Undergraduate Degree

The Bachelor of Arts in Zoology degree is designed for students pursuing careers in scientific application areas such as public policy, technical sales, law, and communications. This degree combines study in zoology with a significant amount of course work outside the sciences. Students are strongly encouraged to extend their knowledge and skills through experiential opportunities and a supplemental minor.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Zoology

1. The University requirements for bachelor's degrees as described in the Undergraduate Education section of this catalog; 120 credits, including general elective credits, are required for the Bachelor of Arts degree in Zoology.
   
   The University's Tier II writing requirement for the Zoology major is met by completing two of the following courses: Integrative Biology 328, 353, 355L, 384, 415, 425, 445, 450, 483, and 485.  Those courses are referenced in item 3. below.
   
   Students who are enrolled in the College of Natural Science may complete the alternative track to Integrative Studies in Biological and Physical Science that is described in item 1. under the heading Graduation Requirements in the College statement.  Certain courses referenced in requirement 3. below may be used to satisfy the alternative track.
2. The requirements of the College of Natural Science for the Bachelor of Arts degree.
   
   The credits earned in certain courses referenced in requirement 3. below may be counted toward College requirements as appropriate.
3. The following requirements for the major:

   a.	One of the following groups of courses (9 or 10 credits):
   	(1)	BS	161	Cell and Molecular Biology					3
   		BS	162	Organismal and Population Biology					3
   		BS	171	Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory					2
   		BS	172	Organismal and Population Biology Laboratory					2
   	(2)	BS	181H	Honors Cell and Molecular Biology					3
   		BS	182H	Honors Organismal and Population Biology					3
   		BS	191H	Honors Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory					2
   		BS	192H	Honors Organismal and Population Biology Laboratory					2
   	(3)	LB	144	Biology I: Organismal Biology					4
   		LB	145	Biology II: Cellular and Molecular Biology					5
   b.	One of the following groups of courses (5 or 6 credits):
   	(1)	CEM	141	General Chemistry					4
   		CEM	161	Chemistry Laboratory I					1
   	(2)	CEM	181H	Honors Chemistry I					4
   		CEM	185H	Honors Chemistry Laboratory I					2
   	(3)	LB	171	Principles of Chemistry I					4
   		LB	171L	Introductory Chemistry Laboratory I					1
   c.	Complete the following course (4 credits):
   	CEM	143	Survey of Organic Chemistry						4
   d.	One of the following courses (3 or 4 credits):
   	PHY	183	Physics for Scientists and Engineers I						4
   	PHY	231	Introductory Physics I						3
   	LB	273	Physics I						4
   	PHY	193H	Honors Physics I-Mechanics						4
   e.	One of the following courses (3 or 4 credits):
   	LB	118	Calculus I						4
   	MTH	124	Survey of Calculus I						3
   	MTH	132	Calculus I						3
   	MTH	152H	Honors Calculus I						3
   f.	One of the following courses (3 or 4 credits):
   	LB	119	Calculus II						4
   	MTH	126	Survey of Calculus II						3
   	MTH	133	Calculus II						4
   	MTH	153H	Honors Calculus II						4
   	STT	201	Statistical Methods						4
   	STT	224	Introduction to Probability and Statistics for Ecologists						3
   	STT	231	Statistics for Scientists						3
   	STT	421	Statistics I						3
   g.	All of the following courses (11 credits):
   	IBIO	341	Fundamental Genetics						4
   	IBIO	355	Ecology						3
   	IBIO	355L	Ecology Laboratory (W)						1
   	IBIO	445	Evolution (W)						3
   h.	Three additional courses in 300-400 level Integrative Biology courses.  Students are encouraged to consult with their academic advisor to identify courses which match their career goals.  Courses from other departments may be applied to this requirement with the approval of the student’s academic advisor.
   i.	Complete one course from each of the following three groups of courses (9 to 11 credits):
   	(1)	Writing (3 credits):
   		CSUS	433	Grant Writing and Fund Development (W)					3
   		WRA	320	Technical Writing (W)					3
   		WRA	331	Writing in the Public Interest (W)					3
   		WRA	341	Nature, Environmental, and Travel Writing					3
   		WRA	453	Grant and Proposal Writing					3
   	(2)	Communications (3 or 4 credits):
   		COM	100	Human Communication					3
   		COM	225	An Introduction to Interpersonal Communication					3
   		COM	240	Introduction to Organizational Communication					4
   		COM	275	Effects of Mass Communication					3
   		COM	300	Methods of Communication Inquiry					4
   		CSUS	325	Study and Practice of Communication for Sustainability (W)					3
   		FW	435	Integrated Communications for the Fisheries and Wildlife Professional					3
   	(3)	Computer Systems (3 or 4 credits):
   		CSE	101	Computing Concepts and Competencies					3
   		CSE	201	Fundamentals of Information Technology					3
   		CSE	231	Introduction to Programming I					3
   		FW	419	Applications of Geographic Information Systems to Natural Resource Management					4
   		GEO	221	Introduction to Geographic Information					3
   		and
   		GEO	221L	Introduction to Geographic Information Laboratory					1
   		GEO	324	Remote Sensing of the Environment					4
   		GEO	325	Geographic Information Systems					3
   		NSC	204	Introduction to Computational Modeling					4
   		Both Geography 221 and 221L must be completed to satisfy this requirement.
   j.	Six credits in 300–400 level courses offered by the Colleges of Arts and Letters or College of Social Science beyond the credits that are counted toward the University’s Integrative Studies requirement.  Credits from relevant courses completed from item 3.i. may be counted toward this requirement. Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be approved by the student’s academic advisor.
   k.	Additional credits in 300-400 level Integrative Biology courses as needed to meet the requirement of at least 33 credits. Students also may complete more than one course, or pair of courses, from item 3.i.  Additional courses completed from item 3.i. may be counted as Integrative Biology electives toward the 33 credits. Courses beyond those taken to satisfy item 3.i. may come from other departments with the approval of the student’s academic advisor.