BS in Astrobiology

What is an Astrobiology Degree?

To our knowledge, Florida Tech’s astrobiology degree program is the first and only undergraduate astrobiology program in the country. If you’re interested in the potential for life on other planets, studying the theory of abiogenesis is key.

Students in the astrobiology program receive a broad education in areas that include planetary science, extrasolar planets, and the origin of life. At the same time, students take a solid core of mathematics, physics, and biology courses, allowing them to pursue a wide range of interests.

Astrobiology degree graduates are ready for graduate studies in astrophysics, planetary science, or biology, as well as careers in the aerospace or biotech-related industries. Whether you want to study the effects of space travel on humans, discover past or present microbial life on Mars, or help develop ways to sustain life on the moon, you will be well prepared with an astrobiology degree from Florida Tech. Here, you'll develop a strong background in physics and biology and get hands-on experience with space science technologies.

Earn an Advanced Degree

After receiving their astrobiology degree, many of our students go on to master's and doctoral programs at Florida Tech and other prestigious universities, including Johns Hopkins, Dartmouth, and Yale.

Peerless Internship Opportunities

In preparation for an astrobiology career, Florida Tech students often take part in internships with local and national companies. Some of these companies include:

• NASA
• The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
• Sandia National Labs
• The American Institute of Physics

These internship opportunities allow our students to gather the necessary experience to put them ahead of the competition when searching for an astrobiology career.

Florida Tech also hosts the SARA Research Experience for Undergraduates program, a summer internship program sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Department of Defense.

Stunning Undergraduate Research Opportunities

Professors strongly encourage students to get actively involved in research by joining one of the department’s research groups. Currently, our faculty are involved in observing and categorizing the properties of exoplanets and are in the process of developing a multi-spectrum camera intended for use on the International Space Station. Astrobiology students involved in projects that require unique instrumentation have access to the Space Life Sciences Laboratory at Kennedy Space Center. In addition, they are frequently admitted to the NASA Space Academy and other similar programs.

Research activities include measuring the adhesion properties of dust grains to understand the important processes in the formation of planets and the effects of cosmic radiation on the human body. Collaboration with faculty in the biology department involves studies on the effects of the space environment on long-term missions involving humans—especially important with the new focus on traveling to Mars. NASA’s Space Academy also frequently allows our astrobiology students to take part in exciting training and research. These types of hands-on experiences give students a real-world view of an astrobiology career.

Graduate and Doctoral Programs

More than half of Florida Tech's astrobiology degree students attend graduate school. In addition to the master’s and doctoral programs at Florida Tech, recent astrobiology degree graduates have been accepted to graduate programs at such prestigious institutions as:

• Auburn University
• Caltech
• Dartmouth University
• Johns Hopkins
• Georgia Tech
• Ohio State University
• Rice
• SUNY Buffalo
• SUNY Stony Brook
• UCLA
• University of Arizona
• University of Florida
• University of Texas
• Vanderbilt University
• Yale

It All Started With 37 Cents

Florida Tech was founded in 1958 as "Brevard Engineering College." It all started as an idea in the mind of Jerome P. Keuper, a visionary physicist working at Cape Canaveral.

As university lore would have it, Keuper expressed his desire to create a scientific and technological university to a friend over drinks at a local pub. Overhearing the conversation, a fellow patron pushed 37 cents in change across the bar and said, “There’s your first donation, Jerry. Now, go and build that college.”

So, Keuper did. And what started with 37 cents as a night school for the early “missilemen” of the U.S. space program is now a comprehensive national research university recognized worldwide for excellence in preparing students for careers of the future.

Core Values

• Research for the Benefit of All Humankind
• Education for a Lifetime of Success
• Global Citizenship for a Better World

Mission Statement

Florida Institute of Technology’s mission is to provide high-quality education to a culturally diverse student body in order to prepare students for entering the global workforce, seeking higher-education opportunities, and serving within their communities. The university also seeks to expand knowledge through basic and applied research and to serve the diverse economic, cultural, and societal needs of our local, state, national and international constituencies.

In support of this mission, we are committed to:

• Promoting student development by fostering and sustaining a productive institutional culture of assessment that leads to the continuous improvement of academic and administrative programs
• Developing an organizational culture that values and encourages intellectual curiosity, a sense of belonging and shared purpose among faculty, students, and staff, and the pursuit of excellence in all endeavors
• Recruiting and developing excellent faculty to become leaders in their respective fields and internationally recognized scholars
• Achieving recognition as an effective, innovative, technology-focused educational and research institution
• Recruiting and retaining an excellent, highly select, and culturally diverse student body
• Continually improving the quality of campus life for all members of the university community
• Providing personal and career growth opportunities for both traditional and nontraditional students and members of the faculty and staff
• Securing and maintaining professional accreditation for all appropriate programs

We Are Florida Tech

What we are is a private, coeducational, residential, research-intensive, doctoral-granting university located in Melbourne on Florida’s sunny “Space Coast.” But who we are is so much more. We are a community of researchers, scholars, and learners hailing from all around the world. We are engineers, aviators, innovators, leaders, educators, athletes, and astronauts. We have the brains of rocket scientists and the hearts of Panthers. We are Florida Tech.

We Are Relentless

Florida Tech is a university of leaders and learners—a diverse community of students, staff, faculty, and alumni who are united in the relentless pursuit of greatness.

We Are International

Students from more than 90 countries worldwide choose to live and learn at Florida Tech, making us a truly global university. When we say #YouAreWelcomeHere, we mean it.

We Create The Future

One of the primary tenets of Florida Tech’s mission is advancing science and technology for the benefit of Earth and all of its inhabitants. So, that’s what we do.

We Have Panther Pride

You may feel it the first time you visit the campus, the day you graduate, or at some point in between. But when you do, you’ll see that Panther Pride is more than school spirit. It’s a family.

We Make Connections

Florida Tech is proud to be part of the Brevard County community and welcomes its neighbors to explore the many personal, professional, corporate, and cultural opportunities we have to offer.

We Are STEM

There's a reason Florida Tech is known as Florida's STEM University™. To put it simply: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math are in our DNA. This makes STEM a driving force behind who we are, what we do, and why we exist.