Entering your second year and progressing
Information on all Biology modules may be found here.
1. To enter an Honors Specialization module offered by Biology , or one of two Majors, one of which is offered by Biology that you are planning to use towards an Honors Bachelors degree:
Admission Requirements
Completion of first-year requirements with no failures. Students must have an average of at least 70% in 3.0 principal courses, including Biology 1001A and 1002B or 1201A and 1201B, Chemistry 1100A/B and 1200B plus 1.0 additional course, with no mark in these principal courses below 60%.
Physics 1028A/B (or Physics 1301A/B or 1501A/B)
1.0 course from: Calculus 1000A/B or 1100A/B, Calculus 1301A/B or 1501A/B, Mathematics 1600A/B or the former Linear Algebra 1600A/B, Mathematics 1225A/B, 1228A/B, 1229A/B, Statistical Sciences 1024A/B, Applied Mathematics 1201A/B or the former Calculus 1201A/B, or the former Mathematics 030. If not completed in first year, the Mathematics requirement must be completed by the end of second year.
If you meet these requirements go to Course Selection .
If not, see Remedies
- 1.0 Arts or faculty other than Science
If you will meet these requirements go to Course Selection
If you think you may NOT meet these requirements, see remedies (below)
2. To enter a Specialization or Major in Biology (non-honors)
Admission Requirements
Completion of first-year requirements, including Biology 1001A and 1002B or 1201A and 1201B with a mark of at least 60% in this principal course.
Chemistry 1100A/B and 1200B
Physics 1028A/B or Physics 1301A/B or 1501A/B
1.0 course from: Calculus 1000A/B or 1100A/B, Calculus 1301A/B or 1501A/B, Mathematics 1600A/B or the former Linear Algebra 1600A/B, Mathematics 1225A/B, 1228A/B, 1229A/B, Statistical Sciences 1024A/B, Applied Mathematics 1201A/B or the former Calculus 1201A/B, or the former Mathematics 030. If not completed in first year, the Mathematics requirement must be completed by the end of second year.
If you meet these requirements go to Course Selection .
If not, see Remedies.
3. To enter a Minor ( Biology or Genetics)
Admission Requirements
Completion of first-year requirements, including Biology 1001A and 1002B or 1201A and 1201B with a mark of at least 60%.
Chemistry 1100A/B and 1200B
- 1.0 Arts or faculty other than Science
If you will meet these requirements go to Course Selection
If you think you may NOT meet these requirements, read on!
Remedies
1. Honors
What if I have not taken 5.0 courses?
In general, to be considered Second Year non-honors, 3.0 courses must have been completed.
For Honors, it may be possible to be registered in Honors with fewer than 5.0 courses. It depends on marks achieved.
What if I do not achieve the required marks to be registered in an Honors Biology module?
You will be adjudicated into a non-honors module.
You will need to repeat the course(s) and achieve the required mark for your particular module; 70% in your 3.0 principal courses and a passing grade in all other courses.
You may wish to do this in summer school at UWO (see below):
or on a Letter of Permission (link LOP) at another University.
What courses may I take at the same time that I am repeating the year 1 prerequisites I lack?
i) Make sure you have completed all your other first year requirements. If not, take those you lack as part of your course load.
ii) Make a list of all the senior courses you will require to complete your module. Plan to take some of these in your course load.
iii) Check prerequisites for courses you wish to take. You may not register in a course until you have successfully completed the prerequisite.
iv) Check the Registration Handbook /Timetable. In the right hand column beside courses are lists of priorities given to students in particular modules. If you are not registered in the module but have the prerequisites, you may try and register once the priorities are lifted.
May I apply to enter an Honors module after second year if my marks improve?
Yes. You must have achieved a minimum of 60% in Biology 1001A and 1002B or 1201A and 1201B and a minimum of 60% in Chemistry 1100A/B and 1200B or Chemistry 2213A/B.
The overall average of 70% in 3.0 Year 1 principal courses is waived. Eligibility will depend on marks achieved in Year 2. You must achieve an average of at least 70% in all modular courses with no mark less than 60%.
Summer School
Link to Registrar's web site
Please note carefully the dates for preregistering and registering as the courses available fill up quickly.
