Biology

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Department of Biology
College of Arts and Sciences

Science Building 330 ~ 260-481-6305 ~ www.ipfw.edu/bio

The study of biology helps you prepare for careers in research, teaching, industry, government, medicine, medical technology, and several other health-related fields. More than half of all graduates earning a B.S. in biology from IPFW go on to graduate studies, either for advanced degrees or for professional certification.

Biology is among the most interdisciplinary of all sciences and requires a broad background in chemistry, physics, and mathematics, as well as biology. This background enables biologists to study the evolution of life; the manifestations of life from the level of viruses, bacteria, and individual cells to the structure and function of organisms; and the interactions of living organisms with each other and with their environments.

The Department of Biology has extensive facilities for its teaching and research programs, and its 15 faculty represent many different fields within biology. Interested students can participate in research projects or in other forms of scholarly activity with individual faculty members (see Special Assignments in Biology under Options in Biology, below).

An Associate of Arts with a concentration in biology is described under Arts and Sciences in Part 5 of this Bulletin. A related program leading to a B.S. is available: life science teaching certification. This is described later in this part of the Bulletin. A minor in biology is also available.

Special Regulation for Biology Majors

Time Limit - All biology courses applied toward graduation must be completed within 10 years from the time the first biology course was completed.

Options in Biology

Preprofessional Study

Preprofessional students — those seeking careers in chiropractic, dentistry, medicine, optometry, osteopathy, physical therapy, podiatry, or veterinary medicine — should consult with their preprofessional advisor before deciding what specific elective courses in biology to take. Under exceptional circumstances, it may be possible for a biology major to begin professional school after completing three years of undergraduate work at IPFW and to receive credit for the final year after completing the first year of professional school. The B.S. is then awarded after the first year of professional school is completed. Detailed and early planning is necessary.

Medical Technology Preparation

After graduating with a Biology degree from IPFW, students may wish to participate in Medical Technology programs that have been certified by Purdue University, such as Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne.  Interested students should work with their advisor to make sure that they fulfill not only the requirements of the biology program, but also the prerequisites of the Medical Technology program. for example, Parkview Hospital currently requires Immunobiology and General Microbiology.

Special Assignments

Students who qualify may elect to do an independent project supervised by a faculty member. With the permission of the faculty member and the department chair, the student can enroll in BIOL 195,  BIOL 295 or BIOL 595. The student must work closely with the faculty member to design and complete the project. Credits earned in these courses cannot be used to satisfy A/B-elective requirements, and a maximum of 6 such credits can be used toward graduation as general elective credits.

Cooperative Education (Co-op) Program

Co-op is designed to provide employment experience in an area of your academic interest while you are still enrolled in school. A co-op experience may be repeated. You may earn up to 2 elective credits toward your degree.

Honors Degree in Biology

You may earn an honors degree in biology by achieving an overall GPA of 3.00 or higher and a biology GPA of 3.50 or higher, conducting a two-semester (6-credit) research project, preparing a senior thesis based on the research project, and giving an oral presentation of the thesis research. The senior thesis committee must be established one semester before graduation.

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