Biology

Program and Research Areas

The department has five graduate program areas: Ecology, Behavior & Evolution; Physiology, Endocrinology & Reproduction; Neurobiology; Cell & Molecular Biology; and Marine Biology. Each program area has unique strengths and suggested curricula. The department offers both master’s and doctoral degrees in Biology that emphasize independent research on the part of the student, and a non-research master’s degree. Biology faculty participate in three interdepartmental programs offering graduate degrees in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry (MCBB); in Neuroscience; and in Bioinformatics.

The Biology Department programs include faculty active in research in the areas listed below:

• cell signaling and gene regulation
• biochemistry
• cancer biology
• microbial physiology and genetics
• endocrinology and reproductive biology
• developmental biology
• genetics
• cell and molecular neurobiology
• neuroendocrinology
• animal behavior
• tropical ecology
• ecology and conservation biology
• behavioral ecology and sociobiology
• molecular ecology and evolution
• marine biology

The graduate program is planned by selection of an appropriate sequence of courses in consultation with the major professor and advisory committee. However, training has been formalized in several programs and areas of specialization. Financial support is provided in the form of fellowships or traineeships from such federal agencies as NIH and NSF. Departmental teaching fellowships, assistantships, and University fellowships are available to qualified PhD students.

Further information is available from the department office, 5 Cummington Street, Boston, MA 02215; 617-353-2432.

Programs

Several well-defined programs have been designed:

The Program in Cell & Molecular Biology includes courses and research opportunities in developmental biology, cell signaling and gene regulation, cancer biology, genetics, biochemistry, microbiology, physiology, and membrane structure and function. Associated programs include the interdepartmental programs in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry (MCBB), and Bioinformatics.

The Program in Ecology, Behavior & Evolution includes introductory and advanced coursework in the discipline and opportunities to pursue research with internationally recognized biologists in a broad array of subjects. Research strengths and focal research groups include animal behavior, behavioral ecology, social evolution, socioecology, molecular development and evolution, evolutionary ecology, conservation biology, global change, molecular phylogenetics, phylogeography, communication, population genetics, physiological ecology, ecological immunology, molecular ecology, and population, community, and ecosystems ecology. The program is strongly integrative and has extensive linkage to other departmental and college research groups working in marine biology, neurobiology, endocrinology, biological anthropology, and environmental sciences. Model systems include temperate and tropical forests, microbes, cnidarians, social insects, amphibians, reptiles, fish, birds, and bats. Tropical research may be carried out in a pristine rainforest environment at the Tiputini Biodiversity Station in Ecuador, where an extraordinary diversity of programs can be studied in the field.

The Program in Neurobiology offers courses and research opportunities in areas of contemporary neurobiology, including: synaptic morphology and neurotransmission; genetic and hormonal control of neural development; sensory physiology, including retinal circuitry and neurochemistry; as well as olfactory processing and neuroendocrinology, specifically hormonal control of behavior. The organisms under investigation include crayfish, lobster, turtle, mudpuppy, goldfish, chicken, rat, mouse, and ferret. Biology faculty also participate in the interdepartmental PhD program in Neuroscience.

The Program in Marine Biology includes offerings on the Charles River Campus Boston University Marine Program and fieldwork in Belize. Research training is offered in animal behavior sensory physiology, community ecology, and systematics of marine organisms.

Prerequisites and Admissions Tests The Department of Biology offers both the Master of Arts (MA) and the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees. Students may apply for direct admission to either program.

Applicants should have completed 32 undergraduate credit hours in biology and college-level courses in calculus (one semester), general chemistry (two semesters), organic chemistry (two semesters), and general physics (two semesters), or equivalent courses as determined by the Graduate Committee. The Graduate Committee may impose extra prerequisites without graduate credit if the candidate’s background is found to be lacking.

All applicants for admission to the MA or PhD programs are required to submit the results of the Graduate Record Examinations (General Test). The Subject Test in Biology, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, or Chemistry is strongly encouraged but not required.

Seminars Seminars, with and without credit, are held. Participation is expected for at least one year, and often throughout the predoctoral period.

Teaching Requirements The department requires a minimum of two semesters participation in teaching during a student’s graduate career as part of the Doctor of Philosophy degree.

Facilities for Training and Research

The department’s research laboratories are located in three buildings along Cummington Street. Teaching laboratories are located in the adjacent Metcalf Science Center. In addition, the department has extensive research facilities: an aquarium room for experimental work on fresh and saltwater fish, a Laboratory Animal Care Facility, and environmental chambers. Specialized modern equipment is available for electron and confocal microscopy, automated DNA sequencing, tissue culture, and a variety of biochemical, physiological, and genetic applications. Field study can also be conducted out at the 900-acre Human Environment Institute at Sargent Center for Outdoor Education in Peterborough, New Hampshire.

Ancillary Facilities Through cooperative arrangements with affiliated scientists in other institutions—the New England Aquarium, Manomet Bird Observatory, and Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary—supplementary facilities may be available for graduate training and research.

Consortium of Graduate Schools Graduate students may cross-register for graduate courses at Boston College, Brandeis University, and Tufts University in consultation with their advisors and with written departmental approval. Procedures for cross-registration are outlined in the front section of this website.