Biology

Dr. Allen Nicholson, Chair

www.temple.edu/biology/

Dr. Joel Sheffield, Faculty Advisor
Biology-Life Sciences Building, Room 311
215-204-8839
joel.sheffield@temple.edu

Ms. Evelyn Vleck, Faculty Advisor

Biology-Life Science Building, Room 248P

215-204-6528

evelyn.vleck@temple.edu

Bachelor of Arts

Summary of Requirements for the Degree

1. University Requirements

• Mathematics 0701 (4 s.h.) and/or English 0701 (4 s.h.), if required by placement testing.

• All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses at Temple as part of their major.  Following is a list of courses that can be used to satisfy the writing-intensive requirement: Biology 2296, Biology 3096 or Biology 3396.

• Students must complete General Education (GenEd) requirements.

• The General Education Curriculum consists of approximately 25-26 s.h.  See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the GenEd curriculum.

2. College Requirements

• 45 Upper Level (2000+) credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• 90 credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• Two (2) Upper Level (2000+) Liberal Art courses.

• Second (2nd) Level of a Foreign Language (1002).

3. Major Requirements for Bachelor of Arts (60-63 s.h.)

• Eight (8) Biology courses are required (28-31 s.h.): Biology 1111 or 1911, 2112 or 2912, 2227, 2296, 3096 and 3 Biology electives 2200 or above (see course descriptions for exceptions).

• Four (4) Chemistry courses with labs are required (16 s.h.): Chemistry 1031/1033, 1032/1034, 2201/2203, and 2202/2204.

• Two (2) Mathematics courses are required (8 s.h.): Mathematics 1041 and 1042.

• Two (2) Physics courses are required (8 s.h.): Physics 2021 and 2022.

Note: A grade of C or higher in Chemistry 1031 and Chemistry 1032 is required to take Biology 1111 and Biology 2112, respectively. A grade of C or higher in Biology 1111 and Biology 2112 is required to take upper-level Biology courses, and a C- or higher is required unless otherwise specified in all other courses for the major, including course prerequisites. Most research and Independent Study courses, such as Biology 3091, 3183, 3681, 4291, 4483, 4491, and 4591, are not available for major credit. A GPA of 2.0 or better is required in Biology courses in order to graduate.

Suggested Semester by Semester Plan

(F) - Fall only course

(S) - Spring only course

^If the student has taken the necessary prerequisite courses, some of the Biology elective courses may be taken before the Fall semester of Year 4.

Students who complete CST majors typically receive a waiver for 2 Science & Technology (GS) and 1 Quantitative Literacy (GQ) GenEd courses.

Bachelor of Science

Summary of Requirements for the Degree

1. University Requirements

• Mathematics 0701 (4 s.h.) and/or English 0701 (4 s.h.), if required by placement testing.

• All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses at Temple as part of their major.  Following is a list of courses that can be used to satisfy the writing-intensive requirement: Biology 2296, Biology 3096 or Biology 3396.

• Students must complete the General Education (GenEd) requirements.
  • The General Education Curriculum consists of approximately 25-26 s.h.  See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the GenEd curriculum.

2. College Requirements

• 45 Upper Level (2000+) credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• 90 credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

3. Major Requirements for Bachelor of Science (69-75 s.h.)

• Eleven (11) Biology courses are required (37-43 s.h.): Biology 1111 or 1911, 2112 or 2912, 2227, 2296, 3096, and 6 Biology electives 2200 or above **(see course descriptions for exceptions).

• Four (4) Chemistry courses with labs are required (16 s.h.): Chemistry 1031/1033, 1032/1034, 2201/2203, and 2202/2204.

• Two (2) Mathematics courses are required (8 s.h.): Mathematics 1041 and 1042.

• Two (2) Physics courses are required (8 s.h.): Physics 2021 and 2022.

Note: A grade of C or higher in Chemistry 1031 is required to take Biology 1111. Grades of C or higher in both Chemistry 1031 and 1032 are required to take Biology 2112. A grade of C or higher in Biology 1111 and Biology 2112 is required to take upper-level Biology courses, and a C- or higher is required unless otherwise specified in all other courses for the major, including course prerequisites. Most research and Independent Study courses, such as Biology 3091, 3183, 3681, 4291, 4483, 4491, and 4591, are not available for major credit. A GPA of 2.0 or better is required in Biology courses in order to graduate.

