Biology Major Requirements

The Biology curriculum is divided into lower division and upper division courses.  Students must complete the lower division courses first.  These include two semesters of General Biology, two semesters of General Chemistry, Cell Physiology, and Organic Chemistry.  Once the lower division classes are completed, students must take Genetics, which is a prerequisite for upper division elective courses that include lecture, laboratory, and field classes.  Additionally, biostatistics and two semesters of physics are required.

Please refer to the current semester catalog for the most up to date listings of courses offered.

REQUIRED LOWER DIVISION COURSES (37-41 units)

  • General Biology - Molecules of Life and General Biology - Diversity of Life (BIOL 105 and 106)
  • Cell Physiology (BIOL 212)
  • General Chemistry I and II (CHEM 111/112 and 113/114)
  • Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry (CHEM 236) or Organic Chemistry I and II  (CHEM 230 and 231) 
  • Organic Chemistry I Lab (CHEM 232)
  • Introductory Physics I and II (PHYS 100 and 101) or General Physics I and II (PHYS 110 and 210)
  • Biostatistics (MATH 102)

UPPER DIVISION (UD) BIOLOGY COURSES (29 units)

  • Genetics (BIOL 310/311) - 4 units – Required gateway upper division course.  
  • Undergraduate Seminar (BIOL 490) - 1 unit – Research seminar required for all biology majors. Students must have completed Genetics before enrolling and should enroll in the final year.
  • 5 Elective courses, which must include:
    • Field Course (4 units; choose one Field Course listed below):
      • BIOL 315/316 - Biology of Marine Mammals
      • BIOL 317/318 - Biology of Galapagos
      • BIOL 322/323 - Ornithology 
      • BIOL 326/327 - Field Botany
      • BIOL 328/329 - Invertebrate Zoology
      • BIOL 331/332 - Herpetology
      • BIOL 335/336 - Pollination Biology (CEL) 
      • BIOL 364/365 - Plant Biology (CEL)
      • BIOL 379/380 - Conservation Biology (CEL)
      • BIOL 383/384 - Biology of Insects 
      • BIOL 390/391 -  Marine Biology
      • BIOL 392/393 -  Oceanography 
      • BIOL 424/425 -  Urban Ecology
      • ENVS 410/410L - Environmental Monitoring
    • Laboratory Courses (8 units; choose two from Field Courses listed above, or Lab Courses listed below):
      • BIOL 312/313 - Techniques in Tissue Culture 
      • BIOL 324/325 - Molecular Ecology
      • BIOL 333/334 - Endocrinology
      • BIOL 346/347 - General Microbiology
      • BIOL 350/351 - Comparative Animal Physiology 
      • BIOL 352/353 - Comparative Anatomy 
      • BIOL 355/356 - Developmental Biology 
      • BIOL 362/363 - Histology 
      • BIOL 385/386 - General Parasitology
      • BIOL 422/423 - Bioinformatics
      • BIOL 443/444 - Immunology 
      • BIOL 485/486 - Molecular Genetics & Biotechnology 
      • CHEM 352 - Experimental Biochemistry 
    • Additional Biology Electives (8 units; choose two from any Field or Lab courses listed above, or Electives listed below):
      • BIOL 319 - Ecology 
      • BIOL 330 - Female Biology (CEL) 
      • BIOL 340 - Animal Toxicology 
      • BIOL 345 - Virology 
      • BIOL 357 - Fundamentals of Biochemistry
      • BIOL 367 - Disease Immunology and Physiology
      • BIOL 368 - Neurobiology 
      • BIOL 370 - Biology of Cancer (CEL) 
      • BIOL 405 - Molecular Medicine 
      • BIOL 420 - Molecular Biology
      • up to four units can be applied from major-level Biochemistry: 
        • CHEM 350 + 351 - Biochemistry I and II (both)
  • Evolution (BIOL 414), 4 units – Required capstone course, taken during the final year of the Biology program.  Students must have completed at least two upper division courses beyond Genetics prior to enrolling.

4 units from the following Directed Study courses can count as an upper division elective: BIOL 498-Directed Research for Advanced Undergraduates, BIOL 598-Thesis Research for Biology Honors Program, BIOL 599-Thesis Writing for Biology Honors Program.