2024-2025 Academic Catalog
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Degree Core Requirements | ||
| BIOL 1115 | Principles of Biology Laboratory 1 | 1 |
| BIOL 1116 | Principles of Biology Laboratory 1 | 1 |
| BIOL 2004 | Genetics # | 3 |
| BIOL 2134 | Cell Function and Differentiation # | 3 |
| BIOL 2704 | Evolutionary Biology # | 3 |
| BIOL 2804 | Ecology # | 3 |
| CHEM 1035 | General Chemistry 1 | 3 |
| CHEM 1036 | General Chemistry 1 | 3 |
| Subtotal | 20 | |
| Major Requirements | ||
| BIOL 1004 | Biology Orientation Seminar 2 | 1 |
| CHEM 1045 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 1046 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 2535 | Organic Chemistry # | 3 |
| CHEM 2536 | Organic Chemistry # | 3 |
| CHEM 2545 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory # | 1 |
| CHEM 2546 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory # | 1 |
| PHYS 2205 | General Physics # | 3 |
| PHYS 2206 | General Physics # | 3 |
| PHYS 2215 | General Physics Laboratory # | 1 |
| PHYS 2216 | General Physics Laboratory # | 1 |
| Subtotal | 19 | |
| Elective Courses | ||
| Select 22 credits of Biological Sciences electives. | 22 | |
| a. Select at least one of the following: | ||
| Plant Biology # | ||
| General Zoology # | ||
| General Microbiology # | ||
| b. Select at least three linked or inclusive laboratory courses from the list below (two must be BIOL or cross listed courses). Note: courses used to complete this requirement also count as Biological Sciences elective credits (section c). | ||
| Linked Lab Courses 3 | ||
| General Microbiology and General Microbiology Laboratory # | ||
| Insect Biology and Insect Biology Laboratory # | ||
| Medical and Veterinary Entomology and Medical and Veterinary Entomology Laboratory # | ||
| Microbial Genetics and Microbial Molecular Genetics and Physiology Laboratory # | ||
| Pathogenic Bacteriology and Pathogenic Bacteriology Lab # | ||
| Immunology and Immunology Laboratory # | ||
| Soils and Soils Laboratory # | ||
| Introduction to Neuroscience and Neuroscience Laboratory # | ||
| Physiological Psychology and Laboratory in Physiological Psychology # | ||
| Inclusive Lab Courses 3 | ||
| Phage Hunters | ||
| Phage Hunters # | ||
| Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory # | ||
BIOL 3114 | # | |
| Plant Taxonomy # | ||
| Introductory Parasitology # | ||
| Introduction to Histology # | ||
| Food Microbiology # | ||
| Freshwater Ecology # | ||
| Environmental Microbiology # | ||
| Plant Ecology # | ||
| Aquatic Entomology # | ||
| Ornithology # | ||
| Invertebrate Zoology # | ||
| Freshwater Biomonitoring # | ||
| Bioinformatics Methods # | ||
| Mammalogy # | ||
| Herpetology # | ||
| Ichthyology #, ^ | ||
| Plant Pathology # | ||
| c. Select at least 12 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level from the following list of Biological Sciences elective credits. A maximum of 9 credits of non-BIOL or non-cross listed courses from the list below may be counted toward the 22 required Biological Sciences elective credits. | ||
| Cancer: Causes, Treatments, Costs | ||
| Biology of Sex | ||
| Human Biology: Concepts and Current Issues | ||
| Plants and Civilization | ||
| How Animals Think | ||
| Phage Hunters | ||
| Phage Hunters # | ||
| Plant Biology # | ||
| Biotechnology in A Global Society # | ||
| General Zoology # | ||
| General Microbiology # | ||
| General Microbiology Laboratory # | ||
| Insect Biology # | ||
| Insect Biology Laboratory # | ||
| Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory # | ||
BIOL 3114 | # | |
| Human Genetics # | ||
