1.  Two introductory units from:

• BY 105 (Biology of Plants)
• BY 106 (Biology of Animals)-no credit after BY108 or BY109
• BY 107 (Biology of Microbes)
• BY 108 (Biology of Invertebrates)-no longer offered, but students who took it prior to fall 2011 may count it.
• BY 109 (Biology of Vertebrates)-no longer offered, but students who took it prior to fall 2011 may count it.

Check the AP/IB section of the Majors' Handbook to determine if your AP or IB credit might fulfill the requirement for one of these courses.  Application of AP or IB credit to a specific organismic course will require you to successfully pass a departmental bypass exam for that course; these are offered in blocks 1,3, and 5 only.

2.  One of the following field courses:

• BY 108 (Biology of Invertebrates) when taught by Prof. Hathaway - no longer offered, but students who took it prior to fall 2011 may count it.
• BY 202 (Field Botany)
• BY 203 (Field Zoology)
• BY 208 (Ecology)
• BY 410 (Ornithology)
• BY 412 (Entomology)
• certain courses taught on an occasional basis as Special Topics courses

3.  BY 210 (Cell Biology) OR BY131 (Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology)

Check the AP/IB section of the Majors' Handbook to determine if your AP or IB credit might fulfill the BY131 requirement.

4.  BY 361 (Molecular and Classical Genetics) OR BY 231 (Genetics)

5. Four approved Biology electives

• 3 of the units must be at the 300 or 400 level and 3 must have a "BY" designation        

• ELECTIVE COURSES (4 units required from the following)
  • Biology: All Biology courses including those listed above except BY 100, BY 210, BY 361 and other courses designated "not intended for biology majors".
  • Anthropology: AN 201 Human Evolution, AN 202 Human Biological Variation,  AN 305 Topics in Biological Anthropology
  • Chemistry: CH 382 Biochemistry I
  • Environmental Science: EV 422 Biogeochemistry and Ecosystem Ecology
  • Physics: PC 151 Biophysics
  • Psychology: PY 209 Neuroscience, PY 412 Human Neuropsychology
  • Sport Science: SC 203 Sports Medicine Seminar, SC 206 Exercise Physiology, SC 301 Biomechanics, SC 302 Surgical Anatomy

A total of 9 units in Biology must be taken (or 8 units Biology and 1 elective from another department)

6.  Three units in Chemistry

• CH 107 (General Chemistry)
• CH 108 (General Chemistry II)
• CH 250 (Structures of Organic Molecules)

Check with your advisor to find out if AP or IB credit can fulfill CH 107/108 requirement.
NOTE: Graduate schools often require BOTH CH 250 (Structure of Organic Molecules) AND CH 251 (Reactions of Organic Molecules).

7.  One unit of mathematics from:

• MA 125 (Pre-Calculus and Calculus)
• MA 126 (Calculus 1)
• BY 220 (Biostatistics and Experimental Design)
• MA 117 (Probability and Statistics)
• MA 217 (Probability and Statistical Modeling)
• MA 256 (Mathematical Biology)

Check with your advisor to find out if AP or IB credit can fulfill the mathematics requirement.

Biology majors are strongly urged to take BY220 Biostatistics & Experimental Design to meet a statistics requirement.  In exceptional cases with scheduling conflicts MA117 may serve as a substitute but we recommend BY220 as the most appropriate preparation for Biology majors.

Students who take both BY 220 and Calculus (MA 125 or 126) may count BY 220 as a lower level biology elective.

8.  Two Units from one of the following groups:

• Chemistry 251, and one of 345, 351, or 382
• Geology: 130, or 140 and any Geology course requiring 140 as a prerequisite
• Mathematics: 128, 203, 217, 220, 221, 222, 315, 340, 417
• Computer Science: 121 or 222
• Physics: 141 and 142 OR 241 and 242

9. Senior Capstone Experiences…During your last two semesters, you must ….

• Complete attendance at five Biology seminars, and summarize each in an abstract, and submit each abstract to your advisor no later than the first Monday of the block following the block in which the seminar occurred. After declaring the Biology Major, students can turn in abstracts during their junior or senior years.
• Successfully pass the Biology ETS exam or the Biology GRE exam. 
• Register to take the ETS for Block 3 or early in Block 6, the only two times Biology offers the exam
• To take the Biology GRE in time to fulfill this requirement, you must take it in November or December and you must list Colorado College as a recipient of the GRE scores.
• Complete an approved Senior Capstone Course as one of your electives (requirement #5 above), in one of the following ways:
• BY 499 (Senior Thesis; required to graduate with distinction)
• BY 409 (Advanced Research in Biology)-IF it meets the requirements described in the section on “Senior Capstone, Part 3” in the Majors' Handbook.
• An approved Senior Capstone course.  The current list is: BY308 Advanced Ecology, BY365 Plant Physiology, BY366 Comparative Animal Physiology, BY378 Laboratory Investigation in Molecular Microbiology, BY410 Ornithology, BY412 Entomology, BY415 Evolution, BY421 Conservation Biology, BY443 Techniques in Molecular Ecology, BY463 Senior Seminar in Bacterial Pathogenesis, BY466 Developmental Biology, BY450 Seminar in Molecular Biology.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Courses that appear in one or more categories will not count for more than a single requirement (e.g. a course may not count as both an elective and an area requirement).  
• Some science courses taught at other institutions, especially those on the quarter system, may NOT transfer as one entire unit of CC credit.  Before taking science courses elsewhere, students are cautioned to check with their academic advisor, and the Department Chair concerning transfer credit toward the major.

Students interested in careers in health care or research should note that 2 units of organic chemistry, 1 unit of biochemistry, 2 units of calculus, and 2 units of physics may be required for admission to medical, dental, nursing, veterinary, and graduate schools.  However, admission requirements are variable so students should check the programs to which they intend to apply.  Students interested in K-12 classroom teaching, community education (wilderness education, camp counseling, etc.), or volunteering in an educational setting (Peace Corps, etc.) should meet with Professor Mike Taber in Education to discuss how to best prepare for those activities.