College of Biological Sciences

All students in the College of Biological Sciences must satisfy the following college requirements in addition to satisfying the University Requirements and the General Education Requirement.

Unit Requirements

Total Units.Complete no less than 180 units incorporating the unit credit limitations listed below. No student may exceed 225 units in their academic career without approval of the Dean. Units earned in Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams are not counted toward this 225-unit limit. Upon reaching 200 units, a student must submit a quarter-by-quarter graduation plan to the Dean's Office or a hold will be placed on his/her registration.

Upper Division Units. Complete 64 upper division units.

Unit Credit Limitations

• Passed/Not Passed Units. All courses used to satisfy major requirements must be taken on a letter-graded basis, unless courses are only offered on a Passed/Not Passed basis.
• Physical Education. Maximum of 6 units of Physical Education 1, 6 and similar physical activity courses including transfer work.
• Transfer work. Maximum of 105 units of credit earned at two-year institutions (community college).
• Graduate Courses. Courses numbered 200-299 may not be applied toward the 64-unit upper division requirement.
• Professional and teaching courses. Maximum of 9 units in courses numbered 300-399 and 400-499. These units may not be applied toward the 64-unit upper division requirement.
• Upper division standing. Must complete 84 units before enrolling in 192, 194H and 199 to receive degree and upper division credit.
• Special Study. Not more than 5 units per quarter of Special Study courses (99, 194H, 199).
• Nonstandard Courses. Maximum of 20 units of nonstandard courses including transfer work.*
  
  Nonstandard courses are defined here as tutoring, internship, research, research conference, honors research and similar course activities. Some examples of these courses are, but are not limited to, courses numbered 90C, 92, 92C, 97T, 97TC, 99, 189, 190C, 191, 192, 192C, 193, 194H, 197T, 197TC, 199, etc. Courses numbered 98 or 198 are not included in this 20-unit limitation.
  There are additional unit credit limitations on tutoring and internship units.
  • Tutoring. Maximum of 3 tutoring units including but not limited to 97T, 197T, 97TC and 197TC.
  • Internship. A maximum of 6 internship units including but not limited to 92, 192, 92C, 192C.

*Specific exceptions to these limits may be granted by the Committee on Undergraduate Petitions based on the uniqueness of the experiences and their concordance with the petitioner's educational objectives.

Residence Requirement

Meet university residence requirement. No additional college residence requirements.

Scholarship Requirement

Students must attain at least a 2.000 GPA for all courses required in their major. Students must also attain a 2.000 GPA in all Depth Subject Matter courses required in their major. Students who fail to maintain a 2.000 GPA in courses required for their major over two consecutive quarters may be required to withdraw from the major.

• Repeating Courses. Students may once repeat courses in which they received a grade of D+ or less. To repeat a course more than once, students must petition the Dean for approval prior to enrolling in the course.
• Passed/Not Passed Grading Option. All courses used to satisfy major requirements must be taken on a letter-graded basis, unless courses are only offered on a Passed/Not Passed basis.

English Composition Requirement

The English Composition requirement may be satisfied in one of two ways:

• Completing 8 units, to include 4 upper division units, in English composition courses with at least a C- or Passed grade from the following list: Comparative Literature 1, 2, 3, 4, English 3, Evolution and Ecology 12, Native American Studies 5, Nematology 150, University Writing Program 1, 18, 19, 101, 102A, 102B, 102C, 102D, 102E, 102F, 102G, 104A, 104B, 104C, 104D, 104E, 104F.

OR

• Passing the English Composition Examination, administered by the Entry-Level Writing program, upon completion of 70 units of degree credit. This examination does not yield credit. Students interested in entering the health science field should check with the Health Sciences Advising Office or the Dean's Office before choosing this option.

Additional Bachelor of Arts Requirements

Bachelor of Arts degrees are available in Biological Sciences; Evolution, Ecology and Biodiversity; Exercise Biology; Microbiology; and Plant Biology. These degrees offer students an opportunity to broaden their education while pursuing a rigorous life science major.

Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degrees must complete two additional requirements.

1. Foreign Language. The requirement can be met in one of three ways:

• Complete with passing grades 15 quarter units of college level course work, or the equivalent thereof, in a single language.
• Attain a minimal score prescribed by the Committee on Undergraduate Curriculum and Educational Policy, in the College Entrance Examination Board Achievement Test in Foreign Language, which may be taken at any time during the student's high school career, or any other achievement test approved by the Committee on Undergraduate Curriculum and Educational Policy.
• Placement beyond the 15-unit level on a placement/proficiency examination offered by one of the foreign language departments of the University.

2. Breadth Requirements. Complete one of the following options:

• At least three upper division courses in a single program in the humanities or social sciences, which are not offered in satisfaction of major, college English composition or General Education requirements. Each course must be at least three units and may not include internship, research, tutoring, other non-standard courses or directed group study courses.
• At least three lower or upper division courses in the fine arts, which are not offered in satisfaction of major, college English composition or General Education requirements. Each course must be at least three units and may not include internship, research, tutoring, other non-standard courses or directed group study courses.
• A certified minor or an additional major in the humanities, social sciences, or fine arts from any UC Davis college or program. Minors and all majors must be completed before accumulating 225 total units.

Declaration of Major/Undeclared—Life Sciences

Students must declare a major by 90 units. A hold will be placed on a student's registration if he/she is still undeclared after completing 90 units.

All changes of major and college must be completed before the beginning of the student's quarter of graduation.

Students with Biological Sciences majors and students who are Undeclared—Life Sciences use the College of Biological Sciences Dean's Office for advising on their program. All other students who are enrolled in a major administered by the College of Biological Sciences should see the master or staff adviser in the department office that houses their major, as listed in the catalog. All students, regardless of their college affiliation, working on a major administered by the College of Biological Sciences should obtain university, general education, college and other non-major academic advising from the College of Biological Sciences Dean's Office.

Degree Check

Students are encouraged to meet with their academic adviser at least once a year to ensure timely graduation. Students are required to consult an academic adviser at two points in their academic careers:

• Before accumulating 90 units.
• Before accumulating 135 units.
• In addition, if a you are taking courses which, if passed, will cause your unit total to exceed 200 units and you intend to register for the next quarter, you must file a plan with your adviser that leads to graduation within 225 units. If the plan anticipates registering after you have accumulated 225 units, the plan must be submitted to the Dean for approval.

A hold may be placed on your registration if you do not meet any of these advising requirements.

Degree Requirement Changes or Catalog Rights

On occasion, the faculty makes changes in the requirements that students must satisfy to obtain the baccalaureate degree. So that you will not be penalized by changes that may work to your disadvantage and so that you will benefit by changes that assist you in completing your degree requirements, it is college policy that you may choose to fulfill the university and college requirements (see General Education RequirementGeneral Education Requirement for an exception) as stated in any UC Davis General Catalog in effect at the time you were registered at UC Davis. If you have transferred to UC Davis from a community college, state college, or another university, and were matriculated to a regular quarter prior to Fall 2006, you may follow the requirements as stated in any UC Davis General Catalog in effect either during the three years immediately preceding your transfer to Davis or at the time you first registered at that institution, whichever is most recent. Once you have chosen the year of the General Catalog under which you wish to be governed, you must satisfy all of the university and college requirements specified in that catalog.

With respect to the completion of your major requirements, most of the majors in the College of Biological Sciences require completion of the major degree requirements in effect at the time you officially declared your major. However, because departments differ in how they handle these matters, check with the department or major program office if you have any questions about which requirements apply to you.