Biological Sciences, Bachelor of Science College of Biological Sciences
Departments of Evolution & Ecology; Microbiology & Molecular Genetics; Molecular & Cellular Biology; Neurobiology, Physiology, & Behavior; and Plant Biology
The Program
The Biological Sciences major is broad in concept, spanning the numerous core disciplines of biology. The Bachelor of Science (B.S.) program includes preparatory work in mathematics, general and organic chemistry, physics, and introductory level biology, as well as upper division core classes emphasizing the breadth of biological sciences. Students in the B.S. degree program complete additional upper division biology coursework, for which they can choose classes from a variety of different areas such as molecular biology and genetics, animal behavior, plant growth and development, bioinformatics, marine biology, forensics, and microbiology research and internships are encouraged.
Career Alternatives
The degree program prepares students for admission to graduate schools or professional schools, leading to either a variety of professional health careers or further study in basic and applied areas of biology. The program provides suitable preparation for careers in teaching, biological and biotechnological research with various governmental agencies or private companies, government regulatory agencies, environmental consulting, biological illustration and writing, pharmaceutical sales and biological/environmental law.
Faculty Advisor
Lesilee Rose, Ph.D.
Advising
Biology Academic Success Center (BASC) in 1023 Katherine Esau Science Hall; 530-752-0410.
Teaching Credential Subject Representative
Associate Director of Teacher Education (School of Education); see the Teaching Credential/M.A. Program.
Bodega Marine Laboratory Program
Students interested in Marine Biology should visit Marine & Coastal Science Major & Bodega Marine Laboratory.
The major requirements below are in addition to meeting University Degree Requirements & College Degree Requirements; unless otherwise noted. The minimum number of units required for the Biological Sciences Bachelor of Science is 97.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Preparatory Subject Matter | ||
| Biological Science 1 | 14 | |
| Introductory Biology: Ecology & Evolution | ||
| Introductory Biology: Molecules to Cells | ||
| Introductory Biology: Cells Through Organisms | ||
| Chemistry | ||
| Choose the 002 or 004 series: 2 | 15 | |
| General Chemistry and General Chemistry and General Chemistry | ||
| General Chemistry for the Physical Sciences & Engineering and General Chemistry for the Physical Sciences & Engineering and General Chemistry for the Physical Sciences & Engineering | ||
| Choose the 008 or 118 series: 3 | 6-12 | |
| Organic Chemistry: Brief Course and Organic Chemistry: Brief Course | ||
| Organic Chemistry for Health & Life Sciences and Organic Chemistry for Health & Life Sciences and Organic Chemistry for Health & Life Sciences | ||
| Mathematics | ||
| Choose the 017 or 021 series: 4 | 8-12 | |
| Calculus for Biology & Medicine and Calculus for Biology & Medicine and Calculus for Biology & Medicine | ||
| Calculus and Calculus and Calculus (Recommended) | ||
| Physics 5 | 12 | |
| General Physics and General Physics and General Physics | ||
| Preparatory Subject Matter Subtotal | 55-65 | |
| Depth Subject Matter | ||
| Section 1: Core Curriculum | ||
| BIS 101 | Genes & Gene Expression | 4 |
| or BIS 101V | Genes & Gene Expression | |
| BIS 104 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| BIS 105 | Biomolecules & Metabolism | 3-6 |
| or BIS 102 OR BIS 102V & BIS 103 | and Bioenergetics & Metabolism | |
| Section 2: Depth Subject Topics | ||
| Choose one from each topic: | 21-26 | |
| Statistics | ||
| Applied Statistics for Biological Sciences | ||
| Evolution | ||
| Introduction to Evolution | ||
| Ecology; choose one: | ||
| Introduction to Ecology | ||
| General Ecology | ||
| Microbiology | ||
| Introductory Microbiology | ||
| General Virology | ||
| Yeast Molecular Genetics | ||
| Plant Physiology or Development | ||
| Developmental Plant Anatomy | ||
| Plant Physiology | ||
| Plant Growth & Development | ||
| Molecular & Cellular Biology of Plants | ||
| Plant Morphology & Evolution | ||
| Plant Biochemistry | ||
| Animal Physiology, Behavior or Development | ||
| Neurobiology | ||
| Systemic Physiology | ||
| Animal Behavior | ||
