Hope College Biology

Bachelor of Arts in Biology

The following are the different requirements that must be met for this degree.

Review available Elective Biology Courses

Required Courses for a BA in Biology

• Biology 240 – Cells and Genetics (1st Required)
• Biology 260 – Organismal Biology (2nd Required)
• Biology 280 – Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (3rd Required)
• 28 to 35 Hours of Biology (which must include the above 3 courses)
• 4 credits of Math
• 1 year of Chemistry

At least one of the following courses must be taken:

• Biology 332
• Biology 340
• Biology 343
• Biology 374
• Biology 380
• Biology 301
• Biology 422
• Biology 432

* This is a minimum requirement. To be competitive in graduate training and in professional biology careers, however, it is recommended students have at least five semesters of chemistry, a year each of math and physics, and a semester of statistics.

Suggested Progression of Classes (BA in Biology)

Although there are many possible pathways to obtain your biology degree, many students will find that completing introductory biology and chemistry during the first two years is extremely helpful, and doing so creates more flexibility in your later coursework. Your "breadth" requirements for general education at Hope College can span as many semesters as you wish; sampling some of the variety in other disciplines is a valuable thing to do starting early in your freshman year.

Careful planning with your advisor will open possibilities for you to study abroad (consider Animal Behavior in Australia, Immunology in Scotland, or Ecology in Kenya!), and/or to complete an off-campus internship (Centers for Disease Control, Argonne National Laboratory, Shedd Aquarium, and Brookfield Zoo are just the tip of the iceberg of possibilities actually accomplished by recent Biology alumni) or a semester or more conducting research at Hope College or elsewhere!

Your Freshman Year

Fall:

Biology 240 (Cells and Genetics & Lab)

Chemistry 111 and 113 (General Chemistry I)

First Year Seminar

Spring:

Biology 260 (Organismal Biology)

Chemistry 121 and 114 (General Chemistry II)

During the First Year:

Mathematics (e.g. Calculus I or II or Statistics), general education electives such as Health Dynamics, Foreign Language, English 113.

Your Sophomore Year

Fall:

Biology 280 (Ecology & Evolutionary Biology)

Spring:

Upper Level Biology Elective

During the second year:

Declare your major as soon as appropriate, continue general education electives, explore research, internship, and off-campus options in biology, and begin to focus in areas of biology that interest you the most. Include electives in other areas of science that may constitute interdisciplinary fields you might want to explore further (e.g. computer science (computational modeling), GES (environmental science), neuroscience, biochemistry, allied health professions, mathematical biology.

Your junior and senior years:

continue general education electives, explore research, internship, and off-campus options in biology (students pursuing a B.A. have greater flexibility to be able to do one or more of these options during their final years at Hope), and begin to focus in areas of biology that interest you the most. Include electives in other areas of science that may constitute interdisciplinary fields you might want to explore further (e.g. computer science (computational modeling), GES (environmental science), neuroscience, biochemistry, allied health professions, mathematical biology. Consider whether you will want to pursue a graduate degree (M.A., M.S., Ph.D.) and begin attending workshops and meetings designed to help students explore graduate school and career options. Internship experience, in particular, may be the most important thing you can do to begin moving into a specialized biology career.

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• After Graduation
• Course Catalogue
• Getting Started

Unique programs

We believe that students learn best by doing biology so it is equally important that we provide new and interesting ways for you to do exactly that. The programs below are only available at Hope College, so you won't find these anywhere else.

Unique Biology Programs

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