Biology Department

Spring Hill College has a longstanding reputation of providing an academically sound background for students who desire to become health care professionals (i.e., physicians, dentists, veterinarians, physical therapists, pharmacists, etc.). We know first-hand what strengths, skills, and experiences students must develop in order to gain admission to the graduate or professional school of their choice, and the excellence of our program is recognized and appreciated by the graduate and professional schools to which our students apply and are accepted. While students who aspire to enter one of the health professions need not pursue a major in one of the sciences, the majors which can most easily be adapted to their needs are in biology, biochemistry, and chemistry.

There are three aspects of our program that set it apart from others in our region:

1. The Core Curriculum - Medical schools seek students who have a broad-based educational background rich in the humanities. Exactly the sort of coursework available to students through the college’s Core Curriculum.
2. Preparation for a Post-graduate Education - Our graduates who have entered health professional schools have confirmed the strength of their undergraduate preparation at Spring Hill. Many of the textbooks that we use in our upper division biology courses are the same texts used to teach those subjects in medical school. Often students report that subjects were taught in greater depth at Spring Hill than they were in medical school.
3. Support - Pre-health science students receive guidance and support from the faculty in every aspect of their pre-medical education. There are several group meetings held each year dealing with issues such as: the policies and procedures for applying to medical school, and preparation for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The Directors of Admission of our state-supported schools of dentistry, medicine, and pharmacy, visit our campus each year (as does a representative of the school of medicine at LSU), and students have the opportunity to meet with these representatives individually. Typically, by the time a student makes application to the schools of their choice at the end of their junior year, they are well known by the admissions officers of those schools.

Bachelor of Science in Biology

Pre-Health Science Concentration

Lower Division

Course	Title	Hours
BIO 101 & 103	Principles of Biology with Laboratory	4
BIO 236 & 238	Microbial Biology with Laboratory	4
BIO 231 & 233	Anatomy and Physiology I with Laboratory	4
BIO 232 & 234	Anatomy and Physiology II with Laboratory	4
CHM 111 & 113	General Chemistry I with Laboratory	4
CHM 112 & 114	General Chemistry II with Laboratory	4
MTH 121	Calculus I	4
MTH 163	Basic Statistics for the Sciences	3
PHY 221 & 213	Physics with Calculus I and Laboratory	4
PHY 222 & 214	Physics with Calculus II and Laboratory	4

Upper Division

Course	Title	Hours
BIO 301	Genetics	3
BIO 360	Cell Biology	3
BIO 362	Cellular and Molecular Biology Laboratory	1
*BIO 322 & 324	Developmental Biology with Laboratory	4
*BIO 351 & 353	Parasitology with Laboratory	4
*BIO 421 & 422	Histology with Laboratory	4
*BIO 410	Immunology	3
*BIO 440	Basic and Clinical Endocrinology	3
*BIO 450	Molecular Biology	3
*BIO 470	Mechanisms of Disease	3
*BIO 480	Neurobiology	3
CHM 331 & 333	Organic Chemistry I with Laboratory	4
CHM 332 & 334	Organic Chemistry II with Laboratory	4
*CHM 461	Biochemistry I	3

*Elective