Major Requirements

Individual Program

Organismal Biology

Students must select one course from the list below:

Cellular and Molecular Biology (2 courses)

Environmental Biology

Students must select one course from the list below:

Evolutionary Biology

Organismal Biology

Students must select one course from the list below:

Upper-division Biology

Students must select three 300-level Biology courses (at least two of which must be Occidental College Biology laboratory courses).

Senior Seminar

SUPPORTING COURSEWORK

Students are required to complete five additional courses. Two must be in chemistry as detailed below and three additional quantitative courses.

Chemistry

Quantitative Coursework

Calculus

Data Analysis

Students must select one course from the list below:

Additional Quantitative Course

Students must complete one additional elective (or a minimum of four units) either from the list above or from the following list:

Emphasis in Cell and Molecular Biology

Organismal Biology:

Students must select one course from the list below:

Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology

Cell and Molecular Biology

Students must select two courses from the list below:

Environmental Biology

Students must select one course from the list below:

Evolutionary Biology

Organismal Biology

Students must select one course from the list below:

Upper-division Biology:

Students must complete a total of three 300-level Biology courses. Two must be chosen from the list below:

Senior Seminar

SUPPORTING COURSEWORK

All Biology majors must complete the required Supporting Coursework requirements. Please see above for more detail.

Emphasis in Environmental Science

Biology Foundation:

(Eight courses required)

Students must select one course from the list below:

Students must select one course from the list below:

Students must select one course from the list below:

Select three courses from the list below:

Chemistry Component:

(Two courses required)

Economics Component:

(Two courses required)

Geology Component:

(3 required)

Mathematics Component:

Select one option as detailed below:

Option 1-

Option 2-

Emphasis in Marine Biology

Students are required to satisfy all the requirements for the biology major and must take four of the following upper-division courses:

WRITING REQUIREMENT

Students majoring in Biology will satisfy the final component of Occidental College's campus-wide writing requirement by successfully completing two courses at the 300-level (or appropriate course work). Students should familiarize themselves with the departmental requirement at the time of declaring the major. See the Writing Program and consult the department chair for additional information.

HONORS

The Honors Program at Occidental College is designed to allow the superior student’s attention to be focused on a directed investigation for a sustained period of time. It is expected that students admitted to the College Honors Program will have established themselves as outstanding prospects for individualized work in the department of their major and will also have established themselves as doing work of very high quality in all that they have undertaken at Occidental. Student admission to the College Honors Program will be by formal action of the faculty in the student’s major department (taken from the College Catalogue statement on Honors).

Requirements

• Student typically will have worked on a research project for 2 semesters (or 1 semester + summer session) minimum, before applying for honors
• Student must have an average GPA of 3.25 (college policy)

Application Process

• Student should discuss with their research mentor and submit an official Letter of Intent to the Biology Chairperson by the beginning of their senior year, or sooner.
• The letter of intent should include a summary of research results (realized and projected), as well as significance of the research and any projects in progress at the time of submission.
• Applications will be evaluated by the Biology faculty.
• Students nominated for honors will be notified by the Biology Chairperson.

Completion Process

• At the time of nomination, each candidate will be assigned an honors thesis committee of two Biology faculty members, in addition to their faculty mentor. This committee will be available for guidance and to help ensure that milestones are met in a timely manner.
• Milestones will include a thorough literature review, written drafts of the introduction, methods, and results sections, including draft figures, and a final discussion section, as well as preparation of a public seminar.
• The candidate must complete a written thesis of their work. It is expected that the student will spend part of their final semester or directed research writing the thesis.
• The written thesis will be due to the mentor by Monday in the 4th week of February.
• The revised honors thesis will be due to the committee by Monday in the 3rd week of February.
• The thesis will be reviewed by committee, and final revisions must be submitted by the last day of March.
• Honors candidates will also give a presentation on their research during the week of April 15. These presentations will last approximately 15 minutes, with 5 min for questions.
• Honors grades are Pass/Fail and reported to the registrar by the Chair. The chair will inform the students of their grade when it is decided upon by the committee.