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Majors, minors + certificates

Bachelor of Science in Biology (BIOLBS)Department of Biology

Students on Summer 2018, Fall 2018, or Spring 2019 requirements.

Description

The Bachelor of Science in Biology is designed to provide students with a rigorous general background in the sciences and prepares them for graduate or professional school or for science-related jobs. More extensive requirements in chemistry, mathematics, and physics have been selected to optimize students' future opportunities.

Major requirements

The major requires at least 30 credit hours (60–70 credit hours with Addenda Requirements), including the requirements listed below.

  1. Foundations.
    1. Foundations of Biology: Diversity, Evolution, and Ecology. One (1) course:
    2. Foundations of Biology: Biological Mechanisms. One (1) course:
    3. Biology Laboratory. One (1) course:
  2. Molecular Biology. One (1) course:
  3. Genetics. One (1) course:
  4. Evolution. 1 credit hour:
  5. Concentration or Electives. One (1) of the following options:
    • Concentration Option. Complete one (1) of the Concentrations below.
    • Electives Option.
      1. Advanced Lecture. Three (3) courses:
        • Departmental courses
        • Courses from other College of Arts and Sciences departments
        • Courses from outside the College
          • ANAT-A 464 Human Tissue Biology
          • MSCI-M 375 Parasitology
          • MSCI-M 470 Mechanism of Human Disease
          • MSCI-M 480 Molecular Biology of Cancer: Cell Signaling and Fate
          • MSCI-M 485 Physiology of Human Disease
          • PHSL-P 416 Comparative Animal Physiology
          • PHSL-P 421 Principles of Human Physiology
          • SPEA-E 455 Limnology
          • SPEA-E 457 Introduction to Conservation Biology
      2. Advanced Laboratory. Three (3) courses:
        • Departmental courses
        • Courses from other College of Arts and Sciences departments
        • Courses from outside the College
          • ANAT-A 464 Human Tissue Biology
          • MSCI-M 375 Parasitology
          • SPEA-E 455 Limnology
      3. Two (2) of the above Advanced Lectures courses and two (2) of the above Advanced Laboratories courses (300–499 level) must be taken on the Bloomington campus.
  6. Addenda Requirements*.
    1. Chemistry.
      1. Principles of Chemistry and Biochemistry I. One (1) course:
      2. Principles of Chemistry and Biochemistry I Laboratory. One (1) course:
      3. Organic Chemistry I Lectures. One (1) course:
      4. Organic Chemistry II Lectures. One (1) course:
      5. Organic Chemistry I Laboratory. One (1) course:
    2. Physics.
      1. Physics I. One (1) course:
      2. Physics II. One (1) course:
    3. Statistics. One (1) course:
      • SPEA-K 300 Statistical Techniques (fulfills the statistics requirement, it does not count toward the College of Arts and Sciences credit hour requirement)
    4. Mathematics. One (1) of the following options:
      • Calculus I. One (1) course:
      • Brief Survey of Calculus. Both of the following:
        1. Survey I. One (1) course:
        2. Survey II. One (1) course:
  7. GPA and Hours Requirements.
    1. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed in courses taken through the Indiana University Bloomington campus or an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program.
    2. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed at the 300–499 level.
    3. Except for the GPA requirement, a grade of C- or higher is required for a course to count toward a requirement in the major.
    4. A GPA of at least 2.000 for all courses taken in the major—including those where a grade lower than C- is earned—is required.
    5. Exceptions to major requirements may be made with the approval of the department's Director of Undergraduate Studies, subject to final approval by the College of Arts and Sciences.

Notes

  • *Courses used to fulfill addenda requirements require a grade of C- or higher and do not count toward the Major GPA or Major Hours.

Concentrations

Concentration in Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics

Concentration in Integrative and Organismal Biology

Concentration in the Biology of Disease

Bachelor of Science requirements

The Bachelor of Science degree requires at least 120 credit hours, to include the following:

  1. College of Arts and Sciences Credit Hours. At least 100 credit hours must come from College of Arts and Sciences disciplines.
  2. Upper Division Courses. At least 36 credit hours (of the 120) must be at the 300–499 level.
  3. College Residency. Following completion of the 60th credit hour toward degree, at least 36 credit hours of College of Arts and Sciences coursework must be completed through the Indiana University Bloomington campus or an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program.
  4. College GPA. A cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.000 is required for all courses taken at Indiana University.
  5. CASE Requirements. The following College of Arts and Sciences Education (CASE) requirements must be completed:
    1. CASE Foundations
      1. English Composition: 1 course
      2. Mathematical Modeling: 1 course
    2. CASE Breadth of Inquiry
      1. Arts and Humanities: 2 courses
      2. Natural and Mathematical Sciences: 4 courses
      3. Social and Historical Studies: 2 courses
    3. CASE Culture Studies
      1. Diversity in the United States: Not required
      2. Global Civilizations and Cultures: Not required
    4. CASE Critical Approaches: 1 course
    5. CASE Foreign Language: Proficiency in a single foreign language through the first semester of the second year of college-level coursework
    6. CASE Intensive Writing: 1 course
    7. CASE Public Oral Communication: 1 course
  6. Major. Completion of the major as outlined in the Major Requirements section above.