CALS

Honors in the Biology Major is an undergraduate program designed for students who desire a more challenging academic program leading to a degree with the designation “With Honors.” The program has a prescribed 20-credit requirement of Honors or equivalent courses in addition to a Senior Honors Thesis involving at least six credits of a senior honors thesis course sequence offered through an academic department. The student is obligated to present their work orally at the Spring CALS Research Forum.

To participate in the Honors in the Major Program, a student must be admitted to the CALS Honors Degree Program. This can be achieved by being in the upper 10% of their high school graduating class, by receiving an ACT score of 28 or an SAT score of 1240; students who have completed one or more semesters of college will need a 3.3. GPA.

The required 20 credits must be in courses that satisfy introductory biology and intermediate/advanced biology requirements of the Biology Curriculum, although other courses can be approved on a case-by-case basis.  Senior Honors thesis and other independent research credits do not count toward this 20 credit requirement.

Progress toward the “Honors in the Major” will be monitored by the program staff. Questions should be directed to the Honors advisors in the department. Students must maintain a GPA of 3.3 and satisfy the requirements listed above.

To apply: First declare the Biology Major, then complete the CALS Honors application form.

Before enrolling in an Honors thesis course, the student must produce a two-to-five page double-spaced thesis proposal that briefly introduces the biological problem and then describes the line of experimentation that is proposed for the thesis work. This proposal must be signed by both the student and his/her faculty mentor and submitted to be Biology major office. It will be evaluated by the Biology major chairs and the student will be notified of its acceptability. The proposal should be submitted well before the semester begins to allow time for approval and possible re-submission. The department the thesis is done in will determine requirements (e.g.,  due date, format). Two copies of the completed thesis, signed by the faculty mentor, must be submitted to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, which must certify it before Honors can be awarded at graduation.

See the CALS Office of Student Academic Affairs, 116 Agricultural Hall, for Honors in Research requirements.

L&S

Requirements:

1. An overall GPA of 3.3 and GPA in the major of 3.3.

2. Completion of 13 credits of honors at the intermediate or advanced level for courses in the biological sciences. Choose one of the following three options:

(a) 13 credits from the intermediate/advanced biology requirement for honors.
(b) Foundational course for honors AND 10 credits of the intermediate/advanced biology requirement for honors.
(c) Biocore 485 AND 10 credits of the intermediate/advanced biology requirement for honors (including Biocore 486 and 587).

3. Completion of six credits of Senior Honors Thesis in any of a number of biology departments across campus. The department the thesis is done in will determine requirements (e.g., due date, format).

To apply: First declare the Biology Major, then, pick up an Honors form from either the L&S Honors Office at 1401 Observatory Drive or the Biology Major Office in the Microbial Sciences Building.

Before enrolling in an Honors thesis course, the student must produce a two-to-five page double-spaced thesis proposal that briefly introduces the biological problem and then describes the line of experimentation that is proposed for the thesis work. This proposal must be signed by both the student and his/her faculty mentor and submitted to be Biology major office. It will be evaluated by the Honors Committee of the Biology major and the student will be notified of its acceptability.