Biological Sciences, B.A.

The curriculum leading to the Biological Sciences, B.A. is designed for students who want to pursue a career in a health-related profession (dentistry, medicine, pharmacy, or veterinary medicine) or those interested in training in an allied health field (dental hygiene, medical and research technology, nursing, pharmacy or physical therapy). The B.A. is also appropriate for students wanting to combine another area of study–such as business, environmental studies, law, or science writing–with a solid background in biology.

University Requirements

Completion of Minimum University Requirements for an Undergraduate Baccalaureate Degree .

Minimum 120 credits and minimum GPA of 2.0
Completion of 45 upper-level credits, residence requirement, Writing Intensive requirement, and General Education requirement

Major Requirements

Minimum 55 credits or 16 courses. Biological Sciences evaluates completion of major requirements based on courses completed to account for variation in equivalent transfer course credits
Minimum grade of ‘C’ in courses applied to all major requirements and prerequisites
Residency Requirement: Minimum of 4 required BIOL courses completed in residence at UMBC
Students pursuing a double major or double degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, B.S. and Biological Sciences, B.A. complete unique electives for each degree

Course Requirements

Biology Core Courses (18 credits)

Complete the following courses. Students who earn a passing grade in BIOL 302 or BIOL 303 may not re-register for BIOL 141 or BIOL 142 .

Biology Electives (9-12 credits)

Complete one course or course sequence from each of the following categories. Some elective courses for the major are thematically similar and only one course may fulfill major requirements. These courses include BIOL 430 and BTEC 430 , BIOL 444 and BTEC 444 , and BIOL 495 and BTEC 395 .

Elective 1

Complete one of the following:

Elective 2

Complete any 400-level BIOL course, excluding BIOL 442 , BIOL 497H , BIOL 499 , or lab courses, in residence at UMBC.

Lab Elective

Complete one of the following:

Chemistry (13 credits)

Complete the following:

Physics (8 credits)

Complete the following. PHYS 121 and PHYS 122 may not satisfy some professional school admission requirements.

Mathematics (4 credits)

Complete one of the following:

Statistics (4 credits)

Complete one of the following:

Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Programs

Qualified students may apply to an accelerated program, which allows them to share courses between a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree. Students take graduate courses as undergraduate students and later apply those courses to master’s degrees. An undergraduate may apply to participate in an accelerated program even if the desired graduate program is in a department other than the one in which the student is majoring. More information is available from the Graduate School website: https://gradschool.umbc.edu/admissions/nontraditional/accelerated/