Get Involved

The Brackenridge Field Lab is a resource for students, faculty, and members of the Austin community. BFL offers volunteering opportunities and public outreach programs that cater to citizen scientists of all ages. Read on to find out how you can get involved and show support for your local scientific community.

Undergraduate Opportunities

Courses

BFL is designated as a Campus Gem, and welcomes introductory classes of all disciplines. Undergraduates have the opportunity to take a variety of classes that visit BFL, including lower and upper division Biology classes. Work from these courses is archived on-site and contributes to long-term records of the site's plant and insect communities. Classes that visit BFL include, but are not limited to:

INB 373L Ecology Laboratory
BIO 206L Introductory Biology Lab
INB 208L Field Biology
UGS303 Biodiversity in Crisis
UGS303 Religion and Animals
INB 453L Entomology
INB 440L Biology of Birds
INB Vertebrate Natural History
INB 369L Field Herpetology
INB 463L Plant Systematics
ES225C & ES225D Humanitarian Product Development
UGS 302 Climate and Health

Research

Freshman Research Initiative (FRI)

Freshman Research Initiative (FRI) is a program designed to give first-year undergraduates hands-on research experience with UT faculty laboratories while receiving course credit. BFL serves as an important resource and research facility for multiple FRI streams, including:

Independent Research and Capstone Projects

Undergraduate students may conduct independent research projects at BFL and other field stations in the Texas Field Station Network. Students interested in conducting research at BFL should submit a Student Research Application. Fellowships & scholarships for undergraduate research at field stations are also available.

Community Engagement

BFL attracts many organizations for public engagement and volunteering events, providing a unique setting where science, education, and community come together through hands-on learning and outreach. Some organizations that BFL has engaged with are:

UT Affiliated:

Science Under the Stars
Texas EEB Club
Longhorn Mycologists
UT Insect Collection

Hogg Foundation for Mental Healthh
LBJ Wildflower Center
Texas Robotics

Non-UT Affiliated:

Capital Area Master Naturalists
Travis Audubon Society
Central Texas Plant Rescue
Texas Master Gardeners

Central Texas Mycological Society
City of Austin (Watershed Protection, Austin Water)
Underground Texas Grotto
Central Texas Archivists Association

Outside Universities

Texas A&M
Rice University
Austin Community College
Texas State University
St. Edwards University

Cornell University
Harvard University
University of Toronto
Sul Ross University

Volunteer

BFL welcomes adult-age volunteers (18+) to work as research assistants or participate in outdoor service and outreach activities. These volunteer opportunities are offered to both UT students and members of the public. If you are interested in serving as a volunteer at BFL, contact the field station manager.

Donate

The future of BFL depends on your support. By donating to the lab, you do your part to ensure that students can continue to benefit from the unique educational experience that the field station has to offer and contribute to the funding of research like the fire ant project. In addition to funding the research done at the lab, public donations are used to help build endowments to fund faculty, provide scholarships for students, and fund special projects for facility and habitat improvements.

GIVE NOW