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Oct 09, 2024
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USC Catalogue 2023-2024 [ARCHIVED CATALOGUE]
Biological Sciences (BA)
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The general education, writing, foreign language and diversity requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences are applicable. This degree provides general life science training and is suitable for double majors. Students seeking a more focused curriculum may choose from four areas of emphasis within the Biological Sciences major. These are Biotechnology; Ecology, Evolution and Environment; Marine Biology; and Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology. Areas of emphasis are denoted on transcripts.
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Lower-Division BISC Core Courses (8 units)
Collateral Sciences Courses (32 units)
General Chemistry Requirement: 8 units
Organic Chemistry Requirement: 8 units
Calculus Requirement: 4 units
Statistics Requirement: 4 units
Physics Requirement: 8 units
Introduction to Research-Active Faculty (1 to 2 units)
Enroll in one or both courses.
Upper-Division BISC Core Courses (12 units)
Upper-Division Electives (8 units)
Eight units of upper-division BISC course work available for major credit are required. No more than 4 units of BISC 490x may be used to fulfill the upper-division elective requirement. In addition, no more than two seminars (BISC 460 to BISC 462 ), totaling 4 units, may be applied to the upper-division elective requirement. It is expected that students will take 100-level BISC core courses during the first year, two 300-level BISC core courses during the second year, and the remaining core courses and the 300- or 400-level BISC major elective courses during the third and fourth years. - BISC 300L Introduction to Microbiology Units: 4
- BISC 307L General Physiology Units: 4
- BISC 313L Evolution and Population Genetics Units: 4
- BISC 314L Cell Culture Units: 4
- BISC 315L Introduction to Ecology Units: 4
- BISC 321 Multidisciplinary Seminar: Science, Technology and Society Units: 2
- BISC 326L Urban Conservation Biology Units: 4
- BISC 363L Mammalogy Units: 4
- BISC 365 Phylogenetics and Evolution Units: 2
- BISC 369L Ecology and the Natural History of California Units: 4
- BISC 372 Cell Biology Units: 4
- BISC 379L Our Future Changing Ocean Units: 4
- BISC 403 Advanced Molecular Biology Units: 4
- BISC 406L Biotechnology Units: 4
- BISC 407 Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience Units: 4
- BISC 408 Systems Neuroscience: From Synapses to Perception Units: 4
- BISC 410 Applications of Molecular Biology to Medicine Units: 4
- BISC 411 Advanced Cell Biology Units: 4
- BISC 414 Biology of Cancer Units: 4
- BISC 419L Microbiology for a Sustainable Future Units: 4
- BISC 421 Neurobiology Units: 4
- BISC 423 Epilepsy to Ecstasy: Biological Basis of Neurological Disorders Units: 4
- BISC 424 Brain Architecture Units: 4
- BISC 425 Genetics through the Scientific Literature Units: 4
- BISC 427 The Global Environment Units: 4
- BISC 428 The Biology of Health from a Global Perspective Units: 4
- BISC 429 Cancer Immunology Units: 4
- BISC 431L Aquatic Microbiology Units: 4
- BISC 434 Introduction to Genome Science Units: 4
- BISC 435 Advanced Biochemistry Units: 4
- BISC 438 Nutritional Biochemistry Units: 4
- BISC 444 Practical Analysis of Biological Data in R Units: 2
- BISC 445L Fundamentals of Vertebrate Biology Units: 4
- BISC 450L Principles of Immunology Units: 4
- BISC 457L Methods in Marine Biology and Biological Oceanography Units: 4
- BISC 460 Seminar in Marine and Environmental Biology Units: 2
- BISC 461 Seminar in Molecular and Computational Biology Units: 2
- BISC 462 Seminar in Neurobiology Units: 2
- BISC 469L Marine Biology Units: 4
- BISC 473L Biological Oceanography Units: 4
- BISC 480L Developmental Biology Units: 4
- BISC 483 Geobiology and Astrobiology Units: 4
- BISC 485 Advanced Seminar in Bacterial Survival and Evolution Units: 4
- BISC 486 Regenerative Medicine: Principles, Paradigms and Practice Units: 4
- BISC 488 Microscopy and Spectroscopy of Biological Systems Units: 2
- BISC 490x Directed Research Units: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
- BISC 491L Practical Aquaculture Units: 4
- BISC 493x Honors Seminar Units: 1
- BISC 494x Honors Thesis Units: 2
- ENST 335 Science, Health and the Environment Units: 4
- GEOL 412 Oceans, Climate, and the Environment Units: 4
- GERO 440 Biodemography of Aging Units: 4
- QBIO 401 Introduction to Computational Analysis of Biological Data Units: 4
- QBIO 475 Statistical and Evolutionary Genetics Units: 4
- QBIO 478 Computational Genome Analysis Units: 4
- QBIO 481 Structural Bioinformatics: From Atoms to Cells Units: 4
- QBIO 482 Systems Biology: Modeling the Dynamics of Life Units: 4
Total required units: 128
Free elective units: 10-11
Scholarship in Major Subject
The department requires that students receive a grade no lower than C- in their five core courses. They must maintain a 2.0 GPA in the upper-division biology and chemistry courses required for the major, as well as an overall 2.0 GPA. All major core courses must be taken on a letter grade basis. Honors Program in Biological Sciences
The department offers an honors program to outstanding students already pursuing studies for the BA or BS degree in Biological Sciences. This program offers students an opportunity to participate in undergraduate research, experience in writing an honors thesis summarizing the completed research, and experience in an honors seminar. Honors students are required to take two semesters of BISC 493x Honors Seminar (1 unit/ - semester) and one semester of BISC 494x Honors Thesis (2 units) in addition to fulfilling all requirements of the BA or BS degree. Honors students must also choose BISC 490x as one of their upper division electives. This program leads to the designation on the transcript of Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences with Honors.
Honors Admission Requirements
Students may apply to the department for admission to the honors program after having completed at least one year of work at USC with a minimum GPA of 3.5 in all science and math courses required for the major.
Honors Scholarship Requirements
For continuation in the honors programs, students must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the sciences and mathematics courses required for the major.
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