Biology Honours (B.Sc.) (72 credits)
Offered by: Biology (Faculty of Science)
Degree: Bachelor of Science
Program credit weight: 72
Program Description
The Honours program in Biology is intended for students who are interested in gaining a concentrated research experience. A broad range of fundamental biological concepts spanning molecules and cells to organisms and ecosystems, including development, behaviour and evolution is supplemented with research in a chosen area. Potential areas of focus include:
- molecular, cellular and developmental biology,
- conservation, ecology and evolution, and
- neurobiology and behaviour.
Acceptance into the Honours program at the end of U2 requires a CGPA of 3.50 and approval of a 9- or 12-credit Independent Studies proposal (see listing of BIOL 479D1 Honours Research Project 1./BIOL 479D2 Honours Research Project 1., BIOL 480D1 Honours Research Project 2./BIOL 480D2 Honours Research Project 2. for details). For an Honours degree, a minimum CGPA of 3.50 at Graduation and adherence to the program as outlined below are the additional requirements.
First Class Honours will be awarded to students graduating with a CGPA of 3.75 or better, and having successfully completed the Honours program
Degree Requirements — B.Sc.
This program is offered as part of a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) degree.
To graduate, students must satisfy both their program requirements and their degree requirements.
- The program requirements (i.e., the specific courses that make up this program) are listed under the Course Tab (above).
- The degree requirements—including the mandatory Foundation program, appropriate degree structure, and any additional components—are outlined on the Degree Requirements page.
Students are responsible for ensuring that this program fits within the overall structure of their degree and that all degree requirements are met. Consult the Degree Planning Guide on the SOUSA website for additional guidance.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Courses (35 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 200 | Molecular Biology. | 3 |
Molecular Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The physical and chemical properties of the cell and its components in relation to their structure and function. Topics include: protein structure, enzymes and enzyme kinetics; nucleic acid replication, transcription and translation; the genetic code, mutation, recombination, and regulation of gene expression. | ||
| BIOL 201 | Cell Biology and Metabolism. | 3 |
Cell Biology and Metabolism. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course introduces the student to our modern understanding of cells and how they work. Major topics to be covered include: photosynthesis, energy metabolism and metabolic integration; plasma membrane including secretion, endocytosis and contact mediated interactions between cells; cytoskeleton including cell and organelle movement; the nervous system; hormone signaling; the cell cycle. | ||
| BIOL 205 | Functional Biology of Plants and Animals. | 3 |
Functional Biology of Plants and Animals. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Unified view of form and function in animals and plants. Focus on how the laws of chemistry and physics illuminate biological processes relating to the acquisition of energy and materials and their use in movement, growth, development, reproduction and responses to environmental stress. | ||
| BIOL 206 | Methods in Biology. | 3 |
Methods in Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to modern methods used in organismal biology, including ecological sampling, experimental methods and statistics. Particular emphasis is on ways of thinking about the design of sampling programs and the analyses of data to test hypotheses using observational or experimental data. | ||
| BIOL 215 | Introduction to Ecology and Evolution. | 3 |
Introduction to Ecology and Evolution. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the fundamental processes of ecology and evolution that bear on the nature and diversity of organisms and the processes that govern their assembly into ecological communities and their roles in ecosystem function. | ||
| BIOL 216 | Biology of Behaviour. | 3 |
Biology of Behaviour. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to the study of animal behaviour at the population, organismal, cellular, and molecular levels. Historical and contemporary methods and experiments will be presented and discussed to provide an overall appreciation of the biology of behaviour, with a focus on the application of multiple levels of analysis to biological phenomena and the formulation of hypotheses about evolution, development, function, and mechanisms of behavioural traits. Topics will range from how animals communicate with one another to the cellular mechanisms that allow information to be processed by nervous systems. | ||
| BIOL 301 | Cell and Molecular Laboratory. | 4 |
Cell and Molecular Laboratory. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to biology research and communication with a focus on cell and molecular biology. Through conducting a series of project-based experiments and writing a final report, molecular and synthetic biology techniques such as gene cloning, manipulation, protein isolation and characterization and how research is conducted, analyzed and communicated will be addressed. In addition, an introduction to bioinformatics methods and their role in analysis will be provided. | ||
| BIOL 302 | Fundamentals of Genetics and Genomics. | 3 |
Fundamentals of Genetics and Genomics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Trait variation within and across populations and species,and how this reflects variation within genomes. Case studies and problem-solving approaches will be used to illustrate the tools of genomics, molecular genetics and classical genetics, and how they are employed to understand the mechanisms of phenotypic variation.Topics will include evolutionary, developmental and human genetics. Application of multiple levels of genetic analysis, formulation, and testing of hypotheses on critical topics ranging from evolution to developmental biology to human genetics. | ||
| BIOL 311 | Advanced Methods in Organismal Biology. | 3 |
Advanced Methods in Organismal Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Application of methods and techniques used by organismal biologists, paired with the design of sampling programs to test hypotheses using observational or experimental data, and the analysis of data. Topics include DNA barcoding/metabarcoding and experimental evolution. | ||
| BIOL 499D1 | Honours Seminar in Biology. | 2 |