| Plant Taxonomy # | ||
| Medical and Veterinary Entomology # | ||
| Medical and Veterinary Entomology Laboratory # | ||
| Introductory Animal Physiology # | ||
| Introductory Parasitology # | ||
| Introduction to Histology # | ||
| Food Microbiology # | ||
| Molecular Biology # | ||
| Study Abroad (var. credit) | ||
| Freshwater Ecology # | ||
| Environmental Toxicology # | ||
| Developmental Biology # | ||
| Global Change Ecology # | ||
| Evolutionary Genetics # | ||
| Environmental Microbiology # | ||
| Plant Ecology # | ||
| Chemical Ecology # | ||
| Aquatic Entomology # | ||
| Ornithology # | ||
| Invertebrate Zoology # | ||
| Ethology # | ||
| Freshwater Biomonitoring # | ||
| Neurochemical Regulation # | ||
| Infectious Disease Ecology # | ||
| Social Behavior of Birds and Mammals # | ||
| Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Senior Seminar # | ||
| Microbial Genetics # | ||
| Microbial Physiology # | ||
| Microbial Molecular Genetics and Physiology Laboratory # | ||
| Virology # | ||
| Pathogenic Bacteriology # | ||
| Microbiomes # | ||
| Immunology # | ||
| Immunology Laboratory # | ||
| Pathogenic Bacteriology Lab # | ||
| Inflammation Biology # | ||
| Prokaryotic Diversity # | ||
| Bioinformatics Methods # | ||
| Proteomics and Biological Mass Spectrometry # | ||
| Cytogenetics # | ||
| Clinical Biology # | ||
| Cancer Biology # | ||
| Cell Biology # | ||
| Independent Study (var. credit) 3 | ||
| Undergraduate Research 3 | ||
| Comparative Animal Physiology and Anatomy # | ||
| Animal Breeding and Genetics # | ||
| Animal Nutrition and Feeding # | ||
| Biochemistry for Biotechnology and the Life Sciences # | ||
| Soils # | ||
| Soils Laboratory # | ||
| Wildlife Biology #, ^ | ||
| Mammalogy # | ||
| Herpetology # | ||
| Ichthyology #, ^ | ||
| Fish Ecology # | ||
| Marine Ecology # | ||
| Epidemiology Foodborne Disease # | ||
| Introduction to Neuroscience # | ||
| Introduction to Neuroscience # | ||
| Neuroscience Laboratory # | ||
| Neuroscience Laboratory # | ||
| Plant Pathology # | ||
| Microbial Forensics and Biosecurity # | ||
| Introduction to Neuroscience of Behavior # | ||
| Physiological Psychology # | ||
| Laboratory in Physiological Psychology # | ||
| Subtotal | 22 | |
| Free Electives | ||
| Select 14 credits | 14 | |
| Subtotal | 14 | |
| Pathways to General Education | ||
| Pathways Concept 1 - Discourse | ||
| ENGL 1105 | First-Year Writing (1F) | 3 |
| ENGL 1106 | First-Year Writing (1F) | 3 |
| Select three credits in Pathway 1a | 3 | |
| Pathways Concept 2 - Critical Thinking in the Humanities | ||
| Select six credits in Pathway 2 | 6 | |
| Pathways Concept 3 - Reasoning in the Social Sciences | ||
| Select six credits in Pathway 3 | 6 | |
| Pathways Concept 4 - Reasoning in the Natural Sciences | ||
| BIOL 1105 | Principles of Biology 1 | 3 |
| BIOL 1106 | Principles of Biology 1 | 3 |
| Pathways Concept 5 - Quantitative and Computational Thinking | ||
| MATH 1025 | Elementary Calculus (5F) | 3 |
| MATH 1026 | Elementary Calculus (5F) | 3 |
| STAT 3615 | Biological Statistics (5A) # | 3 |
| Pathways Concept 6 - Critique and Practice in Design and the Arts | ||
| Select 6 credits = 3 design + 3 arts, or 6 integrated design/arts | 6 | |
| Pathways Concept 7 - Critical Analysis of Identity and Equity in the United States | ||
| Select three credits in Pathway 7 | 3 | |
| Subtotal | 45 | |
| Total Credits | 120 | |
Notes
1 Students must earn a grade of "C" or better in BIOL 1105, 1106, 1115, 1116, CHEM 1035, CHEM 1036, or the equivalent. Only two attempts, including course withdrawals with grade of "W", are allowed for each course.
2 BIOL 1004 is required but will not be used to calculate in-major GPA.
3 A combined maximum of 4 credits of BIOL 4974 and/or BIOL 4994 taken A-F can be used toward Biological Sciences elective credit.
^ Course has major restriction: students may ask FiW to be added if seats are available.
# Some courses listed on this checksheet may have prerequisites; please consult the University Course Catalog or check with your advisor.
Cross listed Courses on this Checksheet
Students must have an in-major and overall GPA of 2.0 to graduate.
All BIOL courses (except BIOL 1004 Biology Orientation Seminar, BIOL 1214 Careers in Medicine, and BIOL 3814 Careers In Biological Sciences), any course taken to fulfill Biological Sciences elective credit, and all required CHEM, MATH, PHYS and STAT courses will be used to calculate in-major GPA.
BIOL majors who also are enrolled in the Microbiology major (no option) may count a maximum of 9 credits from the following courses toward the 22 required Biological Sciences elective credits: BIOL 3104, BIOL 3774, BIOL 3454, BIOL 3604, BIOL 4164, BIOL 4624, BIOL 4634, BIOL 4644, BIOL 4664, BIOL 4674, BIOL 4704, BIOL 4714, BIOL 4734, BIOL 4804, BIOL 4824, BIOL 4994, BCHM 3114, PPWS 4114, and FST 4634.
BIOL majors who also are enrolled in the Microbiology Biomedical option may count a maximum of 9 credits from the following courses toward the 22 required Biological Sciences elective credits: BIOL 3104, BIOL 3774, BIOL 3454, BIOL 3604, BIOL 4624, BIOL 4634, BIOL 4644, BIOL 4664, BIOL 4674, BIOL 4704, BIOL 4714, BIOL 4734, BIOL 4994, and BCHM 3114.
BIOL 1004 Biology Orientation Seminar: Any -university approved First-Year Experience (FYE) course
BIOL 2704 Evolutionary Biology: BIOL 2704H
BIOL 2804 Ecology: BIOL 2804H
BIOL 4474 Ethology: PSYC 2074 Animal Behavior
BIOL 4994 Undergraduate Research: BIOL 2994 Undergraduate Research
CHEM 1035 General Chemistry-CHEM 1036 General Chemistry: CHEM 1055 General Chemistry for Chemistry Majors-CHEM 1056 General Chemistry for Chemistry Majors
CHEM 1045 General Chemistry Laboratory-CHEM 1046 General Chemistry Laboratory: CHEM 1065 General Chemistry for Chemistry Majors Lab-CHEM 1066 General Chemistry for Chemistry Majors Lab
CHEM 2535 Organic Chemistry-CHEM 2536 Organic Chemistry: CHEM 2565 Principles of Organic Chemistry-CHEM 2566 Principles of Organic Chemistry
CHEM 2545 Organic Chemistry Laboratory-CHEM 2546 Organic Chemistry Laboratory: CHEM 2555 Organic Synthesis and Techniques Lab-CHEM 2556 Organic Synthesis and Techniques Lab
PHYS 2205 General Physics, PHYS 2215 General Physics Laboratory: PHYS 2305 Foundations of Physics
PHYS 2206 General Physics, PHYS 2216 General Physics Laboratory: PHYS 2306 Foundations of Physics
MATH 1025 Elementary Calculus: MATH 1225 Calculus of a Single Variable
MATH 1026 Elementary Calculus: MATH 1226 Calculus of a Single Variable
NEUR 2025 Introduction to Neuroscience-NEUR 2026 Introduction to Neuroscience: APSC 2025 -APSC 2026
STAT 3615 Biological Statistics: STAT 3005 Statistical Methods or STAT 3604 Statistics for Social Science
College of Science Foreign Language Requirement
Students who did not successfully complete at least two years of a single foreign, classical, or sign language during high school must successfully complete six semester hours of a single foreign, classical, or sign language at the college level. Courses taken to meet this requirement do not count toward the hours required for graduation. Please consult the Undergraduate Catalog for details.
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