Characteristics of field-based and experiential courses available as of 2025 in two life science departments in a higher education institution.

Item characteristics extracted from course catalogue and syllabi. <b>Course title</b>: course name<b>Units</b>: A 5-credit course typically involves about 15 hours of work per week, including class time and study time. 2-credit courses are typically considered a laboratory, practical, or discussion session.<b>International trave</b><b>l:</b> Do students of the course travel locally (within 50miles of campus), in-state (visit other locations within the state), out-of-state (visit locations outside of state but still national travel), or international (any international travel)?<b>Overnight field trips</b>: Does the course have overnight field trips (yes or no)<b>Total field hours per quarter:</b> The total number of hours that the students spend in the field in a quarter (10 weeks)<b>Independent projects:</b> Do students develop and/or implement an independent research project either in teams or individually during the course? (yes or no)<b>Student fees and associated expenses:</b> How much students need to pay to participate in the course outside of regular enrollment fees?<b>Number of students per section</b>: How many students does the course have per section? (options: 1-15, 15-22, 22-30, 30+)<b>Intended academic level of students</b>: What student academic level was the class designed for? Academic level: lower division refers to students in years 1 or 2; upper division refers to students in years 3 or 4+.<b>Average academic level of the students enrolled in the course</b>: Average academic level of the students enrolled in the course was calculated by determining when (as a percentage) in their time at the university the students took the course. We then back-calculated to standardize for a 4 year degree program (percentage x 4).<b>Number of students enrolled (since 2008)</b>: Total number of students enrolled in the course since 2008 to 2025*Course offered outside the EEB department.