Course Requirements for the Biology Major

The distribution requirements for the biology major expose the student to many biological disciplines. By the time of graduation, the biology major should be familiar with the form, physiology, heredity, development, evolution, and ecological relationships of a variety of organisms.

The successful completion of 9 courses in biology is required of all majors. These courses include the following:

2 - Biology 125 and Biology 126. All biology majors must take these 2 courses before they may take any other courses in the department (with exceptions noted in the College Catalog).

• Biology 125 (Genes, Evolution, and Development), offered Fall, Winter, and Spring terms The winter term offering of Biology 125 is designed for students who (1) earned a score of 3 or higher in AP Biology, (2) earned a score of 5 or higher in IB Biology, or (3) received a grade of B or higher in Honors or Advanced Biology in high school. In addition, students are expected to have mastered basic concepts of chemistry in either a high school or college chemistry course.

• Biology 126 (Cellular Energetics, Metabolism, and Ecology), offered Winter and Spring

3 - One course from each of the 3 groups listed below. Be aware that some of these courses are offered on an alternate-year basis.

3 - Three electives, which may include a 6-credit Independent Research, a junior/senior seminar or any of the courses in the groups listed below.

1- The Senior Integrative Exercise

9 - Total

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Note that there are four additional conditions that apply to the 9 biology courses that fulfill the requirements for the major.

• One course from each of the following groups including their laboratories where listed separately.
  
  • Molecular and Cell Biology (Biology 240,241, 278, 280/281, 310/311, 340*, 380/381, 382/383*, 384*)
  • Organismic Biology (Biology 232/233, 234/235, 236, 238/239, 252/253, 342/343, 344/345*, 359/360, 386/387)
  • Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (Biology 221/222, 283, 348/349*, 350, 352/353, 361/362*)
• At least one course must have an emphasis on analysis and critical evaluation of data. Such courses include Biology 344, 348/349, 361/362, 382/383, 384, 385 and all of the junior/senior seminars (Biology 365-379).
• Courses that have a separate, 2-credit laboratory may be counted towards the major only if both the lecture and laboratory sections of the course are taken concurrently.
• All courses used to fulfill the requirements for the major must be taken for a grade and passed with a "C-" or better.

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Because of the close relationship of biology to the physical sciences, biology majors must also complete the following 3 sets of courses in chemistry and physics/statistics with a grade of C- or better.

• Chemistry 123 (Principles of Chemistry) or Chemistry 128 (Principles of Environmental Chemistry)
• Chemistry 230 (Equilibrium and Analysis I) or Chemistry 233 (Organic Chemistry I)
  
  • Chemistry 230 may be more appropriate for the study of some aspects of biology, while Chemistry 233 may be more appropriate for others. Be sure to discuss this matter with your advisor.
• Physics 131 ( Newtonian Mechanics) AND Physics 151 (Relativity and Particles) or 141 (Gravity and the Cosmos) and 151, or Mathematics 215 (Statistics)

Physics 161 and 162 is recommended for students preparing for the MCAT. Mathematics 215 is recommended for students with strong interests in disciplines with quantitative experimentation, such as ecology and population genetics.

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Seminar Course Schedule 2007-2009. This is subject to change!!!

Junior/senior seminars (Biology 361 - 379) will be offered each year. The tentative schedule for academic years 2006/07 and 2007/08 is as follows:

2007/2008:

Fall Term -

Winter Term - Biology 372 - Exercise Biochemistry - Tymoczko
- Biology 379 - Behavioral Genetics - Rand/Zweifel

Spring Term - Biology 373 - Behavioral Endocrinology

2008/2009:

Fall Term - Biology 361 - Tropical Rainforest Ecology - McKone
Biology 368/369 - Developmental Neurobiology - Ross Wolff
Biology 370 - Topics in Virology - Walser-Kuntz

Winter Term - Biology 384 - Oncogenes - Tymoczko

Spring Term -