Student and Faculty Programs

KU Honors class students looking at mammal skulls with a KUNHM researcher

The KU Natural History Museum offers special Behind-the-Scenes tours of museum collections and provides classes with formal introductions to the museum's exhibits for KU and all college and university classes. We also offer opportunities for KU students to get involved with the museum through volunteering, employment, and activities. 

Academic Behind-the-Scenes Tours

Our ongoing commitment to providing inspiring and informative experiences for all includes our Behind-the-Scenes tours of Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum research collections for university and college-level students through the academic year. Tours are led by collection managers, curators, and graduate students and are available in the following research divisions:  Herpetology (reptiles and amphibians), Ichthyology (fish), Ornithology (birds), Mammals, Vertebrate Paleontology. These tours are also available for non-KU colleges and universities.



To request a tour, please fill out our Academic Tour Request Form.

NOTE: Please submit requests at least two weeks prior to the desired tour date, to allow for scheduling. 

Events

KU instructors interested in working with the museum on UNIV101, Common Book or similar programming are welcome to contact our Outreach and Engagement Coordinator, Eleanor Gardner at eleanor.gardner@ku.edu. 

KU faculty interested in science communication and presenting at our Science On Tap public series may reach out to our staff at biodiversity@ku.edu. 

The KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum regularly offers events for K-12 youth, KU students, the KU community and the public. Explore our calendar to learn more.