The Evolutionary Biology Named Option allows biology majors to concentrate their studies in evolution and to have this reflected on their transcript. Since there is no evolutionary biology major available at UW–Madison, this is the only mechanism to indicate specialization in this rapidly growing and popular field. In taking this named option, students will be able to fulfill their intermediate/advanced biology requirement with courses that emphasize evolutionary biology, ranging from required courses in fundamental evolutionary biology to more advanced optional courses that cover a wide range of evolutionary biology topics. They will also take a seminar course in evolutionary biology.
Who should enroll in this option? Students with broad interest in the biological sciences who want to:
- Prepare for graduate study in evolutionary biology or related fields
- Prepare for professional studies (e.g. medical school, veterinary school, dentistry)
- Concentrate their biological studies in evolutionary biology
Requirements for the Named Option
A minimum of 15 credits must be completed in the major that are not used elsewhere. Students must complete a minimum of 31 credits of Biological Science courses within the Introductory Biology, Foundation Course, Upper-Level Breadth in the Major, Capstone, and Evolutionary Biology Seminar requirements. Unless specifically stated otherwise, courses may not be used to meet multiple requirements of the major.
Core Requirements
Mathematics and Statistics
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one of the following: | 4-5 | |
| Calculus and Analytic Geometry 1 | ||
| Survey of Calculus 1 | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Data Science Modeling I | ||
| Introduction to Statistical Methods | ||
| Introduction to Statistics for Science and Engineering | ||
| Introductory Applied Statistics for the Life Sciences | ||
| Total Credits | 7-9 | |
Chemistry
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| General Chemistry (Complete one of the following): | 5-10 | |
| General Chemistry I and General Chemistry II | ||
| Advanced General Chemistry | ||
| Chemical Principles I and Chemical Principles II | ||
| Organic Chemistry | ||
| CHEM 343 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 344 | Introductory Organic Chemistry Laboratory | 2 |
| CHEM 345 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| Total Credits | 13-18 | |
Physics
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| First Semester Physics (Complete one of the following): | 4-5 | |
| General Physics | ||
| General Physics | ||
| General Physics | ||
| Second Semester Physics (complete one of the following): | 4-5 | |
| General Physics | ||
| General Physics | ||
| General Physics | ||
| Total Credits | 8-10 | |
Introductory Biology
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one sequence: | 10-13 | |
| Option A: | 10 | |
| Introductory Biology | ||
| Introductory Biology | ||
| Option B: | 13 | |
| Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics | ||
| Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics Laboratory | ||
| Cellular Biology | ||
| Cellular Biology Laboratory | ||
| Principles of Physiology | ||
| Option C: | 10 | |
| Animal Biology | ||
| Animal Biology Laboratory | ||
| General Botany | ||
Foundation Course (complete one of the following):
Students may use BIOCORE 381 and BIOCORE 383 toward both Introductory Biology and Foundation.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOCORE 381 & BIOCORE 383 | Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics and Cellular Biology | 6 |
| GENETICS 466 | Principles of Genetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 468 | General Genetics 2 | 3 |
Upper-Level Breadth in the Major
Minimum of 13 credits required as follows and must include one approved lab course. Approved lab courses are identified as approved in parentheses after the course title in the list below. A course taken to meet the Foundation requirement may not also count as Upper-Level Breadth in the Major.
- Complete the Evolutionary Biology course listed below.
- Complete at least two credits from either category A or B.
- Complete at least two credits from category C.
- Complete at least two credits from category D.
- Additional courses needed to reach 13 credits of Upper-Level Breadth in the Major may be taken from any category (A, B, C, D, E).
Required Evolutionary Biology Course
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ZOOLOGY/ANTHRO/BOTANY 410 | Evolutionary Biology | 3 |
A. Cellular and Molecular Biology
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AN SCI 336 | Animal Growth and Development | 3 |
| AN SCI 362 | Veterinary Genetics | 3 |
| AN SCI 366 | Concepts in Genomics | 3 |
| BIOCHEM 501 | Introduction to Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIOCHEM 507 | General Biochemistry I | 3 |
| BIOCHEM 508 | General Biochemistry II | 3-4 |
| BIOCHEM/NUTR SCI 510 | Nutritional Biochemistry and Metabolism | 3 |
| BIOCHEM/NUTR SCI 560 | Principles of Human Disease and Biotechnology | 2 |
| BIOCHEM/M M & I 575 | Biology of Viruses | 2 |
| BIOCHEM 601 | Protein and Enzyme Structure and Function | 2 |
| BIOCHEM/GENETICS/MICROBIO 612 | Prokaryotic Molecular Biology | 3 |
| BIOCHEM/GENETICS/MD GENET 620 | Eukaryotic Molecular Biology | 3 |
| BIOCHEM/BOTANY 621 | Plant Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIOCHEM 625 | Mechanisms of Action of Vitamins and Minerals | 2 |
| BIOCHEM/GENETICS 631 | Plant Genetics and Development | 3 |
| BMOLCHEM/MICROBIO 668 | Microbiology at Atomic Resolution | 3 |
| BOTANY/ENTOM/PL PATH 505 | Plant-Microbe Interactions: Molecular and Ecological Aspects | 3 |
| CRB 640 | Fundamentals of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology | 3 |
| CRB 670 | Biology of Cardiac Function and Disease | 3 |
| DERM 601 | Skin Biology and Skin Diseases | 3 |
| DERM 602 | Advances in Skin Biology and Skin Diseases | 2 |
| GENETICS 466 | Principles of Genetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 467 | General Genetics 1 | 3 |
| GENETICS 520 | Neurogenetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 525 | Epigenetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 527 | Developmental Genetics for Conservation and Regeneration | 3 |
| GENETICS 588 | Immunogenetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 605 | Clinical Cases in Medical Genetics | 3 |
| GENETICS 627 | Animal Developmental Genetics | 3 |
| GENETICS/NEURODPT 650 | Functional Genomics of Brain Disorders | 3 |
| GENETICS/MD GENET 662 | Cancer Genetics | 3 |
| H ONCOL/MED PHYS 410 | Radiobiology | 2-3 |
| MICROBIO 345 | Introduction to Disease Biology | 3 |
| MICROBIO 470 | Microbial Genetics & Molecular Machines | 3 |
| MICROBIO/SOIL SCI 523 | Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry | 3 |
| MICROBIO 626 | Microbial and Cellular Metabolomics | 3 |
| M M & I 341 | Immunology | 3 |
| M M & I/PATH-BIO 528 | Immunology | 3 |
| NEURODPT 629 | Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Memory | 3 |
| NTP/NEURODPT 610 | Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience | 4 |
| ONCOLOGY/M M & I/PL PATH 640 | General Virology-Multiplication of Viruses | 3 |
| PHM SCI 254 | Tiny Earth Genomics - Researching Uncultured Antibiotic-Producing Microbes (approved lab course) | 3 |
| PHM SCI 558 | Laboratory Techniques in Pharmacology and Toxicology (approved lab course) | 2 |
| PLANTSCI 340 | Plant Genome Engineering and Editing | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 370 | General Molecular Biology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 444 | Neuronal Cell Biology in Health and Disease | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY 470 | Introduction to Animal Development | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY/PSYCH 523 | Neurobiology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 555 | Laboratory in Developmental Biology (approved lab course) | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 570 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 604 | Computer-based Gene and Disease/Disorder Research Lab (approved lab course) | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY 655 | Modeling Neurodevelopmental Disease | 3 |
B. Organismal Biology
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AN SCI/DY SCI 373 | Animal Physiology | 3 |
| AN SCI 377 | Integrative Animal Physiology Laboratory (approved lab course) | 1 |
| AN SCI/DY SCI 434 | Reproductive Physiology (approved lab course) | 3 |
| ANAT&PHY 335 | Physiology (approved lab course) | 5 |
| ANAT&PHY 337 | Human Anatomy | 3 |
| ANAT&PHY 338 | Human Anatomy Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| ANAT&PHY 435 | Fundamentals of Human Physiology (approved lab course) | 5 |
| ANTHRO/PSYCH/ZOOLOGY 619 | Biology of Mind | 3 |
| BIOCORE 486 | Principles of Physiology Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| BOTANY 300 | Plant Anatomy (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY 330 | Algae (approved lab course) | 3 |
| BOTANY/PL PATH 332 | Fungi (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY/PL PATH 333 | Biology of the Fungi | 2 |
| BOTANY/F&W ECOL 402 | Dendrology: Woody Plant Identification and Ecology (approved lab course) | 3 |
| BOTANY 500 | Plant Physiology (approved lab course) | 3-4 |
| CS&D 503 | Neural Mechanisms of Speech, Hearing and Language | 3 |
| DY SCI 378 | Lactation Physiology (approved lab course) | 3 |
| ENTOM/ZOOLOGY 302 | Introduction to Entomology (approved lab course) | 4 |
| ENTOM 321 | Physiology of Insects | 3 |
| ENTOM 331 | Taxonomy of Mature Insects (approved lab course) | 4 |
| F&W ECOL/ZOOLOGY 520 | Ornithology | 3 |
| F&W ECOL/ZOOLOGY 521 | Birds of Southern Wisconsin | 3 |
| GENETICS 545 | Genetics Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| GENETICS/MD GENET 565 | Human Genetics | 3 |
| GEOSCI/ZOOLOGY 542 | Invertebrate Paleontology | 3 |
| KINES 314 | Physiology of Exercise (approved lab course) | 4 |
| MICROBIO 303 | Biology of Microorganisms | 3 |
| MICROBIO 304 | Biology of Microorganisms Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| MICROBIO 526 | Physiology of Microorganisms | 3 |
| M M & I 301 | Pathogenic Bacteriology | 2 |
| M M & I/ENTOM/PATH-BIO/ZOOLOGY 350 | Parasitology | 3 |
| NTP/NEURODPT/PSYCH 611 | Systems Neuroscience | 4 |
| NUTR SCI 431 | Nutrition in the Life Span | 3 |
| NUTR SCI 631 | Clinical Nutrition I | 3 |
| ONCOLOGY 401 | Introduction to Experimental Oncology | 2 |
| PATH 404 | Pathophysiologic Principles of Human Diseases | 3 |
| PSYCH 406 | Psychology of Perception | 3-4 |
| PSYCH 414 | Cognitive Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 454 | Behavioral Neuroscience | 3 |
| PSYCH 513 | Hormones, Brain, and Behavior | 4 |
| ZOOLOGY 303 | Aquatic Invertebrate Biology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 403 | Endocrinology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 430 | Comparative Anatomy of Vertebrates (approved lab course) | 5 |
| ZOOLOGY 611 | Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 612 | Comparative Physiology Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY 620 | Neuroethology Seminar | 2 |
C. Ecology
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AGROECOL 370 | Grassland Ecology | 3 |
| ANTHRO 444 | Primate Nutritional Ecology | 3 |
| AN SCI 420 | Microbiomes of Animal Systems | 3 |
| BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 450 | Midwestern Ecological Issues: A Case Study Approach | 2 |
| BOTANY 455 | The Vegetation of Wisconsin (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460 | General Ecology (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY/ENTOM/ZOOLOGY 473 | Plant-Insect Interactions | 3 |
| BOTANY/ENVIR ST/F&W ECOL/ZOOLOGY 516 | Conservation Biology | 3 |
| ENTOM 344 | From Flowers to Food: Pollinator Ecology and Conservation | 3 |
| ENTOM 450 | Basic and Applied Insect Ecology | 3 |
| ENTOM 490 | Biodiversity and Global Change | 3 |
| ENVIR ST/LAND ARC 361 | Wetlands Ecology | 3 |
| F&W ECOL 448 | Disturbance Ecology | 3 |
| F&W ECOL 550 | Forest Ecology | 3 |
| F&W ECOL 551 | Forest Ecology Lab (approved lab course) | 1 |
| F&W ECOL/LAND ARC/ZOOLOGY 565 | Principles of Landscape Ecology | 2 |
| F&W ECOL/ZOOLOGY 660 | Climate Change Ecology | 3 |
| GENETICS 528 | Study Abroad: International Field Study in Animal Biodiversity | 1 |
| MICROBIO/BOTANY 335 | The Microbiome of Plants, Animals, and Humans | 3 |
| PL PATH 300 | Introduction to Plant Pathology (approved lab course) | 4 |
| PL PATH 315 | Plant Microbiomes (approved lab course) | 4 |
| ZOOLOGY 304 | Marine Biology | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY/ENVIR ST 315 | Limnology-Conservation of Aquatic Resources | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY 316 | Laboratory for Limnology-Conservation of Aquatic Resources (approved lab course) | 2-3 |
| ZOOLOGY 320 | Field Marine Biology (approved lab course) | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 333 | Marine Ecology | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY/ENVIR ST 510 | Ecology of Fishes | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY/ENVIR ST 511 | Ecology of Fishes Lab (approved lab course) | 2 |
D. Evolution and Systematics
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTHRO 302 | Hominoid Evolution | 3 |
| ANTHRO 304 | Heredity, Environment and Human Populations | 3 |
| ANTHRO 411 | The Evolution of the Genus, Homo | 3 |
| ANTHRO 458 | Primate Behavioral Ecology | 3 |
| ANTHRO 603 | Seminar in Evolutionary Theory | 3 |
| BOTANY 305 | Plant Morphology and Evolution (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY 400 | Plant Systematics (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY 401 | Vascular Flora of Wisconsin (approved lab course) | 4 |
| BOTANY 422 | Plant Geography | 3 |
| BOTANY/PL PATH 563 | Phylogenetic Analysis of Molecular Data | 3 |
| ENTOM 432 | Taxonomy and Bionomics of Immature Insects (approved lab course) | 4 |
| ENTOM/GENETICS/ZOOLOGY 624 | Molecular Ecology | 3 |
| ENVIR ST/F&W ECOL/ZOOLOGY 360 | Extinction of Species | 3 |
| GENETICS 468 | General Genetics 2 | 3 |
| GENETICS 633 | Population Genetics | 3 |
| MICROBIO 450 | Diversity, Ecology and Evolution of Microorganisms | 3 |
| MICROBIO 520 | Planetary Microbiology: What Life Here Tells Us About Life Out There | 3 |
| MICROBIO 525 | Field Studies of Planetary Microbiology and Life in the Universe (approved lab course) | 3 |
| PATH-BIO 307 | Superbugs, Sex, & Drugs: Why Modern Medicine Needs Evolutionary Biology | 2 |
| PSYCH 449 | Animal Behavior | 3-4 |
| PSYCH 450 | Primate Psychology: Insights into Human Behavior | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 300 | Invertebrate Biology and Evolution | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 301 | Invertebrate Biology and Evolution Lab (approved lab course) | 2 |
| ZOOLOGY 415 | Genetics of Human History | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 425 | Behavioral Ecology | 3 |
E. Applied Biology, Agriculture and Natural Resources
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| A A E/NUTR SCI 350 | World Hunger and Malnutrition | 3 |
| AGROECOL 377 | Global Food Production and Health | 3 |
| AMER IND/ANTHRO/BOTANY 474 | Ethnobotany | 3-4 |
| AN SCI/DY SCI/NUTR SCI 311 | Comparative Animal Nutrition | 3 |
| AN SCI/DY SCI 320 | Animal Health and Disease | 3 |
| AN SCI 361 | Breeding and Genetics of Livestock and Companion Animals | 3 |
| BIOCORE 587 | Biological Interactions | 3 |
| B M E 430 | Biological Interactions with Materials | 3 |
| B M E/MED PHYS/PHMCOL-M/PHYSICS/RADIOL 619 | Microscopy of Life | 3 |
| BOTANY 403 | Field Collections and Identification | 1-4 |
| DY SCI 471 | Food Production Systems and Sustainability | 3 |
| ENTOM 351 | Principles of Economic Entomology | 3 |
| ENTOM/ZOOLOGY 371 | Medical Entomology: Biology of Vector and Vector-borne Diseases (approved lab course - 4th credit meets lab requirement) | 3-4 |
| ENVIR ST/POP HLTH 471 | Introduction to Environmental Health | 3 |
| ENVIR ST/POP HLTH 502 | Air Pollution and Human Health | 3 |
| ENVIR ST/LAND ARC 581 | Prescribed Fire: Ecology and Implementation (approved lab course) | 3 |
| F&W ECOL 306 | Terrestrial Vertebrates: Life History and Ecology (approved lab course) | 4 |
| F&W ECOL 410 | Silviculture: Applied Forest Ecology (approved lab course - 4th credit meets lab requirement) | 3-4 |
| F&W ECOL 458 | Environmental Data Science | 3 |
| F&W ECOL/SURG SCI 548 | Diseases of Wildlife | 3 |
| F&W ECOL 561 | Wildlife Management Techniques (approved lab course) | 3 |
| FOOD SCI/MICROBIO 324 | Food Microbiology Laboratory (approved lab course) | 2 |
| FOOD SCI/MICROBIO 325 | Food Microbiology | 3 |
