The interdisciplinary Animal Behavior major gives students a look into animal ecology, psychology, and more while building analytical skills that apply to an array of human career paths.
How do the birds and the bees know where to fly to get the best food? Why do wolves live in packs? How do female frogs select a potential mate from among a chorus of males?
Students in the interdisciplinary Animal Behavior major explore the curious world of why animals act the way they do. The field connects birds-eye view elements like evolution and survival with the down-to-earth details of how animals interact, learn, and respond to their environments.
“Animal Behavior is an incredibly exciting field because it sits at the intersection of so many disciplines—biology, psychology, neuroscience, ecology, and even the humanities,” said Professor of Psychology Todd Freeberg, founding chair of the program. “Our program brings together a vibrant community of researchers, including many new and early-career faculty, who are working at the forefront of understanding how animals perceive and respond to a changing world.”
Contributing faculty include members of the related Collaborative for Animal Behavior: Assistant Professor Alejandro Velez, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, who takes on the program chair role starting this summer; Professor Dan Hembree, Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences; and Assistant Professor Claire Hemingway, Departments of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) and Psychology and Neuroscience.
“I taught animal behavior in the spring semester,” said Hemingway. “Four students in the class were new to the major and so excited about it! It is especially great how many faculty across departments and colleges are part of our group, meaning students can interact and do research with so many different faculty members and labs.”
Tracking Careers with Animal Behavior Skills
Studies in animal behavior can prepare students with skills for a wide range of potential career paths.
“Most notably, they will develop analytical skills in designing experimental and observational studies of animal behavior, which will involve field and research techniques,” said Hemingway. “They will also have quantitative and technical skills in processing, analyzing, and interpreting data. Finally, there are quite a few communication and applied skills that will serve them more broadly, regardless of the career path they choose.”
Careers in animal behavior encompass the obvious animal trainer or zookeeper fields, but also roles in research, industry, and beyond.
“As animal behaviorists, we work with difficult subjects,” said Hemingway. “This leads us to develop really important skill sets in experiential design and statistical analysis, both of which are widely important across many professions.”
Unleash Your Interdisciplinary Animal
The program’s interdisciplinary studies in animal science and behavior easily blend and overlap for students with majors or minors in ecology and evolutionary biology, psychology and neuroscience, and more.
“There are also opportunities for students to either major or minor in other, less obvious studies alongside Animal Behavior,” said Hemingway. “These could be physics, math, or chemistry—all are incorporated into animal behavior research.”
Hemingway adds to this interdisciplinary territory with a new course she will teach in fall 2026 titled The Ecology of Choice, cross-listed through EEB and psychology and neuroscience.
“We will discuss how animals, including humans, make decisions in complex environments,” she said. “The class will incorporate ideas from behavioral ecology, social psychology, and behavioral economics.”
With courses like this, the Animal Behavior major helps students build a strong foundation of skills across disciplines—setting them apart in an exciting and expanding career field.
by Randall Brown