Nov 21, 2024

2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog

Biology (B.S.) with Concentration in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

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Program: B.S.
Department of Biological Sciences
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Concentration
College of Science

Science Building 330 ~ 260-481-6305

This concentration within the Biology B.S. serves students with an interest in the complex interactions between organisms and the surrounding environment. It provides preparation for professions in environmental monitoring, research, and education for positions within governmental agencies, academic institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and private industry. This concentration also provides students with fundamental knowledge and skills in preparation for graduate study in the area. There is an emphasis on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in the curriculum, as well as theoretical and applied ecology.

Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this degree, students will demonstrate:

a level of competency for understanding core principles of evolution, organismal diversity, ecology, biological structure, biological function, molecular biology, and genetics.

the ability to locate and critically evaluate scientific information to help develop relevant questions and hypotheses, interpret the results of investigation, and synthesize and apply new and existing knowledge.

the ability to design studies to test biological hypotheses using laboratory, field, or computational methods that meet professional ethical standards.

the ability to effectively communicate the results of scientific research verbally and in writing.

the ability to learn independently, analyze data, interpret results, synthesize information, and to critically evaluate the significance of research results and new knowledge.

an awareness of the relevance of biological knowledge to human health and welfare in local, national and international communities.

Program Delivery:

This program is available on-campus

Declaring this Major:

Declare this major within the Department of Biological Sciences.
Students are eligible to complete no more than one concentration within the Biology B.S.

General Requirements:

Program Requirements:

Biology (Ecology and Evolutionary) 4-Year Plan

A GPA of 2.00 or higher for all courses required for the major.
A GPA of 2.30 or higher in biology core and biology elective/concentration courses.
A maximum of 6 credits in BIOL 29500 or 59500.
Check with advisor to discuss courses that may double-count.
All biology courses applied toward graduation must be completed within 10 years from the time the first biology course was completed.
Students accepted into the 5 Year Combined Degree Program in Biology (BS/MS) will be able to apply up to 12 credit hours of 500-level graduate courses (with a grade B- or above) in the M.S. degree plan of study to reduce the total number of additional credits in the M.S. degree to 18 credit hours.
Successful applicants for the combined degree program will have a minimum overall and Biology GPA of 3.3
New BIOL, ENTM, and FNR courses approved and added to the curriculum in future Catalogs may satisfy the major requirements.
New BIOL, ENTM, and FNR courses approved and added to the curriculum in future Catalogs may satisfy the elective requirements.
Transfer students with 30+ credits are not required to take the Freshman Success seminar if they haven’t previously taken such a course

To earn a B.S. with a major in Biology and the concentration in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, you must fulfill the following requirements in addition to the General Requirements noted above:

General Education Requirements: Credits 33

Click on the Purdue Fort Wayne General Education Requirements link above for details.
Some majors may require particular General Education courses as specified in their program description. Up to six credits of approved General Education courses satisfying requirements in Areas A and B, and three credits satisfying requirements in Area C, may originate in the major. A grade of C- or higher in each course, and an overall GPA of 2.0 is required to satisfy the Purdue Fort Wayne General Education Requirements.

Core (Major) Courses: Credits 23

BIOL 11700 - Principles Of Ecology And Evolution Cr. 4.
BIOL 11900 - Principles Of Structure And Function Cr. 4.
BIOL 12000 - Biology Resource Seminar Cr. 1.
BIOL 21700 - Intermediate Ecology Cr. 3.
BIOL 21800 - Genetics And Molecular Biology Cr. 4.
BIOL 21900 - Principles Of Functional Biology Cr. 4.
BIOL 49100 - Senior Biology Seminar Cr. 1 or 3. Cr. 3.

Supporting Courses

English Writing and Speaking: Credits 6

ENGL 23301 (or a college-approved equivalent: ENGL 20201, HIST 21700, ILCS 30000, POL 20700, or WOST 23000). This course is in addition to the General Education writing course (ENGL 13100 or equivalent).
COM 11400 (or the college-approved equivalent: HIST 12500).

