Breadcrumb
College of Natural Resources & Sciences
Get Your Hands Dirty Studying Science on California’s North Coast
There’s no better place to study science than at Cal Poly Humboldt. Our community is a living laboratory with the Pacific Ocean, ancient redwoods, and other diverse ecosystems for you to explore.
The College of Natural Resources & Sciences boasts a wide variety of science-focused areas of study, from biochemistry to zoology. Our multiple fieldwork opportunities, Place-Based Learning Communities, and extensive research faculties paired with our stellar faculty and staff create an environment for you to feel inspired, challenged, and engaged with the science all around you.
Undergraduate Research
Many universities reserve research experience for graduate students. At Cal Poly Humboldt, you may conduct your own research or assist professors with their projects as early as your freshman year. Either way, you’ll put theory into practice, building a fundamental understanding of concepts and methodologies. With opportunities to present at local and national conferences, you’ll learn how to explain your findings, too. Experiences like these offer a glimpse of what it’s like to be a professional scientist and will help you discover your passion.
Fieldwork
Located on the North Coast of California, Humboldt is surrounded by ancient redwoods and close to the Pacific Ocean, mountains, and rivers. You’ll find the region’s natural environment is the perfect outdoor classroom where learning happens through real-world experience. Track elk, hike through forests to measure redwoods, or take water samples from California’s second largest river—Humboldt provides a wide range of opportunities for fieldwork, which helps develop critical thinking and collaboration skills, and a passion for learning that will take you far in life.
Personal Attention
College is a time to expand your horizons and find out who you really are, and our attentive faculty are here to support you every step of the way. From the moment you begin your program, you won’t be just another face in the crowd. You’ll be part of a community as you get to know your professors. They’ll challenge you, but they’re accessible, too. Whether through mentoring or one-on-one feedback, they’ll help you build the knowledge and skills to be successful at Cal Poly Humboldt.
Undergraduate Programs
Cal Poly Humboldt offers a wide array of science majors and programs, led by highly skilled faculty who foster a supportive environment. You will develop the critical thinking skills needed to solve complex problems in science, engineering, and natural resources, leaving you well-prepared for professional careers and higher levels of study.
Graduate Programs
Cal Poly Humboldt has an established reputation for its graduate programs in the biological, environmental, engineering, and natural resources sciences, which provide the knowledge and experience necessary to address today’s scientific problems.
Equipped for Excellence
Cal Poly Humboldt has a diverse range of research facilities, labs, and special collections as essential tools for conducting research and gaining real-world experience. Utilizing a renewable energy technology research center, a marine laboratory, and the largest botanical collection in the CSU system, you will actively engage with research during your undergraduate years.
Place-Based Learning Communities
Learning goes beyond the classroom at Humboldt—we learn from the environment we are in. Our Place-Based Learning Communities provide you with a tight-knit community of like minded peers before classes even start.
We start right away—you’ll be immersed in major-related fieldwork, seminars, and classes with students like you before the semester even begins. These connections will help you navigate college life, gain confidence, succeed academically, and gain a sense of belonging within the Humboldt community.
Alumni Updates
Aidan Branney
Wildlife, 2018
After earning his bachelor's degree in Wildlife in 2018 and completing a master's in Range and Wildlife Management at the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute at Texas A&M University Kingsville in 2022, he is now pursuing his PhD at the University of Georgia-Athens. His dissertation research will revolve around lion spatial ecology and predator-prey dynamics in Etosha National Park, Namibia. This summer, he will begin data collection and monitor lions via GPS collars and trail cameras in and outside the National Park. The wildlife program at Humboldt set him up in the best possible way to pursue wildlife research across species and the world.
Suzan Homsombath
Forestry & Wildland Resources, 2017
Suzan is living in the Sierra Nevada foothills, practicing forestry and growing her career as a forester.
Danial Nayeri
Wildlife, 2023
After earning his master’s degree in Wildlife from Cal Poly Humboldt, Danial moved to College Station, Texas, to begin a new journey as a Ph.D. student. Danial is currently a research graduate assistant at Texas A&M University, working in the Human Dimensions of Natural Resources Lab under the supervision of Dr. Gerard Kyle. Danial's research focuses on human-wildlife conflict mitigation through the lens of social psychology. His experience at Humboldt helped shape him into a more competent and prepared graduate student.
Achievements
Find out what our students, faculty, and staff are being recognized for.
Elijah Harnar, Roland Carter, Zander Leigh, Shea Ciuca Duffy, Erika Ospenson, Nicholas Weiser, Kyle Ellis, Andrew Bricken, Sean Ruzicka, Kyle Amann, Jason Dyck, Felix Canari, Leonardo Castro, Eden Hill, Celeste Joyner, Erick Herrera, Teophil Edward, Hector Manuel, and Micah Matias.
Environmental Resources Engineering
Our Cal Poly Humboldt engineering team won first place in the Water Treatment Competition this weekend at the annual American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Mid-Pacific Conference, hosted by UC Berkeley!
The Water Treatment Competition challenges students to design a sustainable and effective filter for treating simulated wastewater.
Our students spent two semesters building and improving their filter, and all that hard work paid off. The judges were impressed by their teamwork, school spirit, and ability to effectively communicate technical content.
We’re incredibly proud of their achievement and the way they represented Cal Poly Humboldt on a regional stage. Go Lumberjacks!
This year’s winning team included:
Elijah Harnar, Roland Carter, Zander Leigh, Shea Ciuca Duffy, Erika Ospenson, Nicholas Weiser, Kyle Ellis, Andrew Bricken, Sean Ruzicka, Kyle Amann, Jason Dyck, Felix Canari, Leonardo Castro, Eden Hill, Celeste Joyner, Erick Herrera, Teophil Edward, Hector Manuel, and Micah Matias.
Jordyn Neal, Sam Rodrigues, Allison Bronson
Biological Sciences
Undergraduate alumna Jordyn Neal (now an M.S. candidate at CSU Fullerton) & Assistant Professor Allison Bronson had their recent publication in the Anatomical Record featured as the journal's "Editor's Choice" article for May 2025. The publication described inner ear shape in four species of sharks, part of a team effort including undergraduate alumna Samantha Rodrigues and data scientist John Denton. The Editor's Choice interview with Neal & Bronson is available through the American Association for Anatomy website.
Joshua Smith
Chemistry
Chemistry & Biochemistry faculty Joshua Smith is a co-author on a paper with an international team working on using triplet state Baird-aromaticity in photosensitive processes. In this study triplet state Baird-aromaticity is used to stabilize the quencher molecules used in fluorescence imaging. The paper was published in the Royal Chemical Society's open access journal, Chemical Science.
Bakouri, O. E.; Johnson, M. A.; Smith, J. R.; Pati, A. K.; Martin, M. I.; Blanchard, S. C.; Ottosson, H. Search of Improved Triplet-State Quenchers for Fluorescence Imaging: A Computational Framework Incorporating Excited-State Baird-Aromaticity. Chem. Sci. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1039/D5SC01131K.