Overview Undergrad

Undergraduate Programs

Biology at Cornell

The biology major, coordinated by the Office of Undergraduate Biology, emphasizes basic biological sciences, and is accessible to undergraduates in the Colleges of Agriculture & Life Sciences and Arts & Sciences. It is a joint program of these colleges and the College of Veterinary Medicine, drawing its faculty from the following academic units:

In the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences in addition to departments participating in the biology major, other departments offer majors in life sciences, several of which combine basic biological science with mission-oriented research:

In the College of Arts & Sciences, several additional departments offer majors either with strong biological content or of considerable relevance to biology, and in some cases have close ties with departments participating in the biology major:

The College of Human Ecology is dedicated to a wide range of "contemporary, human-based issues." Of its various majors, three are particularly biological in nature:

The College of Engineering offers a program in bioengineering, which "involves the application of engineering principles and approaches in conjunction with biological systems ... [and] is carried out at the interface between traditional engineering disciplines and the knowledge and techniques developed in the life sciences." This program allows students to major in any of ten areas of engineering, many of which have biological applications. Among these areas are Agricultural and Biological Engineering, a joint major with the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, and Computer Science, a joint program with the College of Arts & Sciences.

There are no specifically pre-medical or pre-veterinary programs, and someone interested in these areas has many options as long as specific preparatory coursework is completed. More information is available from the campus Health Careers office. Because of the obvious connection between medicine and biology, many undergraduate students preparing for health-related careers choose one of the biological sciences majors.