UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES
The program of the Department of Biological Sciences is designed to contribute to a scientific background as part of a liberal education. The department offers a diversified, broadly based program, which can be designed to satisfy many areas of study. Our multitrack major can provide the traditional student with a well-rounded background in biology, or students may select courses to prepare them for a particular area of study. The multitrack curriculum can prepare students for graduate study, pre-health professional fields (such as medicine or dentistry), marine biology, environmental science, or science education. The department has persons trained to advise in each of these areas. A list of advisors for a specific track or area of study can be obtained from the departmental office.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MAJOR IN BIOLOGY
Students desiring to major in biology must meet the general requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Science in addition to the following requirements:

1. At least thirty-six semester hours of biology, including:

a. Biology 121, 122, General Biology I and II (8 hours)

NOTE: BLY 121, 122, or the equivalents, are prerequisites to all courses numbered 300 or above except by permission of the Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences. A year of college chemistry, or advanced high school preparation in biology and chemistry is highly recommended for these two introductory courses.

b. At least 28 hours of biology electives above BLY 121, 122. And, at least one course from each of the following four categories:

Category A. Cellular and Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, and Physiology
311 Genetics (4 hr)
314 Molecular Microbiology (4 hr)
341 Cell Biology (4 hr)
351 Animal Physiology (4 hr)
431 Plant Physiology (4 hr)
440/441 Biochemistry (4/4 hr)

Category B. Botany
332 Introduction to Nonvascular Plants (4 hr)
345 Dendrology (4 hr)
430 Marine Botany (4 hr)
432 Morphology of Vascular Plants (4 hr)
433 Taxonomy of Flowering Plants (4 hr)
435 Biology of Fungi (4 hr)

Category C. Zoology
352 Biology of Terrestrial Vertebrates (4 hr)
354 General Entomology (4 hr)
360 The Invertebrates (4 hr)
361 Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy (5 hr)
363 Vertebrate Embryology (4 hr)
451 Marine Vertebrate Zoology (4 hr)
453 Coastal Ornithology (4 hr)
455 Ornithology (4 hr)
459 Parasitology (3 hr)
463 Vertebrate Histology (4 hr)
471 Marine Invertebrate Zoology (4 hr)

Category D. Interdisciplinary Courses
311 Genetics (4 hr)
325 Ecology (4 hr)
367 Marine Biology (4 hr)
450 Animal Behavior (3 hr)
475 Marine Ecology (4 hr)
478 Marsh Ecology (4 hr)

Upper level courses not listed here will count towards a biology major but do not satisfy the requirements above.

2. Chemistry 201 and 202 (Organic Chemistry)

3. A year of Physics (114, 115) or Geology (111 and 112).

4. Mathematics through Calculus (MA 115 and MA 125) or Statistics (MA 115 and ST 210)

Students must also complete two (W) courses. Computer and information science is strongly recommended for those students who plan graduate study in biology.

A SAMPLE FOUR-YEAR CURRICULUM IN BIOLOGY CAN BE OBTAINED FROM THE DEPARTMENTAL OFFICE.

AREAS OF CONCENTRATION
Students who wish to concentrate in a specific area may want to follow one of these optional tracks:

1. Marine Biology
Biology majors desiring a concentration in marine biology should follow the recommended four-year curriculum for biology majors. At least one term must be spent in residence at the Marine Environmental Sciences Consortium at Dauphin Island or other approved marine lab, after the sophomore year. The department recommends that students follow one or two series of courses: Biology 430, 451, 471, and 475; or Biology 367 and three of the following: Biology 430, 474, 475, and Marine Geology.

2. Environmental Science
Biology majors desiring a concentration in environmental science should focus primarily on biology and chemistry. Biology 325 or 475 is required. The following biology courses are recommended: BLY 314, 352, 360, and 433. Upon consultation with the student's faculty advisor, additional biology electives are to be selected from the following: Cell Biology/Biochemistry, Non-Vascular Plants, Environmental Toxicology (BLY 515), Limnology (BLY 526), Computers in Biology, and Biometry. A Chemistry minor is required. Additional courses augmenting this concentration, while meeting department and college requirements are: GY 111, 112, and 311, GEO 310, and SY 467.

3. Pre-health Professions
Biology majors planning a career in medicine, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, or other pre-professional fields should follow the recommended curriculum for biology majors. A year of physics is strongly recommended for pre-health professional students.

