Department of Biology Faculty/Staff Listing

General Information About the Department

Faculty Research Interests

Tentative Schedule of Course Offerings

Description of Courses

Degree Requirements for New Curriculum

General Course Schedule for New Curriculum

Degree Requirements for Old Curriculum

General Course Schedule (Suggested Pre-Professional) Old Curriculum

Pre-Nursing Program for Old Currriculum

Pre-Allied Health Program for Old Currriculum

Dual Degree Program in Allied Health Science for Old Currriculum

Graduation Requirements

Graduate School Information

Employment

Guidelines for Requesting Letters of Recommendation from Faculty

Biology Club, Alpha Epsilon Delta

Biology Reading/Computer Room

Academic Advisors Based on Major/Concentration

Please keep your printed copy of this handbook for reference throughout your career at the College of Charleston. Requirements may change in the future, buy you will only be responsible for those in effect at the time of your entrance - either as a freshman, as a transfer student, or as a returning student (if you leave the College for one or more semesters without a leave of absence).

In this unofficial publication, efforts have been made to be as accurate as possible. Requirements and courses are officially listed in the College of Charleston Undergraduate Catalog. This catalog should be consulted for further clarifying information.

GENERAL INFORMATION
ABOUT THE BIOLOGY DEPARTMENT

Biology is of fundamental importance in a liberal arts education because it provides the student with a keener insight into a deeper education of the many facts of living systems. For the non-science major, biology often serves as the only introduction to science and methods employed in scientific endeavors. For both majors and non-majors alike, a study of biology may provide life-long avocational interests. Those who major in biology are provided with a broad background into the science of life.

The Department of Biology's thirty-one (31) faculty members all hold doctoral degrees and have collective expertise in virtually all areas of modern biology. Teaching and counseling students are the first priority for the College of Charleston faculty. In addition to this, the faculty are involved in research in such areas as plant and animal molecular biology, nematode worm reproduction, insect biology, fish and invertebrate ecology, salamander competition and predation, molluscan genetics, satellite imaging of oceans, coral reef ecology, marine invertebrate physiology, developmental biology of fishes, invertebrates and its genetic regulation, taxonomy of marine algae, interactions between physical oceanographic phenomena and marine organisms, effects of habitat fragmentation on plant ecology, marine sediment-animal interactions, and evolutionary relationships and biogeography of fishes and invertebrates. The diversity of these research interests translates into a diversity of information available to College of Charleston students.

The Department of Biology offers (1) a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Biology, (2) a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Marine Biology, both of which prepare students for advanced study, (3) a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in Biology, which allows students who are not professionally oriented to pursue biology, and (4) a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Biology with an emphasis in Molecular Biology. A Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree in Marine Biology is also part of the curriculum.

A biology degree is not only valuable for advanced studies but also provides a background for the pursuit of a variety of careers - teaching, marine biology, medical and biological research, allied health services, fisheries biology, forestry, wildlife biology, horticulture, sales, industrial quality control, pollution control, museum work, and land-use planning. An Environmental Studies Minor is available for those students wishing to enhance their bachelor's degrees. Through the University of Charleston, the institution offers a Master's degree in Environmental Studies.

Note: A student who fulfills the requirement for a B.S. in Marine Biology and declares a major in such may not also simultaneously declare and hold a major for the B.S. in Biology. Likewise, a student who declares a major for the B.S. in Biology or the B.S. in Marine Biology may not simultaneously declare and hold a major for the B.A. in Biology. All exceptions must be approved by the Department Chair.

The Department of Biology has extensive facilities in the Science Center (downtown Charleston), the Grice Marine Laboratory (GML) at Fort Johnson, and various other facilities in downtown Charleston. Undergraduate courses are taught at all locations.

The Science Center facilities include thirteen (13) teaching laboratories for general biological, zoological, botanical, microbiological, and physiological courses, a reading/computer room, offices, and equipment areas. Facilities at the Grice Marine Laboratory include a classroom, one large teaching laboratory, aquarium and collection rooms, graduate student dormitory space, and smaller laboratories for research.

Several library facilities are located in the Charleston area. They include the Addlestone Library at the College of Charleston, the Medical University of South Carolina Library, the Marine Resources Research Institute Library at Fort Johnson, The Citadel Library, and the Charleston County Public libraries.

All pre-medical, pre-dental, and pre-veterinary students should establish contract with an advisor in their freshman year. (More health profession advising here.) By the end of their sophomore year, they should have confirmed their pre-professional advisor for the rest of their college career. You should plan on taking the professional school admission tests for the first time at the end of your junior year so that , if necessary, you can repeat them at the beginning of your senior year. Scheduling of all these tests are your responsibility.

You should apply to professional schools one year in advance of the day you plan to enter. Your pre-professional advisor will be willing to discuss the filing of these applications with you. Applications to take the MCAT or other admission tests are available of the Office of Career Development. Applications to medical school, for those schools that use the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS), are available in the Office of Undergraduate Academic Services, the Science Center 2^nd floor display case, and the Office of Career Development. You must write directly for those that do not use the service.