About UNC biology
Undergraduate education is the primary mission at UNC, and the School of Biological Sciences offers you a friendly, cutting-edge and student-centered educational opportunity. Open the door to your career as you gain real-world experience, side-by-side with top biologists. Learning and doing biology at UNC will give you the skills and confidence that comes with "Colorado's best biology experience".
General biology degree information
The biological sciences study all aspects of life from sub-cellular processes to planetary ecosystems. If you wish to major in biology, we offer an undergraduate Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree with a focus in one of the four emphasis areas of your choosing. We also offer a biology minor for students pursuing other majors
The UNC catalogs contain the official descriptions and requirements of all programs at the university. As a UNC student, you should be familiar with your program's requirements for the year that you declared your major. The general descriptions of biology programs provided on this page are intended to aid your interpretation of the catalogs, but they are not intended to replace or supercede the catalogs.
The biology major -- Bachelor of Science (B.S.) program
General information about the bachelors program
All undergraduate (B.S.) programs require a core of common courses to provide students with a solid foundation in the diversity and cellular basis of life, structure and function, heredity and development, and how organisms interact with each other and with their environment. As part of the biology B.S. degree, students choose an area of emphasis that best suits their educational interests and goals.
The different emphasis areas of the B.S. degree
The prehealth and biomedical sciences emphasis
This emphasis is intended for premed and other students having an interest in the human and animal health professions. This program meets the minimal requirements for admittance to most professional schools of health science. Undergraduates entering this program should have a strong science and mathematics background in high school or be prepared to do additional remedial work.
Students who successfully complete the program will be prepared for admission to medical, veterinary, dentistry, chiropractic, or paramedical professional programs. They will also be prepared to continue their education in a wide range of graduate programs as diverse as microbiology and human physiology. This would also be an appropriate emphasis for students interested in working in health communication, pharmaceutical sales, hospitals, biotechnology companies, or government laboratories such as the Centers for Disease Control.
For entering freshmen, please see our prehealth and biomedical sciences four-year plans to graduation. For transfer students who already have an Associates Degree, please see our prehealth and biomedical sciences two-year guides to graduation.
The cellular and molecular biology emphasis
This program places emphasis on a thorough understanding of the biological principles underlying all living systems through study of the basic unit of life, the cell. Students should have a strong science and mathematics background in high school or be prepared to do additional remedial work.
Students successfully completing this program will be prepared to choose from a widely varied range of careers in the basic or applied biological sciences such as public health, the pharmaceutical industry, cancer research, biodiversity research, forensic biology, animal and plant agricultural sciences, and many others. Students will also be prepared to continue their education in graduate biological sciences programs (microbiology, genetics, molecular biology, cell biology, physiology, endocrinology, immunology, developmental biology, etc.) and in most professional schools (medical, veterinary, etc.). This program encompasses a minor in chemistry.
For entering freshmen, please see our cell/molecular four-year plans to graduation. For transfer students who already have an Associates Degree, please see our cell/molecular two-year guides to graduation.
The ecology and evolutionary biology emphasis
This emphasis focuses on ecology, evolution, organismal biology, and on field courses. Students completing the program will acquire a background in taxonomy, the diversity of species, and life histories. Students should have an interest in working with plants and animals in a field setting. A strong science and mathematics background in high school is beneficial to students wanting to become field biologists.
Students successfully completing this program will be prepared to work for public or private sector environmental agencies such as state or federal wildlife agencies, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, various parks and recreation programs or private consulting agencies. They can also continue their education in graduate programs in the pure or applied biological sciences (botany, zoology, ecology, forestry, wildlife biology).
For entering freshmen, please see our ecology and evolution four-year plans to graduation. For transfer students who already have an Associates Degree, please see our ecology and evolution two-year guides to graduation.
The secondary teaching emphasis
This program leads to State of Colorado licensure in secondary science. Students receive training in biological sciences content and pedagogy plus a wide range of additional support science content. They should have an interest in teaching and have evidence of working successfully with young people. They should have a strong science and mathematics background in high school or be prepared to do additional remedial work.
Students successfully completing this program will meet licensure requirements of the Colorado Department of Education for teaching secondary science (grades 7-12). Upon completion of this program, students will also be able to continue their education in graduate programs in the biological sciences.
For entering freshmen, please see our secondary teaching four-year plans to graduation.
Graduation requirements for the B.S. degree
Total credits for each emphasis area
For the Prehealth/Biomedical, Cell/Molecular, and Ecology/Evolution emphasis areas, 120 total credits are required. For the Secondary teaching emphasis, 123 total credits are required.
Required biology credits for each emphasis area
These credits include core biology courses that all majors take, additional biology courses specific to the emphasis area, and elective biology credits that you choose. The total number of core biology credits varies with the emphasis area.
Required supporting credits
These credits include mathematics and other science courses (e.g., chemistry, physics) that, in addition to the biology core, help to provide the foundation for a well rounded and comprehensive degree. The total number of supporting credits varies with the emphasis area.
The liberal arts core (LAC)
The LAC is what used to be called "General Education" credits . These credits provide the foundation for the liberal arts education at UNC. A total of 40 credits are required for each emphasis area, plus additional PTEP credits (Professional Teacher Education Program) for the Secondary Teaching emphasis.
Graduation requirements for each emphasis area
The requirements for graduation vary slightly for each emphasis area. These requirements are listed on page two of the four-year plans. If you started your biology degree program at UNC a year or more ago, you can find details of the requirements for graduation in the university catalog for the year that you started.
Biology minor
A biology minor is ideal for students who are majoring in another discipline but who also want a level of expertise in the biological sciences. Common combinations are: chemistry major + biology minor; psychology major + biology minor; kinesiology major + biology minor.
About the biology faculty
The biology faculty chose UNC for their careers because they want to teach, they care about providing you the best education possible, and they want you to succeed in the pursuit of your own career goals. In addition to teaching, the faculty have active research programs that are nationally and internationally recognized. What this means for you is an educational opportunity that is not only centered on you but is also cutting-edge because it is designed and delivered by faculty who know science because they do science. Students in biology also have unsurpassed access to the faculty in the classroom, in the field, and in the research laboratory for the kind of active and interactive learning that it hard to find elsewhere.
Applying to UNC biology -- the admissions process