| Cell Signaling in Health & Disease | ||
| Developmental Biology | ||
| Section 3: Laboratory Requirement | ||
| Course(s) selected to fulfill the laboratory requirement may also satisfy restricted elective or depth subject matter units (but not both). | ||
| Choose course(s) for a minimum total of six hours/week of laboratory or field work from the list of courses below: | ||
Choose two with three hours lab or field work/week: | ||
EVE 110 | (Discontinued for winter 2026) ** | |
EVE 140 | (Discontinued for winter 2026) ** | |
| Experimental Ecology & Evolution in the Field | ||
| Experimental Ecology & Evolution in the Field | ||
| Computer Programming for Biologists | ||
| Introductory Microbiology Laboratory | ||
| Neurobiology Laboratory | ||
| Systemic Physiology Laboratory | ||
| Physiology of Reproduction Laboratory | ||
| Comparative Vertebrate Organology | ||
| Plant Morphology & Evolution | ||
| Plant Ecology | ||
| Population Biology of Invasive Plants & Weeds | ||
Other courses with approval of Faculty Advisor. | ||
Choose one course with six hours lab or field work/week: | ||
| Genomics Laboratory | ||
EVE 105 | (Discontinued for winter 2026) ** | |
EVE 106 | (Discontinued for winter 2026) ** | |
| Biology of Invertebrates Laboratory | ||
| Experimental Invertebrate Biology (Discontinued for winter 2024) ** | ||
| Human Gross Anatomy Laboratory | ||
| General Microbiology Laboratory | ||
| Microbial Diversity Laboratory | ||
| Molecular Biology & Biochemistry Laboratory | ||
| Cell Biology Laboratory | ||
| Principles of Genetics Laboratory | ||
| Developmental Plant Anatomy | ||
| Systematics of Vascular Plants | ||
| Introductory Mycology | ||
Other courses with approval of the Faculty Advisor. | ||
| Section 4: Restricted Electives | ||
| Choose at least three or more courses for a minimum of 11 units from the list of Approved Upper Division Restrictive Electives and/or laboratory courses. No class or laboratory used to satisfy a Section 1 or a Section 2 course requirement may be used as a restricted elective. | 11 | |
| Students may choose any combination of approved courses that align with their academic or career objectives. Up to three of the 11 units may be fulfilled by approved seminar or research courses. | ||
| Total Units | 97-115 | |
- 1
The BIS 2ABCD series has been discontinued. Students who have started the BIS 2ABCD series should consult with a BASC advisor to determine which course(s) will complete the lower-division biology requirement.
- 2
With BASC advisor approval, these combinations also satisfy the Chemistry requirement: CHE 004A-CHE 002A (3 units w/no lab)-CHE 002B-CHE 002C; CHE 004A-CHE 004B-CHE 002C.
- 3
With BASC advisor approval, this combination also satisfies the Organic Chemistry requirement: CHE 118A-CHE 008B.
- 4
With BASC advisor approval, this combination also satisfies the Mathematics requirement: MAT 021A-MAT 017B-MAT 017C; MAT 017A-MAT 021B.
- 5
With BASC Advisor approval, the following combination also satisfies the Physics requirement: PHY 009A–PHY 009B–PHY 007B–PHY 007C; PHY 009A–PHY 009C–PHY 007A–PHY 007C.
- **
Course(s) discontinued; see your advisor for course options.
Approved Seminar/Research Courses
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Courses numbered 189, 190/190C, 192, 194H, and 199 in ABI, ANS, BIS, BIT, ENH, ENT, ETX, EVE, MCB, MIC, MMG, NPB, PLB, PLP, PLS, VEN, WFC, as well as: | ||
| BIS 122P | Population Biology & Ecology/Advanced Laboratory Topics (Discontinued for winter 2027) ** | 5 |
| BIS 123 | Undergraduate Colloquium in Marine Science (Discontinued for winter 2027) ** | 1 |
| BIS 133 | Collaborative Studies in Mathematical Biology (Discontinued for winter 2027) ** | 3 |
| EVE/ESP 111 | Marine Environmental Issues | 1 |
| MCB 138 | Undergraduate Seminar in Biochemistry | 1 |
| MCB 139 | Undergraduate Seminar in Biochemistry | 2 |
| MCB 148 | Undergraduate Seminar in Cell Biology | 2 |
| MCB 158 | Undergraduate Seminar in Developmental Biology | 2 |
| MCB 178 | Undergraduate Seminar in Molecular Genetics | 1 |
| MCB 191 | Introduction to Research | 1 |
| MCB 193 | Advanced Research | 3 |
| MMG 191 | Introduction to Research for Advanced Undergraduates | 1 |
| NPB 139 | Frontiers in Physiology | 3 |
| NPB 159 | Frontiers in Behavior | 3 |
| NPB 169 | Frontiers in Neurobiology | 3 |
- **
Course(s) discontinued; see your advisor for course options.