Both courses require a grade of C- or better

Ethics and Diversity

This requirement will be met by completing one of the two sets of options listed below:

OPTION 1 - Credits 6
PHIL 33300 - Ethics And Diversity In Science Cr. 3.
Choose a course from the list below Cr. 3.
OPTION 2: Credits 9
PHIL 31200 - Medical Ethics Cr. 3.
or
PHIL 32800 - Ethics And Animals Cr. 3.
and
- Choose two courses from the list below Cr. 6.
See LIST OF APPROVED COURSES for Ethics and Diversity OPTIONS 1 & 2 in the Biology B.S. entry

Calculus and Statistics: Credits 9

The following calculus and statistics course pattern is typical. Course substitutions are possible with advisor approval. Please note that most graduate programs require a full year of calculus.

Elective Courses in the Concentration Credits: 15

To complete the concentration, take:

at least one course in the area of evolution and systematics
two courses with a laboratory are required from the full list of courses
the remainder of the elective credit hours within the concentration may be filled by choice from the full list of courses

Evolution and Systematics

BIOL 34500 - Vertebrate Biology Cr. 4.
includes laboratory
BIOL 50500 - Biology Of Invertebrate Animals Cr. 3.
includes laboratory
BIOL 52410 - Bacterial Diversity And Systematics Cr. 3.
FNR 50500 - Molecular Ecology and Evolution Cr. 3.

Ecology and Behavior

BIOL 33500 - Animal Behavior Cr. 3.
BIOL 34010 - Silvics Of North America Cr. 3. includes laboratory Cr. 3.
BIOL 43400 - Marine Community Ecology Cr. 3.
includes laboratory
BIOL 43700 - General Microbiology Cr. 4.
includes laboratory
BIOL 44500 - Aquatic Biology Cr. 3.
includes laboratory
BIOL 50100 - Field Botany Cr. 4.
includes laboratory
BIOL 50200 - Conservation Biology Cr. 3.
BIOL 50330 - Disturbance Ecology Cr. 3. includes laboratory Cr. 3.
BIOL 50401 - Mammalogy
includes laboratory
BIOL 52000 - Contemporary Parasitology Cr. 3.
BIOL 54110 - Invasion Biology Cr. 3.
BIOL 54300 - Population Ecology Cr. 4.
includes laboratory
BIOL 55600 - Physiology I Cr. 3.
BIOL 58301 - Environmental And Agricultural Microbiology Cr. 3.
separate laboratory available (BIOL 58302)
BIOL 58302 - Laboratory In Environmental And Agricultural Microbiology Cr. 1.
BIOL 58600 - Topics In Behavior And Ecology Cr. 3.
ENTM 33500 - Introduction To Insect Identification Cr. 4.
includes Laboratory

General Electives

Sufficient additional credits to bring the total to 120.

Time Limit

All Biology courses applied toward graduation must be completed within ten (10) years from the time the first Biology course was completed.

Total Credits: 120

Student Responsibility

You are responsible for ensuring that you satisfy all graduation requirements specified for each selected program. Thus, it is essential that you develop a thorough understanding of the required courses, academic policies, and procedures governing your academic career. If you cannot complete all program requirements by your stated graduation date but fail to remove those from your plan of study, the Registrar’s Office in consultation with your academic advisor will remove unmet pursuits from your plan of study. Changing curricular records during the graduation term of application may affect state or federal financial aid awards. All requests for exceptions to specific requirements must be made in writing and may be granted only by written approval from the appropriate chair or dean.

Additional Course Use

Courses listed below may also be considered in meeting specific degree requirements.

BIOL 12000 required; CHM 19400 and IDIS 11000 accepted

CHM 25400 and CHM 26100 required; CHM 26500 and CHM 26100 accepted

COM 11400 required; HIST 12500 accepted

PHYS 22000 and PHYS 22100 required; PHYS 21800 and PHYS 21900 accepted

STAT 24000 required; STAT 30100 accepted