Biological Sciences B.A.: Pre-Health Profession Emphasis

This degree is designed for students wishing to pursue careers in professions such as Dentistry, Optometry, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Physician’s Assistant, etc. Requirements and electives are meant to meet the prerequisites for these professional programs, and students should be mindful of those requirements when choosing the elective courses. Additional courses to the major (such as a second semester of physics) and completion of service hours in the career may also be required for admission into these advanced degree programs. For students wishing to attend medical school, please see our B.S. Biology degree.

Required Courses

Core Courses

BIO 1Biological Dynamics

4

BIO 1LBiological Dynamics Laboratory

1

or

BIO 1LHHonors Biological Dynamics Lab

1

 

BIO 2Biological Dynamics

3

BIO 2LBiological Dynamics Laboratory

1

or

BIO 2LHHonors Biological Dynamics Lab

1

 

CHE 1AGeneral Chemistry

4

CHE 1ALGeneral Chemistry Laboratory

1

CHE 1BGeneral Chemistry

4

CHE 1BLGeneral Chemistry Laboratory

1

CHE 6AOrganic Chemistry

4

CHE 6ALOrganic Chemistry Laboratory

1

CHE 6BOrganic Chemistry

4

CHE 6BLOrganic Chemistry Laboratory

1

 

MTH 38Elements of Probability and Statistics

3

or

PSY 40Basic Statistical Methods

3

 

MTH 5ACalculus I

4

 

PHY 1AIntroductory Physics IA

4

or

PHY 11AMechanics

4

 

BIO 50AHuman Anatomy

3

BIO 50ALHuman Anatomy Laboratory

1

 

BIO 151Medical Physiology

3

and

BIO 151LMedical Physiology Laboratory

1

or

BIO 50BHuman Physiology

3

and

BIO 50BLHuman Physiology Laboratory

1

 

CHE 107Biochemistry

3

CHE 107LBiochemistry Laboratory

1

BIO 130Genetics

3

BIO 130LGenetics Laboratory

1

BIO 135Molecular Biology

3

BIO 135LMolecular Biology Laboratory

1

BIO 195Senior Seminar in Biology

3

Elective Requirements

BIO 50AHuman Anatomy

3

BIO 50ALHuman Anatomy Laboratory

1

and

BIO 151Medical Physiology

3

BIO 151LMedical Physiology Laboratory

1

or

BIO 50BHuman Physiology

3

BIO 50BLHuman Physiology Laboratory

1

Upper Division Elective Requirements

7 units in upper-division Biology courses from the following list, including at least one lab course
BIO 103Microbiology

4

BIO 103LMicrobiology Laboratory

0

BIO 105Immunology

3

BIO 141Cancer Biology

3

BIO 141LCancer Biology Laboratory

1

BIO 152Cellular Biology

3

BIO 152LCellular Biology Laboratory

1

BIO 157Advanced Topics in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

3

BIO 157LAdvanced Molecular Biology Laboratory

1

BIO 158LStem Cell Research Techniques Laboratory

1

BIO 160Neurobiology

3

CHE 109Advanced Biochemistry

3

Seminar / Research Requirements

Either

BIO 196Seminar Readings

2

Or two courses in

BIO 197Research Readings

1,1

Minimum total units required for B.A in Biological Sciences with a Pre-Health Profession emphasis: 72-74.

Plus 42 units of the LACE General Education requirements, including the Language requirement. Overall, students must complete a total of 124 semester units, with at least 45 upper-division units, to fulfill all requirements for a B.A. degree at MSMU.

*BIO 195 fulfills the capstone requirement for Biology.