Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Modern research in cellular and molecular biology and its resultant technology offers unparalleled opportunities to provide solutions to our society's most urgent problems in human and animal health, agriculture, and environmental quality. The emerging biotechnology industries are involved in developing products to maintain biodiversity, restore soil and water quality, develop new pharmaceuticals to combat disease, decrease our dependence on nonrenewable resources, and improve food and fiber production. Students interested in microbiology, animal or plant science, biochemistry, and animal or human medicine will find challenging careers in the diverse areas of biotechnology in either an academic or industrial setting. Students successfully completing a biotechnology curriculum will also be prepared to enter graduate or medical professional schools for further study.
The Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology is an interdisciplinary degree that spans two academic departments: Microbiology and Cell Biology and Plant Sciences/Plant Pathology. Students will choose an area of emphasis in plant or animal, or microbial systems for upper-division coursework. Students will be assigned faculty advisors depending on the chosen option.