Bachelor of Science in Biology |
Honors in Biology
| Minor in
Biology
Curriculum worksheets
(please choose the worksheet from the year you
began at VCU):
2009-2010
2008-2009
2007-2008
2006-2007
2005-2006
2004-2005
Click here for the
CHS Approved Lists for General Education courses for 2007-2008 and prior.
Undergraduate program requirements
Bachelor of Science in Biology
The bachelor’s curriculum in biology requires a minimum of 120 credits, with at least 40 of those credits in biology. No more than eight credits of 100-level courses may be applied to the major.
Biocore. The following courses must be taken by majors:
BIOL 151, 152 and BIOZ 151L, 152L Introduction to Biological Science and Laboratory I and II
Laboratory I and II
BIOL 218 Cell Biology
BIOL 310 Genetics
BIOL 317 Ecology
Placement into MATH 151 and a grade of “C” or better in CHEM 100
or placement into CHEM 101 on the Chemistry Placement Test is required for
enrollment in BIOL 151 and BIOL 152.
A "C" grade or better is required
in BIOL 151, 152, BIOZ 151L, 152L and BIOL
218
before enrollment in advanced BIOL courses.
Organismal biology. One course from the
animal group and one from the plant group. At
least one of the courses selected must include
a laboratory. For those courses in which the laboratory
is a separate section from the lecture, the laboratory
may be taken concurrently with or subsequent to
the lecture.
Animal group
BIOL 301 Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy
BIOL 302 Animal Embryology
BIOL 309 Entomology
BIOL 312 Invertebrate Zoology
BIOL 313 Vertebrate Natural History
BIOL 416 Ornithology
BIOL 417 Mammalogy
BIOL 435 Herpetology
BIOL 445 Neurobiology and Behavior
BIOL 503 Fish Biology
Plant group
BIOL 320 Biology of the Seed Plant
BIOL 321 Plant Development
BIOL 391 Economic Botany
BIOL 512 Plant Diversity and Evolution
Laboratory requirement. At least six laboratory courses must be taken from all biology courses; one of these may be BIOL 492 Independent Study or BIOL 495 Research and Thesis. Registration in BIOL 492 or 495 must be for a minimum of two credit hours in order to count as one of the six required laboratory courses.
Biology electives.
Elective Biology courses at the
300 – 500 levels must be taken
to achieve at least 40 total credits in biology. See the
VCU Courses database for a list of biology courses. (Note: Biology Laboratory courses require a separate search.) Up to four credits of biochemistry may be applied toward the major.
Writing intensive requirement. All biology majors must complete two courses designated by the College as “writing intensive.” At least one of the writing intensive courses must be a biology course; the other course may be from biology or any other department. Some biology courses are designated as “1/2-writing intensive” students must take two of these courses to count as one full writing intensive course or four of these courses to complete the writing intensive requirement.
Independent Study. A maximum of six credits in independent study, including BIOL 292, BIOL 492 and BIOL 495, may be applied to the 40 credits of biology courses required for graduation.
Life Sciences. LFSC 101 Introduction to Life Sciences is required of
all biology majors. This course may not be applied toward the 40 credits of biology courses required for graduation.
Chemistry. The chemistry requirement for majors is:
- CHEM 101 and 102 and CHEZ 101L and 102L General Chemistry and Laboratory I and II
- CHEM 301 and 302 and CHEZ 301L and 302L Organic Chemistry and Laboratory I and II
Physics. The physics requirement for majors is PHYS 201 and 202 General Physics or PHYS 207 and 208 University Physics
Mathematics and Statistics. Majors must take STAT 210 Basic Practice of Statistics and one additional course from the following options:
Before enrollment into any of the mathematics options, all students must take the Mathematics Placement Test. Depending on the test results, students may be placed in MATH 151 Precalculus Mathematics before being admitted into one of the courses listed above.
General education. See the
Undergraduate Bulletin for general education requirements.
Recommended sequence of courses for the biology major
Freshman year
BIOL 151, 152 Introduction to Biological Science and BIOZ 151L, 152L Introduction to Biological Science Laboratory I and II, LFSC 101 Introduction to Life Sciences, CHEM 101-102 General Chemistry and CHEZ/FRSZ 101L, 102L General Chemistry Laboratory I and II, and mathematical sciences courses selected from the options described previously.
Sophomore year
BIOL 218 Cell Biology, BIOL 317 Ecology, one additional biology course preferably with lab, CHEM 301-302 Organic Chemistry and CHEZ 301L-302L Organic Chemistry Laboratory I and II, and mathematical courses if not already completed.
Junior year
Two courses from the BIOCORE and one additional biology course, PHYS 207, 208 University Physics or PHYS 201-202 General Physics.
Senior year
Remaining biology major courses.
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Undergraduate program requirements
Honors in biology
Biology majors may graduate with honors in biology. To qualify,
students must have overall and biology GPAs of at least 3.50 and
must complete the following courses in this sequence: BIOL 392 Introduction
to Research, at least four credits of BIOL 495 Research and Thesis,
and BIOL 490 Research Seminar. Grades of “A” or “B”
must be earned in each of the listed courses. Students who qualify
will have the notation “Honors in Biology” placed on their
transcript. Students must meet all Department of Biology requirements
for graduation. Students should consult with their academic advisers
to create a program suitable to their particular needs and interests.
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Undergraduate program requirements
Minor in biology
The minor in biology consists of a minimum of
19 credits in biology, including the following:
BIOL 151, 152 and BIOZ 151L, 152L Introduction
to Biological Science and Laboratory I, II; BIOL
218 Cell Biology; BIOL 310 Genetics; and BIOL
317 Ecology. Three biology laboratory experiences
are required including BIOZ 151 and 152, but not
including BIOL 492 Independent Study or BIOL 495
Research and Thesis. Substitutions for BIOL 151-152
and laboratories may be made on a case-by-case
basis. A grade of "C" or better must
be earned in each class.
Students also are required to complete CHEM 101-102, CHEZ/FRSZ
101L, 102L General Chemistry and General Chemistry
Laboratory I and II.
Biology minor
form [pdf]
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