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Honors Program


The Department of Biology offers a Bachelor of Science degree with Honors that requires a research thesis in an area of biology. The program is designed to provide superior undergraduate students with opportunities to conduct original, high-caliber research in preparation for graduate school, professional training, or a position in an industrial or government research laboratory.
 
Honors students take a graduate class and write a thesis that they defend before a committee. Below is information that should answer most of your questions about the requirements for Honors in Biology.  To earn Honors in Biology, students need a 3.5 GPA in courses required for the Biology degree, as well as a 3.5 GPA overall, by the end of their junior year.

Requirements

  • For Honors, the Biology Department requires a 3.5 minimum Biology GPA by the end of the last academic year before you begin honors (calculated using all courses taken/required for biology major (if extra courses have been taken, use the courses with the highest grades), including up to 8 hours of Biol 499R and NOT including Biol 497R).
  • The College also requires a 3.5 minimum cumulative GPA (calculated from all—and only—courses taken at Emory/Oxford) by the end of the last academic year before you begin honors.
  • Biology and overall GPAs may be found on your respective degree tracker report.
  • GPA Appeals must be forwarded to Dr. Alex Escobar (alexander.escobar@emory.edu), the Biology Honors Coordinator, NOT LATER THAN August 5th, 2022.  Students must have at least a 3.45 cumulative GPA to be eligible to petition.

Application Process

  • Biology Honors Program Application

    To apply for Honors, please complete the Biology Honors Program Application by the first day of classes in the Fall semester in which you will be beginning your honors research.

    HONORS RESEARCH APPLICATION
  • Obtain Course Permission Number

    Eligible students will also need to obtain a permission number each semester from Tonya Woolcock and add the class to their schedule before the end of add/drop/swap.

Program Deadlines