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The goal of the biology curriculum is to make students aware of the structure, function, and evolution of life as manifested on the cellular, organismic, and populations levels through lecture, formal laboratories, and experiential education (e.g., research and internship).
The faculty of the Biology Department stress the conceptual approach in course content, i.e., to explain biological phenomena rather than merely describe the phenomena. To this end, a core program is required for all biology majors, which relates the content of the biology courses to the scientific background obtained in chemistry, mathematics, and physics. The core program is usually completed during the junior year. This provides the opportunity for a wide choice of biology and other elective courses during the last two collegiate years.
The completion of the core meets the usual science requirements demanded for admission to medical, dental, optometry schools and other professional schools specializing in the health science, such as veterinary, podiatry, physical therapy, physicians assistants and graduate schools offering advanced degrees in the various research oriented biological specialties.
With additional courses elected from the offerings of the Department of Education, students may prepare for careers in teaching at the secondary level and meet the requirements of the Rhode Island Department of Education and 43 other states for certification for secondary school biology teachers.
The Biology Department also offers supporting courses for the Department of Health Policy and Management, and in conjunction with the Rhode Island Department of Health supervises a course in Public Health Methodology and Administration.
Also, during the junior and senior years, students have ample opportunity for experiential learning through faculty directed laboratory, field research and internships.