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Planning for Off-Campus Study 

The Biology Department encourages students to take advantage of intellectual and cultural experiences not normally available at º£½ÇÖ±²¥.  For example, larger institutions often offer advanced seminars and a wider variety of courses in Biology.  Students also have an opportunity to meet undergraduates, graduate students and faculty with different perspectives and backgrounds.  However, for someone who intends to complete a major in Biology, the decision to study away (abroad) demands careful planning in advance. 

Getting Courses Approved in Biology: 

• Fall: If helpful, prospective biology majors might consider meeting with a faculty member in the biology department to think through their options for selecting a biology concentration and charting a course through the major. This planning sheet might be helpful as students gather their thoughts on selecting a semester and a program for their abroad experience. 

• If students are deciding among various life science majors as they consider their plan abroad, they could consider meeting with Barry Logan (Biology and Biochemistry, Druck 220A), Hadley Horch (Biology and Neuroscience, Druck 130E), Manuel Diaz-Rios (Neuroscience and Biology, Druck 118), or Pam Bryer (Biology Lab Instructor, Hatch 206B). 

• Spring: Students should obtain sufficient documentation about the courses they wish to take when abroad and seek provisional approval from faculty in the Biology department for any courses they hope to count towards the Biology major.  

• To seek provisional approval from biology, contact a Biology faculty (your Bio advisor, the Bio professor you contacted in the fall, a favorite Bio professor, or the department chair) by email, with the following information: 

• Which concentration you intend to complete in Biology.

• The name of the university/program you plan to attend. 

• Which Bio classes you intend to take, along with links to the website for these courses. 

• The faculty member will reply and CC Rachel Reuling (r.reuling@bowdoin.edu), indicating whether the classes will be provisionally approved for transferring and for which requirement in your intended concentration. This email will be kept in the department records. 

• You can then follow up with the physical OCS form for this faculty member to sign. 

** If you decide to change your classes at any point (either before or after beginning your study abroad), re-email the same faculty with the new class you intend to take and its website and get it pre-approved before you enroll. 

Return to º£½ÇÖ±²¥: 

• When you return to º£½ÇÖ±²¥, have your transcript sent to the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ registrar (/registrar/students/completing-degree/transfer-of-credit.html) 

• Your classes will initially appear as general (non-Bio) credit in your transcript, even if they were approved for Bio credit. 

• By mid-October of your senior year, your advisor will use the previous email communications to update your transcript for the approved Bio credit.  

Additional Notes: 

1. None of the specific courses required for a major in Biology have to be taken at º£½ÇÖ±²¥, although the requirements of the major must be satisfied by courses listed in the college catalogue or by equivalent courses at other institutions. 
2. Students who do not continue their core curriculum in Biology while away sometimes have problems completing their major on their return.  Students planning to study away should begin consulting with their advisor and at least one member of the Biology faculty as early as possible, preferably during their sophomore year. 
3. Careful planning is particularly important for students considering honors thesis research during the senior year.  Such students should consult with prospective thesis advisors before studying away. 
4. Students studying away should be aware of the need to complete prerequisites before taking upper-level courses, and note that some courses in the Biology Department are offered only in alternate years. 
5. Courses that are too narrow in focus or taken strictly in the lab or field are unlikely to be acceptable substitutes for º£½ÇÖ±²¥ core courses, although they may earn credit to satisfy the requirement for additional courses at the 1100 or 2500+ level. 
6.  Three-credit courses of appropriate Cleveland content are generally accepted as equivalent to single courses at º£½ÇÖ±²¥ (the actual º£½ÇÖ±²¥ credit equivalent is determined by the Registrar's office).  Final decisions about awarding credit toward the major for courses taken at other institutions will be made following a careful review of the course content and the student's performance in the course.