NDSU graduate students work alongside respected and renowned professors conducting world-class research. The advanced education develops highly-skilled and innovative leaders who have higher job security and lifetime earnings.
Heather North, a student in the biological sciences doctoral program, is working on a project looking to determine whether commonly-used pesticides have helped decimate the world’s honey bee population by negatively affecting a drone’s ability to mate with the queen. She works with Julia Bowsher, associate professor of biological sciences.
North conducts field research by donning a full beekeeping suit to gently observe a buzzing beehive just off NDSU’s campus. The hope is to provide a catalyst for change in farming practices and the way humans treat the world’s pollinators.
North is getting the hands-on research experience necessary to be an expert in her field, while also preparing to become a college professor.
“I’ve felt empowered ever since I started doing research as an undergraduate,” North said. “You feel like you are part of a team and you don’t want to let anybody down. Doing graduate research makes you feel like you are making a difference and making a contribution to science. It’s made me feel like I want to go forward and do even more.”
Learn more about graduate studies at NDSU.
