the forefront of educational efforts designed to produce the next generation of scientists, educators, and leaders of our professions.

As such, we are committed to education and knowledge-generation, and that commitment extends beyond our campus borders. To us, introducing the world to science, its careers, and contributions to daily life is higher education in its truest sense.

Class Service

In addition to eight undergraduate majors and 12 graduate degree programs, the College of Science provides the required mathematics, statistics, and science foundations for all Texas A&M majors, teaching 20 percent of the University's total semester credit hours, or one of every five classroom hours logged by its 45,000 students. We feature many of Texas A&M's highest-student-ranked instructors, including two of its eight Presidential Professors for Teaching Excellence, the University's most prestigious award for classroom prowess.

Lab Practicals

As a rule, educational experiences in the College of Science are anything but ordinary. For instance, in addition to traditional training in the fundamental sciences (biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, statistics), our undergraduates are exposed to challenging research opportunities designed to enhance the academic experience and provide beneficial practical skills to better prepare them for advanced studies or careers in science. More and more, the College is requiring students to log significant time as juniors or seniors—as much as two semesters—in labs that were once the sole domain of graduate students.

Common Ground, Rare Results

Thanks to a five-year, $1.25 million National Science Foundation grant, Texas A&M's Departments of Biology, Mathematics, and Statistics are teaming up to develop integrated curricula that will revolutionize undergraduate education and help shape the face of future research about the natural world. Each year, the Undergraduate Program in Biological and Mathematical Sciences recruits 10 biology and 10 mathematics students from diverse backgrounds to engage in a new common curriculum incorporating advanced biological and mathematical training, a common quantitative biology seminar, and research training in a biological research program, such as biological clocks, mathematical ecology, and genomics.

Going the Distance

As schools across America continue to call for better-qualified mathematics teachers, the Department of Mathematics is offering one of the nation's only 100 percent online master's degree in mathematics. The 36-credit-hour program, which celebrated its first graduate in May 2004, is proving popular with teachers brushing up on their skills to meet tougher public-school certification requirements or burnishing resumes for community-college jobs. In addition, the Department of Statistics soon will offer a master of science in statistics via distance.

PreK-12 Education

As one of Texas' most prominent scientific educational resources, the College of Science is one of its leading proponents of public education reform. We annually sponsor a wide variety of educational science activities for K-12 students through our Educational Outreach and Women's Programs Office and are actively involved in reversing the national science and mathematics teacher shortage through our aggieTEACH and Center for Mathematics and Science Education. We are equally dedicated to promoting the use of information technology to enhance the traditional science and math educational experience for teachers and their students.

Constructive Improvements

At a time when most universities across the country are cutting back, Texas A&M is launching more than $500 million in construction projects that support teaching and research and improve the educational experience for all Aggies. One of the largest new facilities programs underway on any U.S. campus kicked off in May 2006 with groundbreaking ceremonies for the George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics, the George P. Mitchell '40 Physics Building, and the Interdisciplinary Life Sciences Building. Future projects with ties to College of Science teaching and research efforts include the $100 million Emerging Technologies and Economic Development Building and the $50 million Texas Institute for Genomic Medicine.