All students in Hampshire College's School of Natural Science engage in hands-on, original scientific research.

Some of this research is done in courses, but many students also design their own independent investigations, which they carry out under the guidance of faculty.

	More than a Classroom
	As a Div III microbiology student, Erin Eggleston conducted research on rugged bacteria that thrive in harsh conditions.

Areas of interest include environmental sciences, agricultural studies, health sciences, and more.

Hampshire students complete their academic programs with a final stage of work known as Division III. Div III students, as they're called on campus, undertake yearlong, self-designed projects that tie together and expand on their earlier work.

Natural science projects range from major research papers to laboratory and field investigations. Some of these lead to publications and presentations for which the student is the first author.

Mystery of the Mummies
Eight Hampshire students and their professor gather around a table in the Cole Science Center. One issue tops their agenda on this cold winter morning: the health of the people in a faraway Chilean fishing village.

The students have uncovered a toxic secret. By performing laser analysis on hair and teeth samples taken from village residents, they’ve discovered dangerously high levels of heavy metals, particularly arsenic, in residents’ bodies. Arsenic, it seems, has been endangering health in the region for centuries. Read more >>

More Student Work in Natural Science:

		National Research Award Goes to Hampshire Student “Hampshire provided me the room to have independent study and to gain independent research, which set me ahead of the other undergraduate students.”
		Combining Environmental Science with Policy and Management Max Neale goes at the Asian clam from all angles.
		Searching for a Cure for Dengue For her Division III, Marissa Baker-Wagner is conducting research to identify pathways by which the dengue virus assembles the capsid protein.
		Designing DNA Isaac Bruss can tell DNA to self-assemble into a structure of his own choosing.
		Collaborative Research In Reproductive Health Div III Student Kimberley Bullard and Alum make connections.
		Water Flow, Food Flow To understand how food flows from farms to people Graham Jeffries looked to water.
		Project Offers Cultural Critique of Science “We need to deconstruct the medical concept of 'normal',” asserts Martina Risech.