** Up to two (2) Biology Electives (6-8 s.h.) may be replaced by Cognate electives selected from the following (B.S. degree only): Anthropology 2764; Chemistry 3301, Chemistry 3302; Mathematics 2043; Physics 2501, Physics 4301; Statistics 5002 (if substituted for Biology 3312; students are not allowed to use both Biology 3312 and Statistics 5002 as upper-level electives).

Suggested Semester by Semester Plan

(F) - Fall only course

(S) - Spring only course

^If the student has taken the necessary prerequisite courses, some of the Biology or Cognitive elective courses may be taken before the Spring semester of Year 3. 

Students who complete CST majors typically receive a waiver for 2 Science & Technology (GS) and 1 Quantitative Literacy (GQ) GenEd courses.

Minor Requirements

Students interested in acquiring basic knowledge in biology but not wishing to major in the subject may pursue a minor by successful completion of Biology 1111 and Biology 2112 (Introduction to Biology I and II), plus three additional upper-level 2200 or above Biology electives (see course descriptions for exceptions).  At least one of these additional Biology electives must have a laboratory component.

Note that Chemistry 1031 and Chemistry 1032 (with labs) are the co-requisites or prerequisites for Biology 1111 and Biology 2112, and that a grade of C or higher in Biology 1111 and Biology 2112 is required to take Biology electives.  Biology 2227, Biology 2296, and Biology 3096 can be taken as electives for the minor.  Please consult the Biology Department's advisor when choosing the three additional courses to ensure that prerequisites have been satisfied. (A minimum of 18 credits in Biology is required for the minor.)

Distinction in the Major

To be eligible for distinction in the major, a student must retain a grade point average of 3.2 or better (overall and in the major); should register for Biology 4391 (Accelerated Research in Biology) or Biology 4291 (Extradepartmental Research) for a total of 6 s.h. over two semesters; and must write a final research paper and present his/her research at a departmental research poster session before graduation. A student, however, does not have to enroll in the distinction program in order to participate in departmental research. Other courses (Biology 2082, Independent Research I, and Biology 3082, Independent Research II) provide credit toward graduation and research experience, and are available to undergraduate students from their sophomore through their senior year. A student may register for Biology 3082 more than one semester. In all cases, permission of the faculty and application to the department Honors Committee is required before registering for research credits.

Concentration in Neuroscience

Undergraduate students with an interest in Neuroscience may apply to the Neuroscience Concentration after declaration of a major in biology or psychology. Upon successful completion of their departmental and Neuroscience Program requirements, students receive a bachelor's degree with a Concentration in Neuroscience.  Please note that the College of Science & Technology now offers a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience - Cellular and Molecular that will result in a phasing out of the Biology Neuroscience Concentration over the next several years.

Neuroscience Concentration Requirements

• Completion of three Neuroscience courses with a grade of B or better. Courses may be selected from: Biology 3354, Biology 3356; Communication Sciences & Disorders 3235; Philosophy 5244; Psychology 2501, Psychology 2502.
• One year of Neuroscience research with a faculty member of the Neuroscience Program, with public and written presentation of the results. Two faculty members in the Neuroscience Program must approve the written presentation.

Calculation of Major GPA

The list of courses that are used to calculate major GPA is determined by the department. Students should consult with their academic advising unit for the applicable courses. In general, courses that could not apply toward the major as an elective or a required course are not counted for the major GPA. This would include Biology 1011, for example.

A total of up to 3 s.h. of Biology research courses numbered lower than 4000 (to include: Biology 3082, 3181, 3183, 3281, 3681, and 3781) may be taken for a letter grade. Any additional credits in research courses in this category can be taken only on a CR/NC basis. No research courses numbered lower than 4000 may be used for Biology elective credit.

Five-Year Combined B.A. or B.S. and Ed.M. Program

Five-Year Master's/Secondary Education Certification Program

This is a combined program between the College of Science & Technology and the College of Education.  For more information, see the following web site:

www.temple.edu/bulletin/Academic_programs/schools_colleges/ed/intro/generalinfo/ed_generalinfo.shtm#teacher