Students may obtain an undergraduate minor in biological sciences by taking 15 hours of coursework from the Division of Biological Sciences.

• a maximum of five hours of introductory biology (BioSc 1500 or BioSc 1200; BioSc 1010+1020 or BioSc 1030 maybe be substituted for BioSc 1500 or BioSc 1200 with grades of A or B in each course)
• additional coursework in Biological Sciences courses numbered 2000 or higher. You must include in those additional hours at least one course form at least two of the following four fields:

1. Genetics 2200 (4 hrs)
2. Cell Biology 2300 (4 hrs)
3. Evolution and Ecology 3400 (3 hrs) or Evolution 4600 (3 hrs)
4. Biological Diversity [Medical Microbiology M3200 (4 hr); Ornithology FW2600 (5 hr, lab); Ichthyology FW2700 (4 hr, lab); Plant Systematics 3210 (4 hr, lab); Invertebrate Zoology 3260 (3 hr; 4 hr, lab); Mammalogy FW3660 (4 hr, lab); Introductory Entomology 3710/3715 (5 hr, lab); General Microbiology 3750 (3 hr), General Microbiology Lab 3760 (2 hr) – must be taken with BioSc 3750 or M3200 as pre- or co-req)] 

Courses in internship, independent readings, problems, or research in Biological Sciences (e.g., 2940, 2960/2965H, 4085, 4950/4952) and BioSc 2100 and 2150 may not be used in the Minor. Microb 3200 may not be used to satisfy the laboratory course requirement. 

In addition, students must complete: 

• at least one course in the Minor numbered 2000 or higher with a laboratory or field component 
• all courses in the Minor with a grade of C- or higher, with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher in the Minor. Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading option is not available. 
• at least nine of the 15 credit hours in the Minor in residence at MU.

Application Process

To officially declare your minor in Biological Sciences, fill out the online declaration form at declareaminor.missouri.edu. Once you have received confirmation of your minor declaration, you can access your progress towards your minor by running a degree audit. If you have questions about the minor after you view your degree audit, contact the Biological Sciences Undergraduate Advising Office at bioadvising.missouri.edu. More information about declaring a minor is available at this link.