Marine Science–Biology Major

The Bachelor of Science in Marine Science-Biology provides students with a selection of courses needed to prepare for a career in the marine and biological sciences or for further study in graduate or professional programs. This highly specialized curriculum includes extensive requirements in marine science, biology, chemistry and physics in order to maximize the future scientific opportunities available to students.

The Bachelor of Science Degree in Marine Science-Biology from the College of Natural and Health Sciences at the University of Tampa facilitates student attainment of the following programmatic learning goals and objectives.

Goal 1: Core Concepts
To provide students with a broad conceptual background, interconnected framework and real-world experience in biological and marine science:
D. Students will demonstrate an understanding of genetics, cell structure, cell function, and the molecular processes inside cells.
E. Students will demonstrate an understanding of form, function, and diversity of marine life.
F. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the principles of evolution and marine ecology.
G. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the physical, chemical, and geologic aspects of the marine environment. Student will further demonstrate how these, and anthropogenic changes impact marine life.

Goal 2: Technical, Computational & Ethical Skills
To provide students with technical, computational, and ethical skills used in marine science and biological research:
E. Students will demonstrate proper and safe laboratory practices, proper use of equipment, and the ability to use and evaluate scientific techniques.
F. Students will demonstrate the ability to perform appropriate quantitative analysis of experimental data and draw valid conclusions from their analyses.
G. Students will demonstrate the ability to work effectively with computational, mathematical, and statistical approaches to acquire, analyze, and/or model experimental datasets.
H. Students will demonstrate ethical conduct while undertaking research projects in marine science and biology.

Goal 3: Process of Science
To provide students with the ability to develop hypotheses and design approaches to evaluate them, as well as to access and critically evaluate information in biology and marine science:
D. Students will demonstrate the ability to develop testable hypotheses, design appropriate experiments, and present reasoned analyses and interpretations of results.
E. Students will demonstrate the ability to find and effectively use electronic resources to access information regarding marine science and biology.
F. Students will demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate the primary literature in biology and marine science.

Goal 4: Science Communication
To provide students with the ability to effectively communicate the findings of biological and marine science research and connect these findings into the existing body of knowledge:
C. Students will demonstrate the ability to report the results of their experiments in a written paper that conforms to the scientific conventions of that field.
D. Students will demonstrate the ability to orally communicate the findings of their experiments or the work of others.

 

Degree Requirements

Requirements for a B.S. in Marine Science-Biology

	Biology Core Curriculum	25
Total Credit Hours:		25

Ecology requirement (Choose one)

MAR 222	Marine Ecology	4
MAR 310	Biological Oceanography	4
BIO 212	Ecology	4
Total Credit Hours:		4

Cellular/physiological requirement (Choose a minimum of 3 credits from Category I)

BIO	Category I course	3-4
Total Credit Hours:		3-4

Organismal invertebrate requirement (Choose one)

BIO 224	Invertebrate Zoology	4
MAR 226	Marine Invertebrate Zoology	4
Total Credit Hours:		4

Organismal vertebrate requirement (Choose one)

BIO 225	Vertebrate Zoology	4
BIO 250	Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy	4
Total Credit Hours:		4

Organismal botany requirement

MAR 327	Marine Botany	4
Total Credit Hours:		4

Oceanography/marine science electives (Choose MAR 200 and one additional elective):

MAR 200	Introduction to Marine Science	3
	And one of the following courses:
MAR 201	Marine Geology	4
MAR 301	Physical Oceanography	4
CHE 315	Chemical Oceanography	3
Total Credit Hours:		6-7

Note: MAR 200 is a pre or co-requisite for MAR 201 and a pre-requisite MAR 222, MAR 226, MAR 310, and MAR 327.

Major Electives (Choose 2)

	Any upper division biology courses above BIO 199 and MAR courses above 200.
	or any of the following courses:
ENS 235	Geographic Information Systems	4
ENS 242	Environmental Science and Policy	4
ENS 307	Environmental Microbiology	4
ENS 346	Conservation Biology	4
ENS 349	Water, Wetlands and Wildlife	4
Total Credit Hours:		8

Collateral and prerequisite courses required for a B.S. in Marine Science-Biology:

CHE 232	Organic Chemistry I	3
CHE 233L	Organic Chemistry I Laboratory	1
CHE 234	Organic Chemistry II	3
CHE 235L	Organic Chemistry II Laboratory	1
PHY 200	General Physics I	4
PHY 201	General Physics II	4
	or
PHY 205	General Physics with Calculus I	4
PHY 206	General Physics with Calculus II	4
Total Credit Hours:		16

The following number of credit hours is required in each of the three course areas for the Bachelor of Science in Marine Science-Biology major.

Credit hour summary for B.S. in Marine Science-Biology major:

Biology Core Curriculum	25
Major Courses	33-35
Collateral Courses	16
Total Credit hours for Major	74-76