| GENETICS 548 | The Genomic Revolution | 3 |
| M M & I 554 | Emerging Infectious Diseases and Bioterrorism | 2 |
| MED PHYS/PHYSICS 265 | Introduction to Medical Physics | 2 |
| MED PHYS 651 | Methods for Neuroimaging Research | 3 |
| MICROBIO 357 | General Bioinformatics for Microbiologists | 3 |
| MICROBIO/SOIL SCI 425 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| NUTR SCI 332 | Human Nutritional Needs | 3 |
| PATH 501 | Topics in Environmental Viral Pathogen Surveillance | 3 |
| PHM SCI/M&ENVTOX/ONCOLOGY/PHMCOL-M/POP HLTH 625 | Toxicology I | 3 |
| PLANTSCI/LAND ARC 263 | Woody Landscape Plant Identification, Culture, and Use | 4 |
| PLANTSCI 300 | Cropping Systems | 3 |
| PLANTSCI 302 | Forage Management and Utilization | 3 |
| PLANTSCI 338 | Plant Breeding and Biotechnology | 3 |
| PLANTSCI 360 | Genetically Modified Crops: Science, Regulation & Controversy | 2 |
| PLANTSCI 370 | World Vegetable Crops | 3 |
| PLANTSCI 378 | Study Abroad: Tropical Horticultural Systems International Field Study | 2 |
| PLANTSCI 501 | Principles of Plant Breeding | 3 |
| PLANTSCI/ATM OCN 532 | Environmental Biophysics | 3 |
| PLANTSCI 550 | Molecular Approaches for Crop Improvement | 3 |
| PL PATH 517 | Plant Disease Resistance | 2-3 |
| SOIL SCI 323 | Soil Biology | 3 |
| SOIL SCI 621 | Soil and Environmental Chemistry | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 335 | Human/Animal Relationships: Biological and Philosophical Issues | 3 |
Evolutionary Biology Seminar
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOLOGY/GENETICS 522 | Communicating Evolutionary Biology | 2-3 |
Capstone Requirement
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Two credits minimum required. With advisor approval, directed study or research-based senior thesis in a biological science discipline can also count. The experience must be completed after the first year of an introductory biology sequence above. The capstone experience will normally be completed during the student’s final two or three semesters. Also, a subset of laboratory courses has been approved for capstone. The following courses, along with 682s and 692s in biological science departments (taken senior year), can be accepted as fulfilling the capstone experience. | ||
| ANAT&PHY 435 | Fundamentals of Human Physiology | 5 |
| BIOCORE 486 | Principles of Physiology Laboratory | 2 |
| BOTANY 455 | The Vegetation of Wisconsin | 4 |
| BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460 | General Ecology | 4 |
| ENVIR ST/ZOOLOGY 511 | Ecology of Fishes Lab | 2 |
| F&W ECOL 595 | Wildlife Research Capstone (limited access) | 3 |
| GENETICS 527 | Developmental Genetics for Conservation and Regeneration | 3 |
| PL PATH 315 | Plant Microbiomes | 4 |
| ZOOLOGY 316 | Laboratory for Limnology-Conservation of Aquatic Resources | 2-3 |
| ZOOLOGY 555 | Laboratory in Developmental Biology | 3 |
| ZOOLOGY 612 | Comparative Physiology Laboratory | 2 |
Four-Year Plan
Sample Biology Four-Year Plan—Evolutionary Biology Option
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 103 or 109 | 4-5 | CHEM 104 | 5 |
| Math Course | 3-5 | Math or Statistics | 3-4 |
| General Education or Breadth Courses | 6 | General Education or Breadth Courses | 6 |
| First Year Seminar | 1 | ||
| 14-17 | 14-15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 343 | 3 | CHEM 345 | 3 |
| Math or Statistics (if needed) | 3-5 | CHEM 344 | 2 |
| Intro Biology Course | 5 | Intro Biology Course | 5 |
| Breadth Course | 3 | Breadth Courses | 4-6 |
| 14-16 | 14-16 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Physics Course | 4-5 | Physics Course | 4-5 |
| Foundational or Biocore | 3-5 | ANTHRO/BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 410 | 3 |
| Electives | 5 | BIOLOGY/GENETICS 522 | 2-3 |
| Electives | 5 | ||
| 12-15 | 14-16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Upper-Level Breadth in the Major | 5 | Upper-Level Breadth in the Major | 5 |
| Capstone or Research Course | 2-3 | Capstone or Research | 2-3 |
| Elective Courses | 5-8 | Elective Courses | 5-8 |
| 12-16 | 12-16 | ||
| Total Credits 106-127 | |||