Largest of the science fields in numbers of students, the Biology Department offers an excellent preparation for both the pre-medical student and the pure biology enthusiast. For the honors student, Biology requires no thesis and no general examinations, though the interested student can take a half-course working on some research problem.

To receive a degree from the Biology Department, the average student must take six courses in Biology and related subjects. Of these courses, one must be in physics, one in chemistry, plus Biology 1. At least one half-course must be from each of the major divisions in biological science: botany, zoology and physiology. In certain cases, Natural Science 5 may be substituted for Biology 1.

Seniors Do Research

Honors candidates must present one and a half extra courses, one half course in Biology, and two others in Biology or related fields approved by the department. Most of the honors students take Biology 40, the research course, in their senior year.

Biology is generally a convenient concentration for pre-medical students since courses like Biology 1 and 122 (Comparative Verterbrate Anatomy) are ordinarily an important part of the preparation for medical school. More than that, the department offers an excellent introduction to the kind of experimentation that the medical schools employ constantly; the student, for instance, can get a very thorough background in the technique of studying micro-organisms and laboratory animals.

For the non-pre-medical students, the Biology Department's top flight faculty makes concentration here among the best pre-graduate Biology training in the country.