4. Biological Education
Biology majors desiring a degree in biology from the College of Arts and Sciences and certification in teaching from the College of Education should follow this track. Students may major in biology and minor in one of the other teaching fields (such as geology and geography) to satisfy the science requirements for middle and high school teaching. To fulfill all requirements for certification, students must plan their program carefully with their advisor and with the Student Services office in the College of Education.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MINOR IN BIOLOGY
Twenty-four semester hours of biology are required, including:

1. Biology 121, 122 (General Biology)

2. Sixteen semester hours of biology electives, at least eight of which must be taken at the University of South Alabama.

GRADUATE STUDIES
The Master of Science degree in Biology is designed to provide qualified students the opportunity to further their knowledge in generalized and specialized areas of biology, as indicated by course offerings and research interests of the faculty. In addition, the Department incorporates into its offerings some areas of study leading to concentrations in Basic Medical Sciences (through cooperative agreement with the College of Medicine -see below) and in Marine Biology (through cooperative agreement with the Department of Marine Sciences and/or the Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory - see below). A student may also concurrently pursue a Class A Professional Teaching Certificate (through cooperative agreement with the College of Education - see below). Admission to the M.S. Program does not automatically qualify a student for entry into one of the special areas of concentration; students desiring such entry should familiarize themselves with the special conditions noted below and contact the Department for special rules and conditions.

REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION
Students are admitted each semester. The following criteria supplement the Graduate School criteria (see Categories of Admission):

REGULAR ADMISSION

1. Undergraduate major in biology, botany, or zoology with a minimum GPA of 2.8 (on a 4-point scale) in all biological courses taken.
   

2. Undergraduate organic chemistry sequence.

3. One year of physics or geology.

4. Mathematics at least through calculus or statistics.

5. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score of at least 1100 on the Verbal and Quantitative portions, with at least a score of 500 on Verbal. (An MCAT score of 24 may be substituted for the GRE by persons intending to enter a cellular/molecular area.)

6. A GRE score in the Advanced section in either Biology (minimum score 500) or Biochemistry, Cellular and Molecular Biology (minimum score 400).

7. Students who do not offer English as their native language must submit a minimum TOEFL score of 600.

PROVISIONAL ADMISSION

1. Undergraduate major or minor (or equivalent) in biology, botany, or zoology.

2. A minimum undergraduate GPA of 2.5 (on a 4-point scale), with a minimum of 2.8 on all biological courses taken.

3. Submission of GRE (or MCAT) score as outlined above, but without minimum score requirements and a minimum TOEFL score of 600.

NON-DEGREE ADMISSION
The Department of Biological Sciences accepts Non-degree Graduate Students within the general admission and credit regulations of the University of South Alabama with certain reservations and limitations. Students should consult the Department concerning these limitations BEFORE applying for such status. Included, but not limited to, are the following:

1. Students are restricted to enrollment in courses prefixed BLY that the Chair determines will advance their career development in biological sciences. Only in exceptional cases wherein it is determined to the satisfaction of the Chair that the aforementioned career goals are enhanced will a non-degree student be permitted to enroll in courses in other departments.

2. ALL class enrollments require PRIOR approval of the Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences.

3. Students must confer with the Chair or the Graduate Coordinator of the Department of Biological Sciences before attempting to enroll in any class.

4. Students seeking to change from non-degree status to a degree-granting program must reapply and be evaluated as any other student who has not previously applied to such program.

DAUPHIN ISLAND SEA LABORATORY
The Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory is supported by nineteen colleges and universities in Alabama to form one marine campus. Students in the M.S. program in Biological Sciences at the University of South Alabama may take courses through the sea laboratory and apply credits earned toward fulfilling requirements for the M.S. degree. Students frequently choose to spend part of their time, particularly in the summers, at Dauphin Island and the rest of their time on the main campus in Mobile. Other arrangements are also possible.

Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory publishes an Information Bulletin each year. Students may request a copy of the Bulletin by writing or calling: Registrar, Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory, P.O. Box 369-370, Dauphin Island, AL 36528, (334)861-2141.

CONCENTRATION IN BASIC MEDICAL SCIENCES (BMS)
The purpose of this track is to provide qualified beginning graduate students with an opportunity to become research scientists in biology with an emphasis in basic medical science. Course work and research opportunities are offered in the Departments of Biochemistry, Microbiology/Immunology, Pharmacology, Physiology, and Structural and Cellular Biology in the College of Medicine, as well as in the Department of Biological Sciences. Students fulfill the normal criteria for the M.S. degree in biology, but with up to one third of the formal course work being taken in the Basic Medical Sciences Program of the College of Medicine. Students must complete thesis research in basic medical sciences. This track prepares the student for additional graduate study in the basic medical sciences leading to the Ph.D. degree. A non-thesis option is not available.

THESIS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS: CONCENTRATION IN BMS|
Students are expected to choose a major professor and to define a thesis topic by the end of the first semester in residence. The student and the major professor select an advisory Committee consisting of the major professor, who may be from either Basic Medical Sciences (with a co-major professor from Biological Sciences) or the Department of Biological Sciences, and at least one other member from Biological Sciences. Students are expected to finish all course work and thesis research within two years of beginning their studies for the M.S. degree with a concentration in Basic Medical Sciences.

M.S. IN BIOLOGY WITH ALABAMA CLASS A PROFESSIONAL TEACHING CERTIFICATION

1. Students holding Class B Professional Certification in Education may choose a program involving at least twenty-four semester hours of Biology and twelve semester hours of Education beyond the bachelor's degree. No more than ten semester hours may be selected from 400-level courses in Biology. Upon completion of the program, the M.S. degree in Biology and Class A Professional Certification are awarded by the University and by the State Department of Education, respectively.

2. The twelve hours of Education include three required courses (SED 551, 552, and IDE 510) and one course chosen from either SED 554, or SED 564. Students with no previous course work in Special Education are also required to take SPE 500; this course may not be counted toward the required twelve hours of Education.

GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS FOR ALL STUDENTS
The Department offers several types of assistantships to qualified students. Application forms for assistantships with primary responsibilities in teaching and preparing laboratories are available from the departmental office. In addition, some assistantships with primary responsibility in research are usually available each year. These assistantships are associated with grants and contracts that support the research of individual faculty members. In all cases, assistantships are approved by the Dean of the Graduate School upon recommendation of the appropriate sponsor within the University. To be eligible for an assistantship, MCAT or GRE scores must be submitted to the Biology Department.

REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE FOR ALL STUDENTS
Students will find detailed explanation of special departmental requirements in a document, "Special Policies and Procedures Regarding the Master's Degree Program in the Department of Biological Sciences." This document is available from the departmental office and describes initial orientation for new students, administration of the comprehensive examination, departmental seminars, and the like.

The curriculum for each student will be developed by the student's advisory committee in view of the student's professional goals. Students must take the advanced portion of the GRE as specified above and it will be used as a diagnostic tool. If, in the opinion of a student's committee, the student lacks adequate undergraduate preparation as revealed by this examination or other evidence, the student will be required to make up such deficiencies.

In addition to satisfying the general requirements of the Graduate School, the candidates for the Master of Science degree in Biology must satisfy the following requirements:

Thesis Program

1. Complete, with a minimum grade of B, thirty-six semester hours, of which at least twenty-five semester hours must be in courses at the 500 level. No course at the 300 level or below may be taken for graduate credit. All courses must be accepted by the student's graduate advisory committee. The student's graduate committee may, at its option, after consultation with the student, require demonstration of additional proficiency in a foreign language, mathematics, computer skills, and/or statistics.

2. Complete a thesis representing original research. A maximum of six semester hours credit will be granted for the thesis. Enrollment in Biology 599 (Thesis) is not permitted until the student's research prospectus has been approved by the advisory committee and the Director of Graduate Studies, College of Arts and Sciences.

3. Enroll in Biology Seminar during at least two semesters of residency.

4. Complete successfully a comprehensive written examination on the following four major aspects of Biology: cellular and molecular biology, organismic biology, population biology, and general biology. This examination may be taken only after the student has completed 18 hours of graduate work excluding thesis credits. The student, with the endorsement of the major professor, should submit to the department a letter of intent to take the examination one month prior to its adminis-tration. The comprehensive examination is a requirement for graduation, not for admission to regular graduate standing. The examination should be taken at least one quarter before graduation. Candidates failing the comprehensive examination may be examined over the parts of the test which they failed after a minimum three-month delay. No portion of the comprehensive examination may be taken more than twice.

5. Make an oral defense of the thesis during the last semester of residency.

Non-Thesis Program
Students planning to pursue the Ph.D. degree are encouraged to follow the thesis option. However, a non-thesis curriculum is available for those students who so elect. The student will be required to complete the same degree requirements as those for a student who chooses the thesis option, with the following exceptions.

1. A thesis will not be required. Consequently BLY 599 (Thesis) may not be taken, and the six semester hours normally associated with it must be earned through formal course work.

2. The student must complete BLY 594 (Directed Studies) under the direction of a major professor. The student must also have a faculty committee whose members will decide if the student's report relating to the directed study is satisfactory. The committee normally will consist of the major professor and two others. The student is required to present an open seminar about the directed study during the last semester of residency.

DESCRIPTIONS OF ALL BIOLOGY (BLY) COURSES

College of Arts and Sciences

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