Information about Changes of Major and Transfers into a Biology Program

Comparing Programs and Choosing Courses

There are multiple programs offered by the Biology Department so that we can help you achieve your goals! But, with so many programs it can be a bit…let’s say confusing! What program do I want? What is the difference between them? What courses should I take for my program?

In addition to the resources offered on the Advising page, we’ve put together a few additional resources that will hopefully help you compare the programs and help explain course choice.

PLEASE NOTE: These resources do not replace the Academic Calendar. Sometimes there are discrepancies between the information found here and the Official Academic Calendar. The Official Academic Calendar will always be considered correct and you should ALWAYS check the information you receive here against that resource.

1. Comparing the programs offered by the Department of Biology

We have numerous programs offered for you and sometimes you may want to compare them to see which one is right for you!

To help, we have put together some tables that summarize degree requirements across Biology programs at a quick glance!

NOTE: These tables are based on the Academic Calendar for 2021-2022. The program requirements may change from year to year and you must meet the requirements of the program in the year that you enrolled! You can still use these tables for quick comparisons, but must also refer back to the Academic Calendar for your enrollment year! Also, the comparison tables do not replace the Academic Calendar and while useful for planning, you must ensure your own degree requirements.

Bachelor Degree – BSc 3 year (Biology and Environmental Biology)

Coming soon!!! We are working on getting the following tables together for you:

Honours Bachelor Degree – BSc 4 year (Biology and Biomedical streams)

Specialized Honours Bachelor Degree – BSc 4 year (Biology, Biomedical, Biotechnology streams)

International Honours Bachelor Degree – iBSc 4 year

Honours Double major, Major/Minor Degrees

Older Comparison tables:

Bachelor Degree – BSc 3 year (Biology and Environmental Biology PRIOR to 2021)

(Biology, Biomedical Science, Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Environmental Biology, iBSc Biology)

1. If you are already in one of the above programs

We normally approve all “Bio to Bio” requests assuming all admission requirements and standing requirements are satisfied*. This refers to the following requests:

From:

BSc Biology (all streams Biology, Biomedical Science, Biotechnology), BSc Biochemistry or BSc Environmental Biology or iBSc Biology (all streams)

To:

BSc Biology (all streams Biology, Biomedical Science, Biotechnology), BSc Biochemistry or BSc Environmental Biology or iBSc Biology (all streams)

Note: if you are switching into double major or major/minor programs, approval of the department of the other major/minor will also be required.

2. If you wish to transfer into a Biology Program from other programs or to add a Biology major/minor to your current program

Approval for all requests depend on program capacity and academic standing.

When we are accepting requests the following criteria will apply:

To be considered: students must meet the general requirements for the program (i.e. grade 12 requirements, academic standing requirements), have completed 24 credits at YorkU, completed or have transfer credits for BIOL 1000 3.00 and BIOL 1001 3.00, and have an overall GPA greater or equal to 5.

To be approved:

If space permits, students meeting requirements to be considered (see above) who have an overall GPA greater than or equal to 7 will be approved.

Possible approval:

For students meeting requirements to be considered with an overall GPA equal to or greater than 5 and less than 7, requests will be reviewed in early June and late August and approved based on capacity, courses taken and GPA. Only a few are likely to be approved because of limits in program capacity.

2. More information on Course selection

So by now you have compared the programs above and have a general understanding of what is required, in terms of GPA cut-offs, etc. You’ve even chosen a program that best suits you! But you still have questions about which courses to take. Don’t worry, that is the number one question that our students ask: What courses are needed to complete my degree?!?!?

So let’s look at some summaries of which courses you need for each program. These are only summaries! Remember: Always check your Academic Calendar!

**(please note that this information is taken from the 2020-2021 Academic Calendar. There are occasionally changes each year so refer to the calendar of the year that you enrolled at York)**

Choose from the following to see a summary of the course credit requirements for each program: COMING SOON!!

3. Videos explaining Course Selection according your your program and year

A few important notes before specific advice on choosing courses!

1. The following are scenarios when you definitely should contact the Department and ask for assistance at least one week prior to your enrollment window:

you have a prerequisite course that is a repeated course,
you have a transfer credit,
you have a pass/fail grade,
you have a deferred grade, or PDG
if you are currently enrolled in a prerequisite course for a course you wish to take.

2. ****Keep in mind we strictly enforce all prerequisite courses in the department of biology. Please do not email us requesting courses for which you do not meet the prerequisites.****

3. ****Watch out for GL/BIOL courses when enrolling! They are NOT SC/BIOL and DO NOT count for BIOLOGY credits or requirements! Tricky!!!***

For students entering first, second or third year

Please watch the appropriate video presentations below to learn more about choosing courses

Year	Resources
First Year Advising – Biology	Presentation: Choosing your courses for second year – Biology Presentation: First Year Advising Part II
First Year Advising – Choosing your courses for second year – Biomedical Science	Presentation: Choosing your courses for second year – Biomedical Science Presentation: First Year Advising Part II
Choosing courses for second year – Biotechnology	If you are in Biotechnology, please consult the academic calendar here https://calendars.students.yorku.ca/2022-2023/programs/SC/biology and contact biology@yorku.ca for advising if you have questions.
Choosing courses for second year – Environmental Biology	If you are in Environmental Biology, please consult the academic calendar here: https://calendars.students.yorku.ca/2022-2023/programs/SC/environmental-biology and contact biology@yorku.ca for advising if you have questions. Presentation: Choosing your courses for second year – Environmental Biology Presentation: First Year Advising Part II
Choosing courses for third year – Biology	Presentation: Choosing Courses for Third Year Biology Presentation: Choosing Third Year Courses Part II
Choosing courses for third year – Biomedical Science	Presentation: Choosing Courses for Third Year Biomedical Science Presentation: Choosing Third Year Courses Part II

PLEASE NOTE: For students in the Biotechnology or Environmental Biology programs, if you require assistance in choosing courses, please email biology@yorku.ca.

4. Planning Your Degree

Below are a few sample programs to give you some idea of how to plan your degree. They do not replace the calendar or a degree progress report but are to show you examples of course selections over your enrollment years for various programs. Some of them show you what a reduced course load might look like, others show you different programs.

Keep a few things in mind:

There are many course combinations that will fulfill degree requirements: you do not have to follow any of these specific sets of courses. We just wanted to give you some examples of common course selections.
For most of these programs, we have specified the Biology and other science courses you would take to fulfill degree requirements, but we have not specified the other courses. You can plan them as best suits you.
A science elective means any science course, a free elective means any course at any level. A free elective can be another Biology course, science course or non-science course!

Sample Program: Honours Major BSc Biology
Sample Program: Honours Specialized BSc Biology
Sample Program 1: Honours Major BSc Biology, Biomedical Stream
Sample Program 2: Honours Major BSc Biology, Biomedical Stream
Sample Program 3: Honours Major BSc Biology, Biomedical Stream