Honours Seminar in Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The practical aspects of science and scholarship in biology, including scientific writing, research presentations, bibliographies, methods, and peer review, as relating to Biology Honours research projects and theses. Attendance at research seminars in areas of related research. | ||
| BIOL 499D2 | Honours Seminar in Biology. | 2 |
Honours Seminar in Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. See BIOL 499D1 for course description. | ||
| COMP 204 | Computer Programming for Life Sciences. | 3 |
Computer Programming for Life Sciences. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Computer Science (Sci): Computer programming in a high level language: variables, expressions, types, functions, conditionals, loops, objects and classes. Introduction to algorithms, modular software design, libraries, file input/output, debugging. Emphasis on applications in the life sciences. | ||
Complementary Courses (36-37 credits)
Core (12-13 credits)
3 or 4 credits selected from CHEM block:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CHEM 204 | Physical Chemistry/Biological Sciences 1. | 3 |
Physical Chemistry/Biological Sciences 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Similar to CHEM 223/CHEM 243. Emphasis on the use of biological examples to illustrate the principles of physical chemistry. The relevance of physical chemistry to biology is stressed. | ||
| CHEM 212 | Introductory Organic Chemistry 1. 1 | 4 |
Introductory Organic Chemistry 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 A fundamental study of aliphatic compounds and saturated functional groups including modern concepts of bonding, reaction mechanisms, conformational analysis, spectroscopy, and stereochemistry. | ||
- 1
If a student has already taken CHEM 212 Introductory Organic Chemistry 1. or its equivalent, the credits can be made up with CHEM 204 Physical Chemistry/Biological Sciences 1., CHEM 222 Introductory Organic Chemistry 2., or a 3- or 4-credit Biology complementary course to be approved by the Biology Adviser.
9 credits (3 credits from each of Block A, Block B and Block C):
Block A- Ecology and Evolution
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 304 | Evolution. | 3 |
Evolution. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A comprehensive introduction to evolutionary biology. It covers both short-term and long-term evolutionary processes. Topics include the history of life, the origin of species, adaptation, natural selection and sexual selection. | ||
| BIOL 305 | Animal Diversity. | 3 |
Animal Diversity. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The characteristics of the major groups of animals, their ancestry, history and relationship to one another. The processes of speciation, adaptive radiation and extinction responsible for diversity. Methods for constructing of phylogenies, for comparing phenotypes, and for estimating and analyzing diversity. | ||
| BIOL 308 | Ecological Dynamics. | 3 |
Ecological Dynamics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Principles of population, community, and ecosystem dynamics: population growth and regulation, species interactions, dynamics of competitive interactions and of predator/prey systems; evolutionary dynamics. | ||
Block B- Molecular and Cellular
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 300 | Molecular Biology of the Gene. | 3 |
Molecular Biology of the Gene. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of current knowledge and approaches in the area of regulation of gene expression, post-transcriptional control of gene expression, and signal transduction. | ||
| BIOL 303 | Developmental Biology. | 3 |
Developmental Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A consideration of the fundamental processes and principles operating during embryogenesis. Experimental analyses at the molecular, cellular, and organismal levels will be presented and discussed to provide an overall appreciation of developmental phenomena. | ||
| BIOL 313 | Eukaryotic Cell Biology. | 3 |
Eukaryotic Cell Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. In-depth examination of the structure and function of eukaryotic cells, with an emphasis on experimental design and interpretation. Examination of the molecular mechanisms of various cellular processes, including protein homeostasis, intracellular transport, cytoskeletal dynamics, multicellular organization and cell proliferation. | ||
Block C-Neuro/Behaviour
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 306 | Neural Basis of Behaviour. | 3 |
Neural Basis of Behaviour. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Neural mechanisms of animal behaviour; neuroethology; cellular neurophysiology, integrative networks within nervous systems; neural control of movement; processing of sensory information. | ||
| BIOL 307 | Behavioural Ecology. | 3 |
Behavioural Ecology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. How an organism’s behaviour relates to its physical, biological, and social environment, using evolutionary and ecological perspectives. Emphasis is on general principles, covering topics such feeding, predator avoidance, aggression, reproduction, social behaviour, communication and cognition. | ||
Honours Block (9-12 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 479D1 | Honours Research Project 1. | 4.5 |
Honours Research Project 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduces students to original research, and to its design, execution and reporting. | ||
| BIOL 479D2 | Honours Research Project 1. | 4.5 |
Honours Research Project 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. See BIOL 479D1 for course description. | ||
OR
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 480D1 | Honours Research Project 2. | 6 |
Honours Research Project 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduces students to original research, and to its design, execution and reporting. | ||
| BIOL 480D2 | Honours Research Project 2. | 6 |
Honours Research Project 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. See BIOL 480D1 for course description. | ||
Other (12-15 credits)
15 credits of Biology courses at the 300-500 levels if taking BIOL 479D1 Honours Research Project 1./BIOL 479D2 Honours Research Project 1., or 12 credits if taking BIOL 480D1 Honours Research Project 2./BIOL 480D2 Honours Research Project 2.. With permission of the Biology Adviser, up to 6 credits may be taken from other science department courses (300-500 levels). Up to 3 credits of previous independent research courses may be included. Must include 6 credits of 400-500 levels.