Biology
Majors and minor offered
see also Biochemistry (administered jointly with chemistry), Biology–Physics (administered jointly with physics), Biomedical Sciences, Conservation Biology, and Neuroscience (administered jointly with psychology). A combined major is offered with Environmental Studies. Note that Biology majors cannot double major in Biochemistry, Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience, or Conservation Biology.
Visit the biology department web page at https://www.stlawu.edu/offices/biology.
Courses for the Non-major
BIOL 101, 102 and 121 are open to all students and fulfill the natural science with lab distribution. BIOL 101 and 121 fulfill the environmental literacy distribution requirement. BIOL 101 and 102 also serve as the year of general biology required by many professional schools.
Advanced Placement Exams
Students scoring a 4 or 5 on the AP biology exam or a 5, 6 or 7 on the IB exam should enroll in the first semester of General Biology (BIOL 101) for 1.25 units of credit toward the major and graduation. Students who do well in 101 may be permitted to bypass the second semester of General Biology course (BIOL 102), receiving the 1.25 units of credit for this course as well as the right to take courses that require BIOL 102. Approval of this option to bypass the BIOL 102 course is determined by the General Biology course instructors. Although AP or IB scores noted above automatically nominate students for this bypass option, students may voluntarily choose to stay in the General Biology course-sequence and enroll in BIOL 102.
Major Requirements
Students entering St. Lawrence with an interest in biology should enroll in General Biology (BIOL 101 and 102) during their first year. They should also seek early advisement by a biology faculty member. Biology majors must complete a set of required and elective courses (outlined below). Continuation in upper-level biology electives courses requires a grade of 2.0 or higher in BIOL 101 and 102.
Required Courses
Full course descriptions can be found by visiting the Catalog section for the sponsoring department.
I. Specific Courses
Students must take all of the following courses:
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BIOL 101 and 102. General Biology.
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CHEM 103 and 104. General Chemistry.
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STAT 113 Applied Statistics or the following two MATH courses: 135. Calculus I. and 136. Calculus II.
II. Electives
Students take a minimum of six additional units of biology coursework, of which 2 must be at the 300 or 400 level. Students are encouraged to select two electives from each of the following three areas: Cell and Molecular Biology, Organismal Biology, and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.
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Cell/Molecular Biology
231. Microbiology. (with lab)
245. Genetics.
250. Introduction to Cell Biology.
252. Research Methods in Cell Biology. (with lab)
288. Introduction to Neuroscience. (with lab)
309. Biochemistry.
333. Immunology. (with lab)
350. Cancer Biology. (with lab)
387. Cellular Mechanisms of Memory.
388. Drugs and the Brain. (with lab)
389. Advanced Neuroscience.
391. Scanning Electron Microscopy. (with lab)
392. Research Methods in Fluorescence and Confocal Microscopy. (with lab)
394. Research Methods in Biochemistry. (with lab)
395. Research Methods in Molecular Biology. (with lab)
415. Advanced Biochemistry.
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Organismal Biology
209. Vertebrate Natural History. (with lab)
215. Arthropods and Other Invertebrates. (with lab)
218. Ornithology. (with lab)
224. Biology of Plants. (with lab)
226. Comparative Animal Physiology (with lab)
227. Mammalogy. (with lab)
231. Microbiology (with lab)
230. Food from the Sea (with lab)
232. Laboratory Animals. (with lab)
258. Ethnobotany. (with lab)
315. Human Nutrition.
325. Mycology. (with lab)
341. Anatomy and Physiology I. (with lab)
351. Anatomy and Physiology II. (with lab)
353. Human Embryology.
370. Hormones, Disease and Development.
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Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
215. Fundamentals of Animal Biodiversity. (with lab)
218. Ornithology. (with lab)
221. General Ecology. (with lab)
227. Mammalogy. (with lab)
258. Ethnobotany. (with lab)
260. Once and Future Oceans
319. Plant Systematics. (with lab)
330. Ecology of Lakes and Rivers. (with lab)
335. Winter Ecology. (with lab)
343. Evolution. (with lab)
360. Marine Ecology.
380. Tropical Ecology.
440. Conservation Biology. (with lab)
III. Laboratory Requirement.
Students must complete the laboratory requirement in one of the following ways: 1) five units of course work with a laboratory component; 2) 3.75 units of course work with a laboratory component and a one unit of a lab or field-based SYE; or 3) 2.5 units of course work with a laboratory component and 1.25 units of a research methods course with lecture and laboratory.
Independent Research and the Senior Year Experience
Students who wish to conduct independent research before their senior year may do so by taking customized research methods courses (BIOL 381 and 382), or as seniors, by taking BIOL 468 and/or 469 (SYE: Tutorial Research) and BIOL 489 and/or 490 (SYE: Experimental Research). Students must discuss possible projects with members of the biology faculty. For more detail, see https://www.stlawu.edu/offices/biology.
Honors in Biology
To graduate with honors in biology normally requires 1 unit of independent research and 1 unit of honors -research in different semesters, a 3.5 major GPA, submitting a signed honors nomination form, a thesis, a public presentation, and approval of the honors project committee. A student wishing to be considered for honors in biology should enroll in SYE research (BIOL 489, or 490) during the first semester of research (usually, but not limited to, the fall semester of the senior year) for 1 unit of credit. The student, in consultation with the project advisor, should choose an honors project committee comprised of the project advisor and two other faculty members appropriate to the topic (one of these two may be from another department). This honors committee should be formed as soon as possible in the first semester of research.
At the end of the first semester, the honors project advisor, in consultation with the other members of the honors committee, evaluates a formal research proposal and progress toward the completion of the project. If the project is deemed worthy of honors in biology, the student is nominated as a candidate for honors and submits the honors nomination form to one of the department co-chairs. The student can then enroll in BIOL 499 (SYE: Honors Research) for the second (usually spring) semester for 1 unit of credit. However, only one unit can count toward the minimum requirements of the major.
Honors in the Environmental Science–Biology Combined Major
To graduate with honors in the environmental science–biology combined major, students must maintain a GPA of 3.5 or higher in biology and environmental studies courses and complete an honors research project having an environmental component or emphasis. The timetable and guidelines are the same as for honors in biology, except that the project must be guided by a project committee comprised of at least one faculty member from both environmental studies and biology. Also, the student is nominated for honors by both the environmental studies and biology faculty.
Minor Requirements
The minimum course requirements for a minor in biology are the two semesters of General Biology (BIOL 101 and BIOL 102) plus 3.5 additional units of biology courses above the 100 level. At least one of the additional units must be at the 300 level and two of the additional units must have a laboratory component. Independent research courses (BIOL 368, 369, 381, 382, 468, 469, 489, and 490) cannot be used for the biology minor. The department does not require specific courses but does strongly recommend that minors select courses that provide breadth. Advanced placement for the minor is the same as for the major.