Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science and Physics all offer students head start at academic life
LSU Communications and University Relations
08/13/2009 02:43 PM
BATON ROUGE – LSU will host at least four intensive science-related “boot camp” style orientations this week for incoming freshman students who are interested in getting a head start in the field of their choosing.
BIOS, the Biology Intensive Orientation for Students, now entering its fifth year of existence, is more commonly known as “biology boot camp.” The program has an overwhelming success rate and is now serving as a model for other nationally-prominent universities, such as the University of Washington, and several other LSU departments.
Students who participate in BIOS not only consistently score better grades in their introductory classes, but also end up with a significantly higher GPA after four semesters than other LSU students, according to a university study.
In fact, BIOS has been so successful that other departments in the College of Basic Sciences have joined forces with it. Chemis, run by the LSU Department of Chemistry, as well as PhIOS, the Physics Intensive Orientation for Students, both are run in conjunction with BIOS with the same rigorous routine for its participants. Students from all groups take advantage of study skills workshops and general education offerings, then breakout into field-specific groups for focused attention to the scientific area of their choosing.
Also taking place this week is the LSU Department of Computer Science’s second Computer Science Intensive Orientation for Students, or CIOS. The computer science department modeled CIOS after similar initiatives in biological sciences and physics. The orientation is aimed at incoming freshmen who intend to major in computer science at LSU. CIOS will allow these students to meet the faculty, get some hands-on experience working with LSU’s computer science facilities and learn realistic expectations about the work required when majoring in computer science.
Faculty hope CIOS will give students a strong foundation so they will be more likely to stay in the computer science program and graduate in that area. Similar efforts with the biological sciences orientation showed students who attended that orientation were two times more likely to graduate from the program. Several faculty members, staff and graduate students from the LSU Center for Computation & Technology are assisting the Department of Computer Science with this orientation through teaching and demonstration.
“The bottom line is that boot camps like BIOS significantly increase the likelihood that a freshman who is interested in science will actually get their BS degree in science. That is a very tangible and meaningful outcome,” said Kevin Carman, dean of LSU’s College of Basic Sciences. “As these programs grow and connect across the disciplines, I think it’s fair to say we’ll see more and better prepared Louisiana students succeeding not only in college, but in the job market, as well.”
LSU Communications and University Relations
08/13/2009 02:43 PM
BATON ROUGE – LSU will host at least four intensive science-related “boot camp” style orientations this week for incoming freshman students who are interested in getting a head start in the field of their choosing.
BIOS, the Biology Intensive Orientation for Students, now entering its fifth year of existence, is more commonly known as “biology boot camp.” The program has an overwhelming success rate and is now serving as a model for other nationally-prominent universities, such as the University of Washington, and several other LSU departments.
Students who participate in BIOS not only consistently score better grades in their introductory classes, but also end up with a significantly higher GPA after four semesters than other LSU students, according to a university study.
In fact, BIOS has been so successful that other departments in the College of Basic Sciences have joined forces with it. Chemis, run by the LSU Department of Chemistry, as well as PhIOS, the Physics Intensive Orientation for Students, both are run in conjunction with BIOS with the same rigorous routine for its participants. Students from all groups take advantage of study skills workshops and general education offerings, then breakout into field-specific groups for focused attention to the scientific area of their choosing.
Also taking place this week is the LSU Department of Computer Science’s second Computer Science Intensive Orientation for Students, or CIOS. The computer science department modeled CIOS after similar initiatives in biological sciences and physics. The orientation is aimed at incoming freshmen who intend to major in computer science at LSU. CIOS will allow these students to meet the faculty, get some hands-on experience working with LSU’s computer science facilities and learn realistic expectations about the work required when majoring in computer science.
Faculty hope CIOS will give students a strong foundation so they will be more likely to stay in the computer science program and graduate in that area. Similar efforts with the biological sciences orientation showed students who attended that orientation were two times more likely to graduate from the program. Several faculty members, staff and graduate students from the LSU Center for Computation & Technology are assisting the Department of Computer Science with this orientation through teaching and demonstration.
“The bottom line is that boot camps like BIOS significantly increase the likelihood that a freshman who is interested in science will actually get their BS degree in science. That is a very tangible and meaningful outcome,” said Kevin Carman, dean of LSU’s College of Basic Sciences. “As these programs grow and connect across the disciplines, I think it’s fair to say we’ll see more and better prepared Louisiana students succeeding not only in college, but in the job market, as well.”
Publish Date:
08-13-2009
