Biology Major

Major Requirements

All biology majors will complete a common core of biology courses and additional supporting courses. However, an appropriate course of study at the undergraduate level will vary from student to student depending upon the student’s interests and career goals. For example, students majoring in biology may choose to take a broad course of study in the discipline thus maximizing exposure to major disciplinary concepts and providing a strong background for specialization at the graduate level. Alternatively, biology majors may choose to focus on a particular subdiscipline of biology or on the intersection of biology with another discipline.

After core and intermediate level study, biology majors often participate in a research experience at the advanced level, which is empirical in nature (i.e. based on the testing of an hypothesis through observation or experimentation.) Ordinarily, students complete this research during their junior or senior year after significant coursework in biology and supporting disciplines has been completed.

Effective catalog—Students are normally expected to satisfy the major or minor requirements in effect at the time of their initial declaration in their sophomore year. The requirements for a major in biology are: 38 credits in biology and five supporting courses (20 credits).

Transfer students wanting to graduate from Macalester with a major in biology must take at least four 4-credit biology courses at Macalester in addition to the BIOL 489 - Senior Seminar , only one of which can be an internship or independent.

Required courses in biology for the major:

BIOL 255 - Cell Biology and Genetics Laboratory Methods 
BIOL 260 - Genetics 
BIOL 265 - Cell Biology 
BIOL 270 - Biodiversity and Evolution 
BIOL 285 - Ecology 

The required courses (above) may be taken in any order, however, BIOL 260 - Genetics  is normally taken before BIOL 265 - Cell Biology  since CHEM 112  or concurrent enrollment is a prerequisite for Cell Biology . BIOL 255 - Cell Biology and Genetics Laboratory Methods  must be taken concurrently with either BIOL 260  or BIOL 265 . The core courses have been developed for students beginning their Biology education. Ideally, the core courses should be completed by the end of the sophomore year, and must be completed no later than the end of the junior year.

Four upper level biology courses, at least two with laboratory (at least two of the four upper level courses must be taken at Macalester)

BIOL 489 - Senior Seminar , offered every spring

BIOL 489 - Senior Seminar  is required as the capstone experience and consists of:

1. participation in BIOL 489 - Senior Seminar (4 credits) ;
2. the production of a major thesis-driven, analytical paper during the senior year, written through multiple drafts, which includes a thorough review of the literature; and
3. the delivery of an oral presentation to the department or at an approved undergraduate or professional research conference during the senior year.

While a research experience conducted in the department through research courses (Biology 470–478) may form the basis of the written and oral presentations, students may choose to present work they have done in other contexts such as internships, independent study or study-away opportunities.

Students may count only one course from Biology 470–478 or one independent study or internship toward their biology major.

Supporting courses for the biology major:

A strong background in supporting sciences is important to all students studying biology. Many core concepts in biology have their foundation in the physical sciences and mathematics. Furthermore, the work of biologist continues to become more interdisciplinary. For these reasons, all majors must complete an approved set of supporting courses.

Required supporting courses:

CHEM 111 - General Chemistry I: Structure and Equilibrium  and CHEM 112 - General Chemistry II: Energetics and Reactivity  or CHEM 115 - Accelerated General Chemistry 
MATH 135 - Applied Calculus  (see math/statistics guidelines below)
MATH 155 - Introduction to Statistical Modeling  (see math/statistics guidelines below)

Note: Deviations from the MATH 135 /MATH 155  sequence will not be accepted unless approved ahead of time by the Chair.

Math/Statistics Guidelines

Many biology majors take calculus and/or statistics in high school. The MATH 135 /MATH 155  sequence is still appropriate for most such students, even those who took AP or IB courses and scored well on the tests. The reason is that MATH 135 /MATH 155  emphasizes the calculus and statistics of multiple variables, topics not encountered in even the most advanced high-school courses.    

Those biology majors with strong high-school calculus preparation (see Math/CS department web site) and who plan eventually to take MATH 237 - Multivariable Calculus  may elect to skip MATH 135 . If prepared, those students can start directly with MATH 237 , or may take MATH 137  then MATH 237 . MATH 137  may not replace MATH 135  unless MATH 237  is also taken.

Note: Some electives for the biology major have MATH 137  as a pre-requisite: PHYS 227 - Principles of Physics II  and CHEM 311 - Thermodynamics and Kinetics . Students who plan to take CHEM 312 - Quantum Mechanics and Spectroscopy  are advised to take MATH 237 .

Students who do not plan to take MATH 237  or MATH 236  should take MATH 135 , even if they are prepared to enter MATH 137  directly.

All students must enroll in MATH 155 - Introduction to Statistical Modeling .

Elective supporting courses:

One elective supporting course selected from the following: One elective supporting courses among the following: ANTH 115 , ANTH 239 , ANTH 240 , CHEM 211 ,  CHEM 222 ,  COMP 120 ,  COMP 121 , COMP 123 ,  GEOG 225 , GEOL 160 , GEOL 165 , GEOL 300 , MATH 237 ,  MATH 253 ,  MATH 354 , PHYS 221  or  PHYS 226 .

Your selection of supporting courses should be made in consultation with your advisor and approved by the Chair. Your long-term goals willinfluence your choice of supporting courses. For example, if you are interested in a career in medicine or research in the biomedical sciences we recommend you complete a year of organic chemistry and a year of introductory physics. Students interested in pursuing an ecology path should consider taking a GIS course, intermediate or advanced math or statistics, or a geology course. Students planning a career as a science educator at the primary or secondary level should consider taking supporting courses in several of the science departments, as well as from the Educational Studies Department.

Individualizing the Biology Major

In consultation with one or more biology faculty members, each student will develop a major plan by choosing appropriate electives in biology and supporting disciplines. By their choice of electives, students may explore a variety of biological subdisciplines or focus on one or two areas of study. For example, students may design majors that focus on such areas as ecology; evolution; immunology and microbiology; genetics, cell and developmental biology; plant biology; biochemistry; or neurobiology. Biology majors interested in attending medical school after graduation should refer to the “Premedical Program” in the “Special Programs” section of this catalog and should consult a premedical advisor as early as possible in their planning process.

Requirements for the major with added emphasis

Increasingly, biological scientists address questions by working in groups that are interdisciplinary in nature. Thus, interdisciplinary fields of study have emerged that cannot be adequately covered within a single department. Two such interdisciplinary fields, Biochemistry and Neurobiology can be explored through an added emphasis to a biology major. Students choosing such a major with EMPHASIS will have this noted on their transcript (e.g. Biology Major with Added Emphasis in Neurobiology). In  cases, students must successfully complete the core requirements for the biology major: BIOL 255 , BIOL 260 , BIOL 265 , BIOL 270 , and BIOL 285 ; CHEM 112  or CHEM 115 ; MATH 135  and MATH 155 ; and BIOL 489  Senior Seminar. It is expected that the required senior presentation will be in the area of the student’s emphasis. Students should configure their electives in consultation with a biology faculty member using the following guidelines: