General advising information
What to do first
Go see your advisor every semester to discuss your academic schedule, your capstone experience, your career goals, or whatever is on your mind. If you don't know who your advisor is, and you are a declared biology student, please call us at 970-351-2921 or send an email to biology@unco.edu. Schedule an appointment with your advisor as early as possible in the semester and before it becomes an emergency. If you need to discuss registration for the next semester, please schedule an appointment before your registration date.
What classes to take and when
The required classes to take are listed in the four-year plans of study for each of the emphasis areas. It is extremely important that you follow the four-year plan for your emphasis as closely as possible. Many science classes have prerequisites that need to be completed first. If you have any questions about the four-year plans or prerequisite classes, please contact your advisor.
Biology electives
Biology elective classes are typically offered on a rotating basis every other year. For a schedule of when an elective class will be offered next, go here.
Capstone experience
The capstone experience is intended to give you specific hands-on experience that is directly related to your career goals. As a biology major, one credit of capstone experience is required. Please discuss this unscheduled course with your advisor.
- Internships (BIO 492)
- Undergraduate teaching experience (494)
- Research opportunities and directed study (BIO 422)
Pre-health information
At UNC, "pre-health" refers to programs that share the ability to prepare students for entrance into one of the advanced professional health schools such as (but not limited to) medical, dental, veterinary, physician assistant, or physical therapy schools. If you are interested in pursuing a medical, dental, or other pre-health career, we recommend the Biological Sciences major with an emphasis in Prehealth and Biomedical Sciences. If you want information on the pre-health clubs at UNC, check out the pre-health web site. For academic advising specific to your pre-health career goals, please see the pre-health advisor, Dr. Patrick Burns:
- E-mail: patrick.burns@unco.edu
- Telephone: 970-351-2695
The Educational Testing Service (ETS) exit exam
You will need to take the ETS exam before you graduate. You will not graduate unless you take the exam. Your score on this exam does not appear on your diploma, and it does not impact your GPA. We only use it for comparison purposes, as a measure of how well we are doing as a biology program relative to the many other biology programs across the country.
The exam is administered by Linda Morehead in Career Services (351-2790). You will need to call to schedule an appointment. An appointment must be made prior to the test date. Walk in exams are not permitted. Test dates are scheduled several times each semester and are posted here.
Colorado's College Opportunity Fund (COF)
The COF is the state program that funds your education if you are a Colorado resident. If you are not registered with the state, you will pay a much higher tuition than other state residents. It is worth your while to check this our.
Transfer students
Transferring from another institution
If you transfer from any other institution of higher education to UNC and you declare biology as your major program of study, you should do the following things:
- Be familiar with the courses that transfer to UNC. After being accepted to UNC, the university will review your academic transcripts from other institutions and determine which courses may be accepted for credit at UNC. The list of accepted transfer courses will be sent to you. Be sure to bring this list with you when you meet with your academic advisor or with the biology transfer advisor. The list will indicate courses that have been accepted into various categories such as:
- Liberal Arts Core courses (general education credits). The university admissions office determines which transfer courses fulfill Liberal Arts Core requirements.
- University elective courses. These courses can apply to your degree, but not necessarily to your major.
- Biology major required courses. These courses will count toward those that are required to fulfill the biology major. Transfer courses may be sufficiently similar to an existing required biology course that they will be accepted as such, or they may be accepted as a biology elective course. In other cases, a transfer course may not meet the biology requirements at all and will count only toward a university elective. The biology transfer advisor makes this determination.
- Meet with your academic advisor. When you decide to declare biology as your major program of study, you should visit the main office of the School of Biological Sciences (Ross Hall, room 2480). Our office staff will be able to help you declare your major, and they will assign you an academic advisor. You should meet with this person as soon as possible for help with selecting the courses that you will need to take.
- Meet with the biology transfer advisor. The biology transfer advisor will make the final determination of what courses can apply to the biology major. If you have course syllabi or catalogs from the institutions that you attended prior to UNC, these can be very helpful. As a guideline, check out our Course Substitution document.
Transferring from another major program at UNC
If you change your major to biology from any other major at UNC, there are special rules that apply to you. For example, some 200-level biology courses may be substituted for upper-division biology courses depending on the grade that you received. Check out the course substitution criteria here.
The biology transfer advisor
During the academic year (fall & spring semesters), the biology transfer advisor is Dr. Steven Smith who can be reached at:
- E-mail: steven.smith@unco.edu.
- Telephone: (970) 351-2210
During the summer sessions, the biology transfer advisor is Frank Skufca who can be reached at:
- E-mail: frank.skufca@unco.edu.
- Telephone: (970) 351-2469
Classes and schedules
- Schedule of all courses
- Tentative future course offerings: Fall, Spring, Summer
Student survival
You will save yourself some stress if you are familiar with the requirements of the biology degree which depend upon the emphasis area that you have chosen. More general information that can help you to successfully complete your degree can be found through the links below.