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Biology Major

Biology is the study of living organisms and how they function within their environment. It is a broad and ever-growing field that involves everything from large plants and animals to tiny microorganisms.

A biology major at UW Oshkosh provides students with the advanced knowledge and skills necessary to pursue a biology-focused career through classroom, laboratory and field research experiences. An additional emphasis in Ecology and Organismal Biology or Cellular and Mollecular Biology (see below) further prepares students for those careers.

Required Core Courses:

  • Introductory Biology (ONE of the following):
    • Biology 105: Biological Concepts-Unity (4 cr.)
    • Biology 108 Honors: Concepts in Biology-Unity (5 cr.)
  • Chemistry
    • Chemistry 105 General Chemistry I (5 cr.)
    • Chemistry 106 General Chemistry II (5 cr.)
  •  Diversity
    • Biology 230: Biology of Animals (4 cr.)
    • Biology 231: Biology of Plants and Microbes (4 cr.)
  • Molecular Biology and Genetics
    • Biology 323: Introduction Molecular and Cell Biology (3 cr.)
    • Biology 343: Genetics (4 cr.)
  • Physiology (ONE of the following):
    • Biology 319: General Animal Physiology (5 cr.)
    • Biology 345: Plant Physiology (5 cr.)
    • Biology 450: Microbial Physiology (5 cr.)
  • Ecology and Evolution:
    • Biology 349: Ecology and Evolution (3 cr.)
  • Electives
    • 9 credits of any courses listed at the 300+ level
  • Mathematics As specified for College of Letters and Science (COLS) requirements for degree: (Unless specified otherwise, under emphasis.)
    • B.S. – either Math 171, Calculus I, or higher, statistics, computer science or symbolic logic
    • B.A. – no additional math requirement
    • B.S.E. – College Algebra, Math 104
  • Biology 491: Senior Survey (0 cr.): to be taken only in the final semester.

Emphases:

Biology majors may choose one of the following emphases.  It is not required to include an emphasis in the major, but students interested in these career paths are encouraged to take advantage of these curricula.

The information below is ONLY for students who declared a major before the 2018-2019 academic year.

Biology Major: Catalog Year 2017 and Earlier

 

Required Core Courses:

Biology

  • Biology 105 Biological Concepts-Unity 4 cr. OR Biology 108 Honors: Concepts in Biology-Unity 5 cr.
  • Biology 323 Introduction Molecular and Cell Biology 3 cr.
  • Biology 343 Genetics 4 cr.
  • Biology 491 Senior Survey 0 cr.

Chemistry

  • Chemistry 105 General Chemistry I
  • Chemistry 106 General Chemistry II

Mathematics As specified for College of Letters and Science (COLS) requirements for degree: (Unless specified otherwise, under emphasis.)

  • B.S. – either Math 171, Calculus I, or higher, statistics, computer science or symbolic logic
  • B.A. – no additional math requirement
  • B.S.E. – College Algebra, Math 104

Emphases:

In addition to the Core Courses, all biology majors must choose one of the following emphases and fulfill all requirements of that emphasis: