How to Apply to Biology at Ithaca College: Biology B.A., Biology B.S., Biochemistry B.S. and a teaching option in the School of Humanities and Sciences, each with required research, plus admission and prerequisites for domestic, international (including Chinese) and transfer applicants

At Ithaca College, in Ithaca, New York, biology is taught by the Department of Biology in the School of Humanities and Sciences; biochemistry is jointly administered by the Departments of Biology and Chemistry. Here is what you need to know, based on the college’s website, for domestic applicants, international applicants (including students at high schools in China) and transfer students. Chemistry has its own page on the website. The college also offers health-profession degrees such as athletic training, occupational therapy and physical therapy; they are outside the scope of this article, so see the website.

1. Degrees and options

• The Biology department says it offers four majors: Biology (BA), Biology (BS), Biochemistry, and Biology Teaching Option (BA).
• Biology BA versus BS: the department says that with the BS you are required to take 8 other credits in STEM courses. Each degree has a “Road Map” PDF for students starting from 2023-24; those PDFs were not downloaded here, so see the website.
• Biochemistry B.S.: the program page says it combines studies in the biology and chemistry departments. The first two years build a foundation in both; specialization begins in the junior year with courses in biochemistry, cell biology and physical chemistry; in the senior year you take at least one advanced elective in biology or chemistry and Current Topics in Biochemistry. The program page lists a required three-semester Experimental Chemistry sequence plus Genetics and Cell Biology. The major started in 1985.
• Biology Teaching Option (BA): jointly administered with the Department of Education to prepare you for initial New York State certification as a middle or high school biology teacher. The biochemistry page also says students who want to teach at the secondary level can earn a biochemistry degree and fulfill the teacher education requirements.
• The School of Humanities and Sciences list also includes a biology minor, neuroscience (under interdisciplinary programs) and a biological anthropology minor; their requirements are in the catalog and were not read.
• The full credit structure and required courses for each degree are in the college catalog, which was not among the pages read; not published in the pages read. See the website or contact the department (biology@ithaca.edu).

2. How admission works: applying to the college, and when you declare

• The deadlines page groups programs by school: majors in the Schools of Business, Communications, Health Sciences & Human Performance and Humanities & Sciences share a February 1 regular decision deadline for first-year applicants, while some music, theatre and dance majors have auditions and their own deadlines. Biology is in Humanities and Sciences, and the pages show no separate admission standard, audition or portfolio for biology.
• The Program-Specific Information page has one line for STEM disciplines: if you are considering Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Sciences, Mathematics or Physics, it recommends at least three years of high school science and mathematics.
• Whether you must name a major on the application, when you formally declare after enrolling, and any grade conditions for moving into biology are not stated in the pages read. Ask admissions or the department.

3. Prerequisites, courses and research

• High school preparation: beyond the three-years-of-science-and-math recommendation above, the pages read state no specific biology, chemistry or mathematics prerequisite and no minimum AP or IB score.
• Class size and labs: the department says that after the introductory classes, biology classes tend to be small, many enrolling no more than sixteen students; all laboratory sections are limited to twenty students and are taught by biology faculty rather than teaching assistants.
• Introductory course: the department page and the biochemistry page both mention course-based research labs in the introductory biology course, part of the curriculum for Biology and Biochemistry majors. First-year course numbers are not given in the pages read; see the catalog.
• Required research: each major has a required research course. For Biology it is BIOL 302 (3 credits), usually taken in the junior year: you take ownership of an original research project under a faculty mentor and must co-register for the 1-credit Presenting Biology course. On average you spend about nine hours a week in the lab, meet one-on-one with your supervisor, give a 12-minute presentation at the end of term and write a final paper formatted as a scientific research article. Biochemistry majors have an analogous BIOC course (BIOC 390). The research levels are: BIOL 290 level for introductory or continuing research (1–2 credits), 302/390 for the required research, and 401/402 for advanced Honors research (1–3 credits, a year-long project requested through a separate process).
• Off-campus or summer research in place of the required research: possible with Biology Curriculum Committee approval; the conditions and steps are on the department’s BIOL 302 page.
• Summer research: the department describes paid fellowships of 8–10 weeks. The research page adds that over the past five years 40 undergraduates in the program coauthored scientific papers, and students annually take part in national and regional undergraduate research conferences.
• Pre-health sciences: the department page says the college offers all the beginning and advanced courses in biology, chemistry and physics that professional schools in medicine, dentistry, optometry, podiatry and veterinary medicine require or recommend, and refers to the Health Professions Advisory Committee. Pre-health is not a separate degree.
• AP / IB credit: the admissions page says Ithaca grants college credit for AP and IB courses based on exam achievement; the Registrar says it accepts AP, CLEP and IB exams, A-Level credit only for Advanced Level (not AS), with results sent directly by the testing agency. Which required course AP Biology, AP Chemistry, IB Biology or calculus replaces is in the catalog’s Credit from External Sources section, which was not among the pages read.

4. Dates, fee and materials

• Application: Common App, or the Coalition App with Scoir.
• Deadlines (the page shows no year; verify the dates for fall 2027 entry):
  • Early Decision (binding) November 1; decisions by December 15; confirm enrollment by February 1.
  • Early Action (non-binding) December 1; decisions February 1.
  • First-year Regular Decision February 1; decisions by April 15.
  • Spring entry: November 1, with all supporting materials by December 1; contact admissions first.
  • Presidential Scholarship application November 1; scholar programs (Innovation, Leadership, MLK, Park) December 1.
• Application fee: USD 60 for first-year applicants; all Early Decision and Early Action applicants qualify for a fee waiver; the fee is waived for international applicants.
• Testing: test-optional since 2012. In most cases SAT/ACT scores may be withheld and applicants are considered equally for admission and for academic and talent scholarships; home-schooled applicants, and applicants whose schools give only descriptive report cards, must submit scores.
• Recommendations: optional; candidacy is fully considered without one. The pages read do not ask for a science teacher’s letter. Confirming enrollment takes a USD 500 non-refundable deposit credited to the first semester bill.
• What is weighed: rigor of curriculum and success in academic work come first, with challenging coursework (dual enrollment, AP, IB) encouraged; activities, work, leadership and service also count.

5. Domestic applicants

• Admission: a secondary school report and official transcript are required, and first-trimester or first-marking-period senior grades should follow. Any priority or guarantee for New York residents is not stated in the pages read.
• Testing: optional, see above.
• Tuition: the tuition page lists a single full-time figure with no in-state/out-of-state split: USD 59,440 for full-time 2026-27 (see costs below). The tuition for your own entry year is not in the pages read; check the website.
• Scholarships: all incoming students are automatically considered for the Ithaca College Scholarship, with no extra application. There is also a USD 1,500 NYS Resident Scholarship, a USD 1,500 Good Neighbor Scholarship (residents of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Connecticut) and a USD 2,000 per year Residential Experience Scholarship for students living on campus. For federal aid, file the FAFSA; priority dates match the admission deadlines.
• Innovation Scholar Program Award (School of Humanities and Sciences): requires enrollment in a School of Humanities and Sciences degree program, full-time study, a 3.0 cumulative GPA and participation in program activities; applications are due December 1.

6. International applicants

• Application fee: waived for international applicants; choose the Institutional Fee Waiver in Common App. The college counts as international students those without U.S. citizenship (not U.S. dual citizens, permanent residents with a valid green card, or U.S. citizens living abroad).
• Financial aid application (required): after submitting Common App, complete the Financial Aid Application in IC Connect or waive consideration in its first question; without this the application is not complete and will not be reviewed. The CSS Profile and ISFAA are not accepted.
• Transcripts: official secondary school transcripts with courses and grades for all years attended, official leaving exam results, and transcripts from any college attended. Documents not in English need a certified English translation, and both the original and the translation are required. Transcripts and letters must be submitted by a school official through Common App, Naviance, Scoir or Parchment, or mailed by the school if electronic submission is not possible. Another page says the transcript or marks sheet should bear the school seal and a school authority’s signature.
• Recommendation: optional; if sent, it must come from the principal, school head or college counselor directly from your school.
• English: applicants whose native language is not English must submit a proof; the college lists recommended minimum scores: TOEFL 80 (4.0 on the new scale), IELTS 6.0, PTE 54, Duolingo 115, or SAT EBRW 600. Applicants who attended a school or college where English is the principal language of instruction and earned passing grades in English courses for at least three years are exempt.
• Choosing your applicant type: First Year Student if you are finishing or have finished secondary school and have not enrolled full time in higher education; Transfer Student if you have earned more than 9 college credits after secondary school.
• Aid: international students do not qualify for U.S. federal or state aid, but may qualify for institutional scholarships, grants and campus employment. For the Presidential Scholarship (full tuition and fees, renewable for up to four years), international citizens must submit the Ithaca College Financial Aid application by November 1; it cannot be combined with a scholar program.

7. Applicants from China

• Gaokao: the website does not say how Gaokao results are used and has no China-specific page. International applicants must submit “official leaving exam results”; which exam that means for applicants in China is not published, so ask admissions (admission@ithaca.edu, +1 607 274 3124). Whether materials from the high school graduation exam (huikao) are needed is also not published.
• Transcripts: submit as above, for all secondary years, with certified English translations and the originals.
• Exam credit: AP, IB and A-Level (Advanced Level) credit is accepted; the course-by-course table is in the catalog (not in the pages read). Whether Gaokao results earn credit is not published.
• English: see the recommended minimum scores above. The website has no separate English requirement for applicants from China.

8. Costs and scholarships

• 2026-27 estimate: tuition (full-time, 12–18 credits per semester) USD 59,440; housing and meals USD 16,520; books USD 850; personal expenses USD 1,100; transportation USD 550; Student Support and Technology Fee USD 300; health insurance USD 4,260 (waivable with proof of comparable coverage); total USD 83,020. Part-time is USD 1,982 per credit. First-year students also pay a one-time USD 325 orientation fee.
• Scholarships: the Presidential Scholarship (full tuition and fees, separate application due November 1) goes to select first-year students; the Ithaca College Scholarship is considered automatically for all new students.
• Department awards and research funding: the biology website has pages for awards, honors and scholarships and lists undergraduate research funds (including the Bernard research fund and the Metzger undergraduate research fund); amounts and conditions were not read.
• Outcomes: the Biology program page says students often receive competitive grant awards and national recognition, such as the Goldwater scholarship and the Pfizer undergraduate research fellowship; after graduation many enter professional schools in medicine, dentistry or other health fields, others are accepted at graduate programs such as UC Berkeley, Yale, Columbia and Johns Hopkins, and other options include research for the government or the pharmaceutical industry. The Biochemistry page says graduates can pursue advanced study in molecular biology, biochemistry, genomics, environmental toxicology, medicinal chemistry or public health, and that recent graduates have found jobs in biotechnology and the pharmaceutical industry.

9. Transfer students

• Eligibility: the transfer page says you can apply if you hold a high school diploma (or equivalent) and then earned nine or more college credits or enrolled full time at another college. The international applicants page says “more than 9” college credits; the two differ slightly, so confirm with admissions.
• Deadlines: fall entry March 1 (decisions by April 15, confirm by May 1); spring entry November 1 (priority), decisions by December 15. There is no transfer application fee.
• Materials: final high school transcript and all college transcripts; a recommendation or academic evaluation and test scores are optional. Unofficial transcripts are accepted for review, but official ones are required if you enroll. International transfer applicants coming from colleges outside the U.S. need a certified course-by-course evaluation (WES is accepted) and certified English translations.
• Credit: only courses with a C- or higher are evaluated; credits transfer, grades do not; credit cannot be awarded from a high school transcript. How the biology, chemistry and calculus courses you have completed are placed against the biology requirements is not stated in the pages read; ask the Department of Biology.
• Scholarships: Phi Theta Kappa Transfer Scholarships of USD 2,000 per year, no limit on the number, require membership, a 3.5 cumulative GPA and full-time enrollment. International fall transfer applicants submit the college’s Financial Aid Application.

Checklist

Domestic applicants:

• At least three years of high school science and math; apply by November 1 (ED), December 1 (EA) or February 1; USD 60 fee (free for ED/EA)
• Presidential Scholarship by November 1, scholar programs by December 1; file the FAFSA

International applicants (including China):

• Choose the Institutional Fee Waiver; complete the IC Connect financial aid application; send all secondary transcripts and leaving exam results with certified translations
• Prepare TOEFL 80, IELTS 6.0, PTE 54 or Duolingo 115 (recommended minimums)
• Ask admissions how Gaokao and huikao materials should be submitted

Transfer students:

• Apply by March 1; credit is evaluated for courses with C- or higher; ask the Department of Biology how biology sequences are placed

Sources: Ithaca College, Biology (B.A., B.S.) program page; Biochemistry (B.S.) program page; Department of Biology; Department page: Biology BA or BS; Department page: what makes the majors special; Department page: research; Required research (BIOL 302); Pre-health sciences; Biochemistry program; Application Deadlines; Test Optional; Program-Specific Information; Required Supporting Documents; What We Consider; International Applicants; Financial Aid for International Students; Scholarships for New Students; 2026-27 undergraduate tuition and fees; Transfer Students; Transfer credit for new students; International transfer credit. The deadlines page shows no year and costs are for 2026-27; check the Ithaca College website for the latest.