Admission to the Biology Major/Minor

Overview

The admission policies for the Biology major and minor employ a two-part approach to increase inclusive and equitable admission into our Major and Minor. Admission to the major and minor is based on grades and written responses to prompts. We favor this approach over a strict GPA-only policy due to the potential biases inherent in grades, inconsistency among instructors in grading standards, and because including other factors in admission decisions provides alternate paths into the major and minor for students.

Application for majoring or minoring in Biology

Deadlines: (There is no application review during the summer quarter)

The deadlines for applications are the first Friday of the quarter prior to the quarter for which you plan to start your major or minor.  For example, if you are planning to start the major in fall quarter and are taking BIOL 206 and CHEM 163 in spring quarter, you would need to apply for the major by the first Friday of spring quarter.  

  • Fall quarter: First Friday of Spring quarter 
  • Winter quarter: First Friday of Fall quarter 
  • Spring quarter: First Friday of Winter quarter

The Biology Major/Minor application includes two parts:

  • Short essay prompts to provide us with information beyond your GPA
  • Cumulative grade-point average (GPA) for BIOL 204, BIOL 205, CHEM 161, and CHEM 162 (or the equivalent of these courses) that the department will calculate.

Students will need access to the Canvas course entitled “Biology Major and Minor Admissions Application” to complete the application. Those that have declared to be a Biology pre-major, will receive an invitation to join the Canvas course.  If you are not a Biology pre-major or plan to transfer to WWU, you need to contact the Biology department to request access to be enrolled in the Canvas course.

To be eligible to apply, students must have completed Biol 204, Biol 205, Chem 161, and Chem 162 (or equivalent courses) with C- or greater. In addition, students must have completed or be enrolled in Biol 206 and Chem 163. 

If you are transferring to WWU, you will also need to provide your transcripts with grades and syllabi for your introductory biology and chemistry courses. 

Short Essay Prompts 

The following are the essay prompts for the application:

  1. Describe your post-graduation goals and why a Biology degree is necessary for achieving your goals. (300-word limit)
  2. Obtaining a 4-year degree is a challenge and an accomplishment. Describe a challenging past experience (either academic or nonacademic) and the tools or strategies you used to persevere through it. (300-word limit)
  3. Collaboration within diverse groups of people is critical for advancing science. Describe at least one experience you have had in your life (either academic or nonacademic), and how that experience helped you better appreciate the value of diverse perspectives. (300-word limit)
  4. What else would you like us to know about you that is not reflected elsewhere in your application or academic history that may put other parts of your application in context? (300-word limit)
  5. (Optional) If you are applying to the major a second time, please describe how you have strengthened/grown as an applicant between your first application and now. You might discuss revising your essays or your performance in science classes completed since your first application. (300-word limit)

Please see rubric for admission prompts used by the admissions committee: Admission prompt rubric student.pdf (wwu.edu)

GPA

The cumulative grade point average for the courses BIOL 204 & 205 and CHEM 161 & 162 (or equivalents), will be calculated by the department as part of the application. For transfer students, we will need to determine which of your courses are equivalent to these courses to determine your GPA, and therefore will need your transcripts with grades and syllabi for your introductory biology and chemistry courses. 

Review of application

A committee of Biology faculty members will review the applications each fall, winter, and spring quarter (there’s no application review during summer quarter).

The graph below shows the admissions data for GPA from BIOL 204, BIOL 205, CHEM 161, and CHEM 162 (or the equivalent of these courses) from recent quarters.

Admitted student GPA range

Unsuccessful applications

We understand that unsuccessful applicants will be disappointed, and we support students in a few ways. 

  • Students can reapply to the program one time. 
  • We encourage students to contact the department to gain information about their application and help with developing a plan to strengthen their application (e.g., retake a course to improve their GPA, re-write their essays, or a combination of these).  
  • We also encourage students to discuss options about other programs at WWU. There are several majors that are closely aligned with degrees in Biology (e.g., Biochemistry, Environmental Science, Behavioral Neuroscience, and Marine and Coastal Science). 

Assignment of faculty advisors

All admitted students will be assigned a faculty advisor if they don’t already have one. Students may be reassigned to a new faculty advisor if their emphasis choice upon entry into the major is different than when they declared a pre-major. All newly admitted students are encouraged to meet with their faculty advisor and attend a departmental advising session before registration the following quarter to get help and guidance with any questions you may have.

Changing Biology Major Emphasis

Students who have been admitted to the Biology Major may switch to a different Biology emphasis within the major without having to reapply for admission via the Major Declaration Esign form. Requests for such changes are processed once per quarter (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer) at the start of each quarter, and are due on Friday of the first week of the quarter. All requests for switching among degree programs in Biology that are submitted after this date will be processed at the start of the following quarter.

Switching from the Biology Major to the Biology Minor

Students who have been admitted to the Biology Major can switch to the Biology Minor without having to apply for admission to the minor. Requests for such switches are processed once per quarter (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer) at the start of each quarter, and are due on Friday of the first week of the quarter.