Assignment 3: Website Objectives

I found two websites that are examples of what a "department of biological sciences" webpage usually looks like. The first came from Coloroado State University. This website was a really good example of what an academic webpage should look like. Instead of putting all of the information on one entire page, tabs are located at the top of the page. These tabs organize different topics from learning about the department to the research that is conducted. The site also divides up the undergraduate and graduate degree information making it easier to locate the information that the reader is interested in. Besides the great organization and structure to this site, the colors that are used are captivating. When a college is trying to pursuade students to participate in their program it’s kind of like how businesses make an advertisement for a product or service that they offer. Therefore, the “advertisement” needs to grab the attention of the reader. This can be attained through the use of color and word choices. Some eye catching words used in the Colorado State University website are “remarkable, exceptional, and outstanding”. Also, they make sure to let the reader know in the welcoming statement of the homepage that their biology department was ranked “5^th in the nation in 2007 amongst 375 research universities”.

An example of what an academic website should not be is Delta State University's department of biological sciences webpage. It gets the basic information to the reader but doesn’t really try to grasp the reader’s attention and make the person want to advance his or her education at their institution. There are a few links but they are still very basic. I’ve personally attended this college in the past and, in my opinion, their program is just about on the same level as their website: basic and lacking.

The overall purpose for creating a website is to recruit students to continue their education in my field. The ultimate outcome would be to actually get an incoming freshman or transfer student to want to pursue biology as their chosen field. The reader’s outcome would be to gain more information on the field and what kinds of careers one could achieve with this type of degree. Proffesors that are interested in teaching at USM in the future might also find the website helpful.

A recent catastrophic event that occurred was the oil spill situation in the gulf. This event will most likely have damaging effects for years to come. Because of this, many knowledgable workers will be needed so the job market after graduation should be good. This is where obtaining a degree in the biological sciences comes in. The University of Southern Mississippi offers many concentrations in the field of biology from environmental biology to microbiology. A bachelors of science in marine biology is also offered.

Education is an important and serious topic. By getting the best education that you can, you also increase your chances of landing a great job in the future. Because furthering your education is a serious topic, the website should be written in a somewhat formal way. After all, why would a person want to go to a college that has an ill-written webpage? Everything on an academic website should be thorough and correct. There should be absolutely no spelling errors. That would be extremely tacky. And, yes, I have actually run across an academic site that had spelling errors. I understand that sometimes webmasters make mistakes in grammar and spelling but an academic page should be mistake-free with no exceptions.

Some questions the reader might ask could be-

• What is the student teacher ratio?
• Are there any scholarships that are available for my particular major?
• What kind of research is conducted?
• Can I partake in research projects?
• Are there any honors clubs?
• Which professors are extremely difficult/easy?

The reader could find the questions to their answers through reading the website thoroughly. Also, the reader could find out which professors are difficult/easy by going to Koofers, which has a great deal of information. The reader could use the information that I give through the website by comparing information from another school’s program and deciding which has the better program for his or her needs or wants. I suspect that the reader would think the information I provide would be helpful and interesting. Having been a transfer student, I found it exciting to learn about the program at USM. The website is full of information and easy to navigate. There is even a section that has a list of faculty members so that when you get your classes set up you can go to this page and look up the professor’s name and it will take you to their page. Most of the time there will be a picture of the professor on the page. When I first came to USM I found that very helpful. It’s always good to put a face to a name. I would hope that the reader would see me as a peer offering advice and knowledge.

By seeing what other programs have done to grasp the attention of readers, I believe that I would make sure to treat my site as if it were an advertisement. It would be an advertisement for getting a great scientific education. Using eye-catching colors and providing pictures would cause the reader to want to pay attention. Once you have the attention of the reader, he or she will want to read on because it looks interesting. If the reader is like myself, he or she will assume that if it looks interesting then it is interesting!