How to Apply to Biology at Georgia Tech: The School of Biological Sciences Offers a B.S. in Biology of at Least 122 Credit Hours with Research Option, Business Option, Pre-Health and 5-Year BS/MS Choices, for Domestic, International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Applicants

The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Undergraduate biology is offered by the School of Biological Sciences in the College of Sciences. Here is what you need to know, based on Georgia Tech’s website, organised for US domestic applicants, international applicants and applicants from China, followed by transfer students. The specific deadlines, costs and requirements for each type of applicant are on the admissions and financial aid offices’ pages, which were not among the pages read; each such item is marked below. The B.S. in Biochemistry is offered by the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and belongs with chemistry, so it is not covered here; medicine and other professional study are post-graduation routes and outside this guide.

1. Degrees and options

• Degree: the School’s undergraduate degree is the Bachelor of Science in Biology. The degree requirements page says it requires a minimum of 122 credit hours; all courses must be taken for a letter grade except free electives, and grades of D and higher are accepted in the biology degree.
• Features: the degree information page says many biology courses feature authentic, student-driven research projects, and that interdisciplinary courses include bio-inspired design, bioethics, biochemistry, biophysics, mathematical models in biology, genomics and applied bioinformatics, signaling molecules, macromolecular modeling, aquatic chemical ecology, and experimental design and statistics.
• Customisation and options: the degree options page says the degree includes 21 hours of customizable technical electives, and lists the Research Option, the Business Option, a Pre-Health curriculum, certificates, 5-year BS/MS programmes (Biology with Biology, or Biology with Bioinformatics), internships, research, TA experience, study abroad and the International Plan, and minors in Biology, Physiology, and Health and Medical Sciences.
• Pre-health: the School’s home page says biology is a fit for pre-health students, who can meet all pre-health requirements and earn a Biomedical Science certificate in 122 credit hours.
• Other degrees: the applied physiology programme the School’s pages list is a Ph.D. programme; the biochemistry B.S. is in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and outside this guide.

2. How admission to the major works, and changing majors

• Naming a major at application: whether applicants apply to the University or directly to biology, and whether the College of Sciences has a separate admission line or cap, are not stated in the pages read; check the admissions pages (section 4).
• Moving in after entry: the grade requirement and procedure for moving into the biology major are not stated in the pages read; please contact the School’s biology academic advising.

3. Prerequisites and courses (from the degree requirements page)

• High school preparation: minimum high school biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics are not stated in the pages read; see the admissions pages. AP/IB credit for biology courses was not read either.
• Introductory and core courses: BIOS 1207 (or 1107) Biological Principles with BIOS 1207L (or 1107L); BIOS 1208 (or 1108) Organismal Biology with BIOS 1208L (or 1108L); BIOS 2300 or 2310 Ecology; BIOS 2600 or 2610 Genetics; BIOS 3450 Cell and Molecular Biology; BIOS 3600 Evolutionary Biology; BIOS 4460 Communicating Biological Research. Two of three lab categories are also required: ecology lab (BIOS 2301 or 2311), genetics lab (BIOS 2601 or 2611) and cell and molecular biology lab (BIOS 3451).
• Quantitative biology: one of BIOS 3400 Mathematical Models in Biology, BIOS 4150 Genomics & Applied Bioinformatics, or BIOS 4401 Experimental Design & Statistical Methods.
• Senior research experience: one of BIOS 4590 Research Project Lab or BIOS 4690 Independent Research Project.
• 21 credits of biology electives: 12 “depth” credits must be BIOS-prefix courses; 9 “breadth” credits can come from other BIOS courses at the 3000 level and above, internship, teaching or research credits (BIOS 4695, 4697, 4699, up to 6 credits each), VIP courses and approved courses in other schools.
• Required non-biology courses: CHEM 1211K and 1212K (Chemical Principles I and II), CHEM 2311 and 2312 (Organic Chemistry I and II), CHEM 2380 (Synthesis Lab); MATH 1551 (Differential Calculus), 1553 (Linear Algebra) and 1552 (Integral Calculus); PHYS 2211 and 2212 (Introductory Physics I and II for Life Sciences). There are also a computing requirement (CS 1301, 1315, 1371 or a transfer CS 13X1), a wellness requirement (APPH 1040, 1050 or 1060), ENGL 1101 and 1102, 6 hours of humanities electives, and social sciences electives plus a political science and US history requirement (which differ by catalog year).
• Georgia legislative requirements: the page says students who first entered in May 2023 or later must satisfy four requirements (US history, Georgia history, US constitution and Georgia constitution) through designated courses, transfer or AP/IB credit (AP and IB credit will not fulfil the Georgia history and Georgia constitution requirements), or module examinations.
• Free electives: the remaining 11 credits, which may be taken pass/fail.
• Other rules: all Georgia Tech undergraduate degrees require a minimum of 39 hours of upper-division (3000-level or higher) coursework, and students must complete a MATH course and ENGL 1101 and 1102 within their first 30 credit hours.
• Biology competitions: how they are viewed in admission is not stated in the pages read.

4. Deadlines and application materials (first-year)

• Where to apply: the University’s admissions overview sorts applicants into four paths: first-year, international first-year, transfer and international transfer; it also lists a first-year application review criteria page and a first-year deadlines and fees page.
• Deadlines, application fee, essays, recommendations and testing policy: these pages are not among the pages read for this guide, so the details are not published here; please rely on the Office of Undergraduate Admission pages and check that they apply to fall 2027 entry.
• Choosing a major: the pages read do not say whether applicants name a major or whether the major has its own admission line; please confirm on the admissions pages above.

5. US domestic applicants

• Costs and aid: the University’s cost of attendance page is not among the pages read. The difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition, aid and scholarships for domestic students and any priority or guaranteed admission for Georgia residents are not published in the pages read; please check the cost and financial aid pages.
• Testing policy: not published in the pages read; see the first-year application page.

6. International applicants

• Application path: the University has an international first-year admission page. English-language requirements and waivers, transcript and credential requirements, proof of funds and international scholarships are not published in the pages read; please check that page.

7. Applicants from China

• Gaokao: not published in the pages read; check the international first-year page or contact the admissions office.
• Transcripts and school-leaving materials: not published in the pages read; check the international admission page for requirements for the Chinese system.
• International curricula: the degree requirements page says some US history and US constitution requirements can be met with AP/IB credit (not Georgia history or Georgia constitution); AP/IB credit for biology and other courses is not described in the pages read, so see the “Credits, Tests, and Scores” page in the University catalog.

8. Costs, scholarships and outcomes

• Costs: see section 5; the pages read print no figures.
• School scholarships: the degree information page links an “Undergraduate awards” page, which was not read; please check amounts and eligibility on the website.
• Outcomes: the degree information page says graduates will be expert, quantitative problem solvers ready to apply their skills in many career paths; the pages read print no specific employment or graduate-school percentages.

9. Transfer students

• Application path: the University has a transfer admission page, an international transfer page, transfer admission requirements and transfer deadlines and fees. GPA, prerequisite courses, credit transfer rules and deadlines are not published in the pages read; please check those pages.
• Transfer into Biology: the pages read do not state conditions for transferring into the Biology major; please contact the School’s biology academic advising.

Checklist

US domestic applicants:

• Check first-year deadlines, fees and review criteria on the admissions pages; check in-state and out-of-state tuition on the cost page

International applicants (including China):

• Check English-test, transcript and funding requirements on the international first-year page

After entry:

• Plan the core courses, quantitative biology, senior research, 21 credits of biology electives and the chemistry, mathematics and physics courses from the degree requirements page; consider the Research Option, Business Option, Pre-Health and certificates

Transfer students:

• Check requirements and deadlines on the transfer pages; confirm entry into biology with the School

Sources: Georgia Institute of Technology, Undergraduate biology; B.S. Biology degree requirements; Degree options; Why Biology at GT; Admissions overview. The degree requirements page is labelled “BS Biology 2022-2023 degree requirements” and tells students to use the Undergraduate Handbook for their catalog year. The detailed pages of the admissions and financial aid offices were not among the pages read; see Georgia Tech’s website for the latest and check that they apply to fall 2027 entry.