Zoology myths

As every student returning home after the holidays, meeting up with old friends and relatives is somewhat of a requirement. One subject that comes up is what my degree is exactly. Usually this follows up with people asking whether they should start studying the same thing. So I have decided to clear some things up here in the blog. Hopefully this will clear your perception of what Zoology is exactly and whether you want to pursue it or not. However before I go on, let me say that I am studying at a Scottish University( there are difference between the English Universities) and that also I have just finished my second year and that there are two more years to go until I finish my undergraduate. Don't let this article be your final decision point. Your best bet is to find someone studying Zoology at the Universities you want to join or in the country you want to study and ask them about the degree. Then make up your mind.

Firstly. Zoology is not a extensive hands on animal degree. Although you do get to handle some animals, odds are those animals are either small enough to be contained in the lab,predicable enough to study or they are dead already and dissections and observations need to be conducted. If you envision yourself as a Zoology student, going out in the field every day studying wild animals then it's time for a rough reality check. Most Universities shy away from such teaching tactics as they are expensive, unreliable and often might be dangerous. If you want such experience then you are better off checking with Universities before you apply or wait until you can conduct your own research. That being said you might get to study wild animals on your field trips and at some labs and those moments are often treasured.

You can't avoid plants. There are people out there that don't find plant life interesting. If you think that in your Zoology degree you won't come across plants at all then you are mistaken. Plants are an important part of an animal's life cycle and hence you will come across them even in small doses every once in a while. Some plants might be important for conservation, important for animal behavior and hence merit being studied a lot more. So be prepared for some plant biology in your degree.

You can't avoid math. This is one of the largest misconceptions that I once thought myself. I thought I would be doing Zoology and that's it. Statistics and model maths are important parts of the science in zoology and so you will be taught about them, required to include them in plenty of lab reports and will be a basic content of your undergraduate and further studies. Most biologists struggle with them and their computer programs so I would advise you pay close attention to statistics and try and learn as much as you can about them.

You will spend a lot of time on the computer or reading books. Scientific papers don't write themselves and neither do essays. Be prepared to do a lot of background reading, working with statistical software, creating or working with computer and writing up reports. Some computer knowledge will get you a long way in your degree and although you are taught the basics, a few tricks will make your life easier.

It won't always be interesting. Let's face it. We are human beings and as humans we find some things interesting and some boring. Even if you love animals some parts of your education will be boring either due to the subject, the lecturer or because something else is on your mind. Don't assume that just because your degree deals with animals that everything will be interesting. I honestly hope that everything is interesting in your studies but so far I have had lectures I couldn't stand and I think it will always be that way.

Not everyone cares. This is something that I learned the hard way. I thought everyone will be interested in learning about wolves, their conservation and politics. Unfortunately that is not the case. However it makes sense. In your year alone will probably be a hundred people or more. Not everyone will find the same things interesting as you do and not all tutors or lecturers will either, although hopefully a large number of people will have some common ground with you to share.

I don't want to give the image of a horrible degree though. I love what I am doing now even if it involves an unhealthy amount of statistics. Hopefully however this will give you a clearer image into what Zoology is and is not and might steer you in the right direction. If you have any questions then please don't hesitate to contact me and I will try and answer them.