Biology, B.S.

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Total number of hours for the Program: 120.

Liberal Studies Hours: 42

Liberal Studies Program Requirements

Major Requirements

The major requires 47 hours of core courses, including:

Senior Research, 3 hours, at the senior level (choose from BIOL 480, 495, 498 and 499) and 25 hours of a concentration.

BIOL 140 - Principles of Biology I Credits: 4
BIOL 141 - Principles of Biology II Credits: 4
BIOL 240 - Introduction to Genetics Credits: 4
BIOL 241 - Introduction to Ecology and Evolution Credits: 4
CHEM 139 - General Chemistry I Credits: 4
CHEM 140 - General Chemistry II Credits: 4
CHEM 241 - Organic Chemistry I Credits: 4
CHEM 242 - Organic Chemistry II Credits: 4
CHEM 272 - Organic Chemistry Lab Credits: 2
MATH 153 - Calculus I Credits: (4)
PHYS 130 - Introductory Physics I Credits: (4)
PHYS 131 - Introductory Physics II Credits: (4)

Concentration:

Concentration (25 hours) selected from one of the following:

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

BIOL 304 - General Ecology Credits: 3
BIOL 306 - Evolutionary Biology Credits: 3
BIOL 375 - Methods in Ecology and Evolution Credits: 4

Guided Electives (15 hours)

May include two non-biology courses:

One elective from the Ecology and Evolution set
One elective from the Organismal Biology set
One elective from the Cell and Molecular Biology set
Electives chosen from any course set sufficient to bring the total for the concentration to 25 hours.

General Biology

BIOL 304 - General Ecology Credits: 3
BIOL 306 - Evolutionary Biology Credits: 3
BIOL 333 - Cell and Molecular Biology Credits: 4

Guided Electives (15 hours)

May include two non-biology courses:

One Elective from the Ecology and Evolution set
One elective from the Organismal Biology set
One elective from the Cell and Molecular Biology set
Electives chosen from any course set sufficient to bring the total for the concentration to 25 hours.

Molecular Biology

BIOL 333 - Cell and Molecular Biology Credits: 4
BIOL 361 - Principles of Biochemistry Credits: 3
BIOL 413 - Principles of General Microbiology Credits: 3

Guided Electives (15 hours)

May include two non-biology courses:

One elective from the Ecology and Evolution set
One elective from the Organismal Biology set
One elective from the Cell and Molecular Biology set
Electives chosen from any course set sufficient to bring the total for the concentration to 25 hours.

Pre-Health Professional

BIOL 311 - Animal Physiology Credits: 3
BIOL 333 - Cell and Molecular Biology Credits: 4
BIOL 361 - Principles of Biochemistry Credits: 3

Guided Electives (15 hours)

May include two non-biology courses:

One elective from the Ecology and Evolution set
One elective from the Organismal Biology set
One elective from the Cell and Molecular Biology set
Electives chosen from any course set sufficient to bring the total for the concentration to 25 hours.

General Electives

(6-15 hours depending on the hours taken for Liberal Studies that also count in the major.)

General electives (6 hours) at the 300/400 level) are required to complete the program for each of the concentrations offered. Students must take at least 30 hours of the courses at the junior-senior level at WCU in order to satisfy general university requirements.

Biology Elective Course Sets

Biology, B.S.

Liberal Studies Hours: 42

Major Requirements

Concentration:

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Guided Electives (15 hours)

General Biology

Guided Electives (15 hours)

Molecular Biology

Guided Electives (15 hours)

Pre-Health Professional

Guided Electives (15 hours)

General Electives

Biology Elective Course Sets

Cell and Molecular Biology Elective Set

Ecology and Evolution Elective Set

Organismal Biology Elective

General Biology Elective Set