BA in Biological Sciences
North Campus
The Bachelor of Arts Degree Program is highly flexible and recommended for students with broad academic interests who may wish to combine studies in biology with those in other disciplines. Ideal for students who are considering studying abroad, a double major and/or a minor in distinct disciplines.
Related Links
Program Summary
Students qualify for the Bachelor of Arts degree by successfully completing at least 33 credits of biology-required coursework within the department plus 38 credits in chemistry, physics and mathematics. The curriculum of the BA program includes required core courses, as well as elective laboratory and lecture courses.
Application to the Major
All freshmen with interest in BIO are accepted into the major if they select Biological Sciences (BIO) on their UB application.
Students transferring to UB are admitted directly to the major if they have a combined GPA of 2.0 in any completed biology courses that articulate to BIO 200, BIO 201, BIO 303, and BIO 305, and a combined GPA of 2.0 in any completed other science/math courses that articulate to MTH 121 or MTH 141, MTH 122 or MTH 142, CHE 101, CHE 102, CHE 201, and CHE 202.
Students transferring to the major from another degree program must apply to the major and are admitted if they have a combined GPA of at least 2.0 in BIO courses already taken (of BIO 200, BIO 201, BIO 303, BIO 305) and a combined GPA of at least 2.0 in all required MTH/CHE courses already taken (of MTH 121 or MTH 141, MTH 122 or MTH 142, CHE 101, CHE 102, CHE 201, CHE 202).
To apply to the Bio Major, submit the “Application for a Major Program” form located on the Forms page to the Bio Department, 109 Cooke Hall, North Campus.
A minimum combined GPA of 2.0 for required BIO courses and a minimum combined GPA of 2.0 in required CHE and MTH courses are required for retention in the major. At the end of every semester a review of all BIO coursework is completed, and any student not meeting either GPA minimum for four consecutive semesters will be dismissed from the major.
A minimum GPA of 2.0 in biology courses and a minimum GPA of 2.0 in required chemistry, physics and mathematics courses is required for degree conferral.
Bachelor of Arts
- 33 Required credit hours in biological sciences
- 38 Required credit hours in chemistry, physics and mathematics
- 71 Total credit hours required for Bachelor of Arts degree
Required lecture courses in Biological Sciences
- BIO 200 Evolutionary Biology
- BIO 201 Cell Biology
- BIO 303 General Physiology
- BIO 305 Fundamentals of Biological Chemistry
- BIO 319 Genetics
Required laboratory courses in Biological Sciences (choose three)
- BIO 313 General Physiology Laboratory
- BIO 315 Fundamentals of Biological Chemistry Laboratory
- BIO 329 Genetics Laboratory
- BIO 332 Advanced Molecular Biology Lab
- BIO 370 Developmental Biology Laboratory
- BIO 400 Bioinformatics (Lab)
- BIO 420 Cytogenetics Laboratory
- APY 346 Comparative Primate Anatomy Lab
- GLY 310 Ecological Methods
Students registered for 2 or 3 credits of BIO 498 may use this as credit towards one of the required labs. Students registered for 2 or 3 credits of biological research in another UB department may submit a Bio Research Petition to receive credit towards the major. To be approved for the major, the research must be hands-on laboratory, field, or bioinformatics research. Petitions can be found on Forms page.
Required courses in Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics
- CHE 101/CHE 113 (CHE 101 prior to Fall 2019) or CHE 105 or CHE 107
- CHE 102/CHE 114 (CHE 102 prior to Fall 2019) or CHE 106 or CHE 108
- CHE 201 Organic Chemistry
- CHE 202 Organic Chemistry
- MTH 121 or MTH 141 Calculus I
- MTH 122 or MTH 142 Calculus II
- PHY 101/151 or PHY 107 General Physics I
- PHY 102/152 or PHY 108/158 General Physics II
Elective Courses
Make choices to reach the 33 credit minimum requirement for the Bachelor of Arts degree. Electives may include lab courses or any of the 300 or 400 level courses offered by the Department of Biological Sciences. (NOTE: The UB Curriculum course BIO 387 Communicating in Biological Sciences can not be used as elective credit towards the BA, but can be used as elective credit for the BS.)
- BIO 301 Intermediate Cell Biology
- BIO 302 Intro to Molecular Biology
- BIO 309 Ecology
- BIO 318 Plant Biology
- BIO 330 Special Topics
- BIO 344 Neuroethology
- BIO 367 Developmental Biology
- BIO 369 Biology of Microbes
- BIO 400 Bioinformatics (Lecture)
- BIO 401 Advanced Biological Chemistry
- BIO 402 Advanced Cell and Developmental Biology I
- BIO 404 Advanced Molecular Genetics
- BIO 405 Advanced Cell and Developmental Biology II
- BIO 406 Signal Transduction
- BIO 407 Advanced Ecology
- BIO 417 Neurobiology
- BIO 418 Integrative Neuroscience
- BIO 425 Special Topics
- BIO 426 Special Topics
- BIO 437 Pattern and Process in Evolution
- BIO 438 Evolutionary Ecology
- BIO 448 Endocrinology
- BIO 449 Comparative Genomics
- BIO 450 Human Evolutionary Genomics
- BIO 461 Basic Radiation Science
Up to 3 credits of any 490 level Bio course (495, 498, 499) can count toward the BA. Credits in excess of the 3 allowed for the Bio degree will be counted in the general university elective pool.
Elective courses may include any of the following cognate courses:
- APY 345 Comparative Primate Anatomy
- APY 347 Understanding Human Variation
- APY 348 Anthropological Osteology
- APY 494 The Evolution of Hominin Behavior
- CHE 349 Physical Chemistry for Life Sciences
- CHE 350 Physical Chemistry for Life Sciences Lab
- GEO 356 Forest Ecology
- GEO 435 Conservation Biogeography
- GEO 445 Restoration Ecology
- GLY 400 Comparative Paleobiology
- GLY 458 Macroevolution
- MCH 311/PMY311 Chemistry of Drug Action
- MIC 401 Biomedical Microbiology
- MIC 412 Fundamentals of Immunology (students entering prior to Fall 2020 only)
- NRS 301 The Brain
- PGY 451/452 Human Physiology
- PSY 351 Biopsychology (students entering prior to Fall 2020 only)
- PSY 402 Psychopharmacology
- PSY 443 Neurobiology of Animal Communication
- PSY 451 Drug Addiction
- STA 427 Statistics for Bio/Med Sciences
Selection of electives should be done in consultation with a departmental faculty advisor.
Possible timetable for completion of the BA degree in Biological Sciences for students entering Fall 2018 and after.