Approved Upper Division Restricted Electives
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| ANG 105 | Horse Genetics | 3 |
| ANG 107 | Genetics & Animal Breeding | 5 |
| ANS 104 | Principles & Applications of Domestic Animal Behavior | 4 |
| ANS 123 | Animal Growth & Development | 4 |
| ANS 170 | Ethics of Animal Use | 4 |
| ANT 151 | Primate Evolution | 4 |
| ANT 152 | Human Evolution | 5 |
| ANT 153 | Human Genetics: Mutation & Migration | 5 |
| ANT 154A | The Evolution of Primate Behavior | 5 |
| ANT 154B | (Discontinued for fall 2008) ** | 5 |
| ANT 155 | Primate Conservation Biology | 4 |
| ANT 157 | Advanced Human Genetics | 2 |
| ANT 157L | Advanced Human Genetics Lab | 4 |
| AVS 100 | Avian Biology | 3 |
| AVS 103 | Avian Development & Genomics | 3 |
| AVS 115 | Raptor Biology | 3 |
| BIM 140 | Protein Engineering | 4 |
| BIM 143 | Biomolecular Systems Engineering: Synthetic Biology | 4 |
| Biological Sciences (BIS)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| BIT 150 | Applied Bioinformatics | 4 |
| BIT 160 | Principles of Plant Biotechnology | 3 |
| BIT 161A | Genetics & Biotechnology Laboratory | 6 |
| BIT 161B | Plant Genetics & Biotechnology Laboratory | 4 |
| CHE 107A | Physical Chemistry for the Life Sciences | 3 |
| CHE 107B | Physical Chemistry for the Life Sciences | 3 |
| CHE 108 | Molecular Biochemistry | 3 |
| CHE 130A | Principles of Medicinal Chemistry | 3 |
| CHE 130B | Computational Drug Design | 3 |
| CHE 150 | Chemistry of Natural Products | 3 |
| ECS 124 | Theory & Practice of Bioinformatics | 4 |
| EDU 110 | Educational Psychology: General | 4 |
| EDU/GEL 181 | Teaching in Science & Mathematics | 2 |
| EDU/GEL 183 | Teaching High School Mathematics & Science | 3 |
| ENH 105 | (Discontinued for fall 2025) ** | 4 |
| ENH 150 | (Discontinued for spring 2025) ** | 3 |
| Entomology (ENT)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| ESP 106 | Environmental Data Science | 4 |
| ESP 110 | Principles of Environmental Science | 4 |
| ESP 116N/GEL 116N DISCONTINUED FOR FALL 2026 | Oceanography (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 116 | Oceanography | |
| ESP 121 | Population Ecology | 4 |
| ESP 123 | Introduction to Field & Laboratory Methods in Ecology | 4 |
| ESP 124 | Marine & Coastal Field Ecology | 3 |
| ESP 151 | Limnology | 4 |
| ESP 151L | Limnology Laboratory | 3 |
| ESP 155 | ** | |
| Environmental Toxicology (ETX)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| Evolution & Ecology (EVE)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| Exercise Biology (EXB)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| FST 102A | Malting & Brewing Science | 4 |
| FST 104 | Food Microbiology | 3 |
| GDB 101 | Epidemiology | 4 |
| GDB 103 | Microbiome of People, Animals, & Plants | 3 |
| GEL 107 | Earth History: Paleobiology (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 107 | Paleobiology | |
| GEL 107L | Earth History: Paleobiology Laboratory (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 2 |
| or EPS 107L | Paleobiology Laboratory | |
| GEL 108 | Earth History: Paleoclimates (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 108 | Paleoclimatology | |
| GEL 116N/ESP 116N DISCONTINUED FOR FALL 2026 | Oceanography (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 116 | Oceanography | |
| GEL 141 | Evolutionary History of Vertebrates (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 141 | Evolutionary History of Vertebrates | |
