Biomedical Science, Bachelor of Science

In addition to University Requirements:

• 69 - 80 units of major requirements.

• Up to 9 units of major prefix courses may be used to satisfy General Studies Requirements; these same courses may also be used to satisfy major requirements.

• Elective courses, if needed, to reach an overall total of at least 120 units.

Students may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.

Purpose Statement

The Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Sciences is for students intrigued with the biological underpinnings of medical and health sciences. This well-rounded degree equips students to engage in complex challenges at the intersection of science and medicine.

Our BS in Biomedical Sciences program consists of a Life Sciences Core with a broad range of flexible elective options. The core courses are designed to provide students with a strong grounding in biology, chemistry, and mathematics. Students, in consultation with an academic advisor and using a basic course schedule as a guideline, may select from elective courses relevant to a range of disciplinary areas and career fields, such as Human Genomics, Immunobiology, Medical Microbiology, Bioinformatics, Bioengineering, or design their own set of electives approved by one of the program academic advisors. From anatomy and physiology to human microbiology, students will develop an understanding of the biological and chemical systems of the human body - and develop a foundation for a career in a range of health professions.

Students who seek research opportunities can engage with our biological research faculty and/or our associated research centers, such as the Pathogen and Microbiome Institute (PMI).

Our BS in Biomedical Sciences graduates are prepared for biomedical and health-science-related careers or they may work as technicians in research laboratories in universities or in industry. Graduates have exceptional placement rates in medical schools, government agencies, and graduate programs.

Student Learning Outcomes

• Identify, describe, and apply the major concepts, theoretical perspectives, and empirical findings in biomedical sciences, including:
  • Basic molecular and cellular units of structure that define the function of all living things
  • Fundamental principles of biology, such as the central dogma, diversity of life, homeostasis, and evolution.
  • Identify the ethics and responsibilities of working with living organisms.
• Apply scientific, quantitative, and qualitative reasoning to biomedical data analysis and interpretation by:
  • Collecting, analyzing, and interpreting scientific data with application to problems involving human physiology, disease, molecular biology, genetics, cell biology, or microbiology.
  • Quantifying data using fundamental mathematical skills (e.g. arithmetic and algebraic calculations, statistical analysis) to analyze biological problems, with an emphasis on techniques applicable to biomedical fields.
  • Graphically presenting scientific data to communicate scientific findings important to human health.
  • Understand the difference between ethical and unethical conduct of research.
• Effectively communicate evidence-based findings to technical and non-technical audiences related to human health and medicine.
  • Interrogate primary scientific literature and access specialized resources available in biomedical sciences
  • Find and evaluate primary sources, assessing the quality of information, the source's credibility, and the ethical practices of the research conducted.
  • Synthesize empirical findings related to biomedical sciences, and communicate the findings through collaboration, writing, and oral presentation.
  • Understand and apply ethical practices in communicating science by giving appropriate credit to the work of other scholars via in-text citations and references lists.
• Synthesize fundamental concepts, apply core knowledge, and conduct civil discourse in biomedical science to questions related to human health and disease.
  • Apply depth of biomedical science knowledge to current issues in an area of specialization (Anatomy and Physiology, Genetics and Molecular Biology, or Infectious Disease).
  • Apply quantitative reasoning skills to solve novel problems and clinical examples related to human health and disease.
  • Apply core biomedical principles to interpret data to evaluate the strength of evidence and conclusions.
  • Synthesize foundational knowledge of ethics to evaluate responsible conduct in research as it pertains to the collection and curation of data, use of living organisms, use of natural and cultural resources or dissemination of results in biomedical sciences.