2. Non-Honors
What if I have not taken 5.0 courses?
In general, to be considered Second Year, 3.0 courses must have been completed.
What if I do not achieve the required marks?
You will be registered as ‘BA undeclared’
All default possibilities will be looked at before registering a student as BA undeclared. For example, if a student has asked to be registered in two modules (e.g. a Major in Biology and a Major in Psychology) and has not met the requirements for Biology, but has met the requirements for Psychology they will be registered in the Psychology module. They could still upgrade the Biology requirements to be registered in the double Major the subsequent year.
N.B. You cannot be registered in just one MINOR a 3 year bachelor requires at least 2 Minors. so in the case where the requirements of even one Minor have not been met, a student will be registered as BA undeclared provided he/she has the minimum marks requirements to progress (see progression requirements in the Academic Calendar)
If you are BA undeclared, and wish to eventually enter a Biology module you will need to repeat the course(s) and achieve the required mark for your particular module e.g. for a Biology Major repeat Biology 1001A and 1002B or 1201A and 1201B and achieve at least 60%, or repeat Chemistry 1100A/B and 1200B and achieve at least a passing grade.
You may wish to do this in summer school at UWO (see below):
or on a Letter of Permission (link LOP) at another University.
Summer School
- Link to Registrar's web site
Please note carefully the dates for preregistering and registering as the courses available fill up quickly.
What courses may I take at the same time that I am repeating the year 1 prerequisites I lack?
i) Make sure you have completed all your other first year requirements. If not, take those you lack as part of your course load.
ii) Make a list of all the senior courses you will require to complete your module. Plan to take some of these in your course load. For example, if you have completed your Math requirement you could take the senior Statistics requirement. If you passed your first year Chemistry you could consider taking Chemistry 2213A/B.
iii) Check prerequisites for courses you wish to take. You may not register in a course until you have successfully completed the prerequisite.
iv) Check the Registration Handbook /Timetable. In the right hand column beside courses are lists of priorities giving students in particular modules. As a BA undeclared student, if you have the prerequisites you will probably only be allowed to register once the priorities are lifted.
What courses should I take in second year?
Now that you have the choice of taking concurrent modules in very different subjects, this is not a straightforward question to answer. Biology has a number of ‘core’ courses that all students take. It is recommended that you try and take as many as possible of these in second year, since they are frequently prerequisites for third year course you may be planning to take.
‘Core’ courses are : Biochemistry 2280a (this is a prerequisite for Biology 2581b, and highly recommended that you take it prior to Biology 2382b .), Biology 2581b , 2382b , 2483a , 2486a , 2290F/G
If you cannot possibly take all these within your schedule, defer Biology 2486a unless you are in an Ecology and Evolution module.
You should also consider taking Chemistry 2213a/b and your Statistics course in year 2.
You may only take the core courses if you have achieved a 60% in Biology.
You may only take the senior required statistics course once you have completed your year 1 Mathematics requirement.
How should I plan my course of study?
Check the calendar and write out a list of all the courses you will have to complete in the various modules prior to graduation.
Look at the course descriptions in the calendar – these will list the prerequisites.
Look at the timetable; see if / when courses are being offered. Even though a course may have a number with a/b after it, it is not necessarily taught in both terms. Some courses are taught only in alternate years… so you need to plan your future course of study.
Academic Calendar and Timetable/Registration Handbook Course Listings
Please note the Calendar lists all courses that departments offer, they are not necessarily all taught each year. The Timetable lists all of the courses that are offered in any particular year.
Restricted / Priority
In the timetable you will see, in the right hand column : ‘Notes’. If a course is ‘restricted’ to a particular program or module in which you are not registered, you may not take it.
If there is a ‘priority’ given to students registered in certain programs or modules, those students will be allowed to register first, during web registration.
Priorities are lifted in early August at which point you may attempt to register in the course if you have the prerequisites and if there is still space left.
‘Special Permission’ .
In certain cases you may wish to enter a course for which you do not have the prerequisites. Sometimes you have equivalent experience and feel that you would be able to manage the course. You should visit an academic counsellor in Biology and talk it over with them. They make talk the issue over with the professor teaching the course. Special permission may be granted in some instances.