| GEL 144 | Historical Ecology (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or EPS 144 | Historical Ecology | |
| GEL/ESP/EPS 150A | Physical & Chemical Oceanography (GEL 150A Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 4 |
| GEL 150B/ESP 150B DISCONTINUED FOR FALL 2026 | Geological Oceanography (Discontinued for fall 2026) ** | 3 |
| or ESP 150B | Geological Oceanography | |
| GEL 150C/ESP 150C DISCONTINUED FOR SPRING 2026 ** | Biological Oceanography (GEL 150C Discontinued for spring 2026) ** | 4 |
| or EPS 150C | Biological Oceanography | |
| HDE 100A | Infancy & Early Childhood | 4 |
| or HDE 100AV | Infancy & Early Childhood | |
| HDE 100C | Adulthood & Aging | 4 |
| HDE/ENT 117 | Longevity | 4 |
| HPH 115 | (Discontinued for fall 2025) ** | 3 |
| Molecular & Cellular Biology (MCB)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| Microbiology (MIC)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| Microbiology & Molecular Genetics (MMG)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| MMI 188A | Human Immunology | 3 |
| or MMI 188B | Human Immunology | |
| NEM 100 | Introduction to Nematode Parasites | 4 |
| NEM 110 | Introduction to Nematology | 2 |
| Neurobiology, Physiology, & Behavior (NPB)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| NUT/ETX 104 | Environmental & Nutritional Factors in Cellular Regulation & Nutritional Toxicants | 4 |
| PHI 108 | Philosophy of the Biological Sciences | 4 |
| Plant Biology (PLB)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | ||
| PLP 120 | Introduction to Plant Pathology | 4 |
| PLP 130 | Fungal Biology & Disease | 3 |
| PLS 100A | Metabolic Processes of Cultivated Plants | 3 |
| PLS 100B | Growth & Yield of Cultivated Plants | 3 |
| PLS 101 | Agriculture & the Environment | 3 |
| PLS/ESM 144 | Trees & Forests | 4 |
| PLS 147 | California Plant Communities | 3 |
| PLS 150 | Sustainability & Agroecosystem Management | 4 |
| PLS 152 | Plant Genetics | 4 |
| PLS 154 | Introduction to Plant Breeding | 4 |
| PLS 162 | Urban Ecology | 3 |
| PLS 172 | Biology and Quality of Harvested Crops | 4 |
| PMI 126 | Fundamentals of Immunology | 3 |
| PMI 127 | Medical Bacteria & Fungi | 3 |
| PMI 128 | Biology of Animal Viruses | 3 |
| SAS/HIS 109 | Environmental Change, Disease & Public Health | 4 |
| SAS 110 | Applications of Evolution in Medicine, Human Behavior, & Agriculture | 4 |
| SOC 163 | Population Health: Social Determinants & Disparities in Health | 4 |
| SSC 111 | Soil Microbiology | 4 |
| STA 101 | Advanced Applied Statistics for the Biological Sciences | 4 |
| STS/ANT 129 | Health & Medicine in a Global Context | 4 |
| STS/ENL 164 | Writing Science | 4 |
| UWP 111C | Specialized Topics in Journalism: Science Journalism | 4 |
| UWP 120 | Rhetorical Approaches to Scientific & Technological Issues | 4 |
| UWP 121 | History of Scientific Writing | 4 |
| VEN 110 | Grapevine Growth & Physiology | 3 |
| VME 158 | Infectious Disease in Ecology & Conservation | 3 |
| Wildlife, Fish, & Conservation Biology (WFC)―all letter graded upper division courses. 1 | 3 | |
- 1
Only letter graded courses are allowed as restricted electives, unless they are specifically listed in the Approved Seminar/Research Courses list; maximum of 3 units from such courses; discussion section courses noted with a “D” affiliated with letter graded courses do not fulfill restrictive elective units.
- **
Course(s) discontinued; see your advisor for course options.