Biological Sciences

In the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences .

Biology is an engaging and popular subject at many universities for a variety of reasons: it is a science that is in an exciting phase of development; it prepares students for careers in challenging and appealing fields such as human and veterinary medicine, environmental sciences, and biotechnology; and it deals with the inherently interesting questions that arise when we try to understand ourselves and the living world around us. Many of the decisions that society faces today deal with the opportunities and problems that biology has placed before us.

The biological sciences major is available to students enrolled in either the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences or the College of Arts and Sciences. Students work with faculty, professional staff, and student advisors in selecting their concentration and in choosing the course options that each offers. The Office of Undergraduate Biology (OUB) in 216 Stimson Hall oversees advising for the biological sciences major, facilitates the Biology Scholars Program, and coordinates the extensive undergraduate biology research program, including the biology research honors program.

The biological sciences major is designed to enable students to acquire the foundations in physical and life sciences necessary to understand modern biology and to pursue advanced studies in a specific area of biology. Concentrations include: animal physiology; biochemistry; computational biology; ecology and evolutionary biology; general biology; genetics, genomics and development; human nutrition; insect biology; marine biology; molecular and cell biology; microbiology; neurobiology and behavior; plant biology; and systematics and biotic diversity. Students interested in marine sciences at Shoals Marine Laboratory should consult www.shoalsmarinelaboratory.org and contact the academic coordinator listed on the staff page. For more details about the biological sciences curriculum, please refer to the Biological Sciences  section in this catalog or visit biology.cornell.edu. For details regarding the minor in biological sciences, please refer to the Biological Sciences  section of this catalog.