Museum of Paleontology (UMMP)

The University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology is a dynamic research institute that draws on a rich archive of more than two million fossil specimens in order to illuminate major ecological, environmental, and evolutionary changes to the biosphere over geological time. Michigan’s paleontology program is routinely ranked among the best in the nation on the strength of its faculty curators, students, and globally significant collection.

PALEONTOLOGY UNDERGRADUATE LABS/COLLECTIONS SUPPORT - 386681

Undergraduate students are central to the Museum of Paleontology, where they provide critical support to museum staff and faculty in our collections and labs. Our student employees receive unique hands-on learning and training opportunities in paleontological research, management and curation of collections, fossil preparation, and more. These experiences are a springboard to careers after U-M, with former undergraduates now working in a variety of paleontological roles in the U.S. and abroad. There is substantial student demand and we are eager to provide these opportunities, but the museum has limited funds for supporting undergraduate assistants. Your gifts to this fund help to augment existing resources, opening opportunities in the Museum of Paleontology to greater numbers of U-M undergraduates. 

MUSEUM OF PALEONTOLOGY GIFT ACCOUNT-366299

The University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology draws on a rich collection of more than two million fossil specimens in order to answer questions about major ecological, environmental, and evolutionary changes to the biosphere over time. Michigan’s paleontology program is routinely ranked among the best in the nation on the strength of its faculty curators, students, and globally significant collection. Contributions to the Museum of Paleontology Gift Account provide flexible support for the Museum that help it to conduct its innovative collections-based studies, train and inspire students, and conserve fossil specimens for future generations of researchers.

Gifts support initiatives such as:

• the acquisition and maintenance of specialized equipment and supplies for the preparation, conservation, and study of fossil specimens.
• the production of copies of fossils (casts) that enrich student learning experiences and can be exchanged with other institutions to enhance the Museum’s collections.
• the training of graduate and undergraduate students in collections-based research.
• the pursuit of new and field-based paleontological collecting that supports faculty and student research and training.

Donations from alumni, parents, and friends are necessary for the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology to continue its mission of exploring the history of life. Your support allows the Museum to continue a long tradition of groundbreaking studies that makes it an internationally important center for understanding the links between life and the planet in the past—and possibly in the future.