Biotechnology
The Department of Microbiology and Immunology at UBC and the Biotechnology Program at the BC Institute of Technology (BCIT) offer a five-year joint degree Co-operative Education Program that integrates academic study at both institutions with related and supervised work experience. Enrolment is limited. Entry into the specialization is at the second-year level and requires completion of the first-year prerequisites listed below with at least the minimum admission average set by the UBC Faculty of Science for transfer into second year Honours specializations.
Student must apply for the specialization. See BCIT Biotechnology for details.
The first year of the specialization can be taken at UBC or another institution. The second and third years (taken at the BCIT campus) include two four-month work terms along with academic and technical studies. The fourth and fifth years (taken at the UBC campus) include two four-month work terms and advanced studies. Students must meet the Faculty of Science requirement to continue in this Honours specialization (see Honours Specialization requirements). Completion of the requirements for the first three years of the specialization earns a Diploma of Technology in Biotechnology.
Completion of the requirements for the entire five-year specialization earns an Honours Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology. The credentials are awarded jointly by UBC and BCIT. Students who fail to maintain the Faculty of Science requirements for continuing in honours specializations in their fourth or fifth year need to request transfer credit for their BCIT courses if they intend to enrol in the other specializations such as the Microbiology and Immunology Major.
Honours (1136): Biotechnology
| First year | |
|---|---|
| Two of BIOL 111, 112, 1211 | 6 |
| CHEM 121 (or 111)2 | 4 |
| CHEM 1232 | 4 |
| Communication Requirement3 | 6 |
| MATH 102 (or 100 or 104)4 | 3 |
| PHYS 100-level5 | 3 |
| Electives6,7 | 4 |
| Total Credits8 | 30 |
| Second and Third Year at BCIT Campus | |
| BIOT 280 | |
| BIOT 380 | |
| BIOT 3988 | |
| BIOT 3998 | |
| Total Credits8 | 60 |
| Fourth and Fifth Years8,9 | |
| Biotechnology selection list: | |
| Two of BIOC 440, 450, 460, BIOL 436, 458, 462, 463, MEDG 420, 421, MICB 301, 306, 308, 402, 408 | 6 |
| One of MICB 418, 425, BIOC 41010 | 3 |
| One of MICB 404, 406, 412, 413, 43010 | 3 |
| MICB 405 | 3 |
| CHBE 419 | 3 |
| One of MICB 421, 447, 448, 471,47510,11 | 3 |
| BIOC 402, 403 | 6 |
| COMR 457, 465 | 6 |
| MICB 398, 399, 498, 4998 | 6 |
| Electives6,7 | 9 |
| Total Credits8 | 42 |
| Total Credits for Degree1 | 132 |
| 1 Students without Biology 11 or 12 must take BIOL 111. Applicants from other universities and colleges may substitute 6 credits of introductory biology courses for two of BIOL 111, 112, 121. | |
| 2 Applicants from other universities and colleges may substitute 3 credits of introductory chemistry that includes a lab. Students who do not have BC high school Chemistry 12 (or its equivalent) must write the UBC Chemistry Basic Skills Test and may be required to take CHEM 100. CHEM 110 and CHEM 115 may substitute for CHEM 111. CHEM 120 and CHEM 115 may substitute for CHEM 121. CHEM 130 and CHEM 135 may substitute for CHEM 123. | |
| 3 A total of 6 credits of coursework is required to meet the Communication Requirement. For a full list of acceptable courses see Communication Requirement | |
| 4 Students must take one differential calculus course during first year of studies at UBC. MATH 180 or 184 or 120 may substitute for any of the specified differential calculus courses listed by decreasing the electives by 1 credit. MATH 110 may substitute for any of the specified differential calculus courses listed by decreasing the electives by 3 credits. | |
| 5 Students require 3 credits of 100-level PHYS beyond PHYS 100. Students lacking Physics 12 must take PHYS 100 in first year. Another 3 credits of PHYS may be taken at any time during the specialization but PHYS 100 must be taken during first year. | |
|
6 Elective credits together with required courses must fulfill the Faculty of Science’s: a) Foundational Requirement; b) Laboratory Science Requirement; c) Science Breadth Requirement; d) Science and Arts Requirements; e) Upper-level Requirement; f) General Degree Requirements. Note that BCIT credits include 9 UBC Arts credits and 3 credits equivalent to UBC STAT 200. |
|
| 7 Students should be aware that BIOL 140 is a prerequisite for many upper-level BIOL courses at UBC. To maintain flexibility in their ability to study at UBC, students should consider including BIOL 140 in their first year at UBC even though this course is not required in the Biotechnology specialization. | |
| 8 The credit for the work terms is not included in the academic credits needed for the degree or the totals for the academic year. Students must take at least one work term as either a Fall work term or a Winter work term. The remaining work term may be done as a Fall, Winter, or Summer work term. The Biotechnology specialization normally ends with a final study term. | |
| 9 Some courses only fit particular timetables. Plan schedules to have a minimum of 15 credits in each academic term in the winter session of year four. Students graduating in May at the end of year 5 only need to take enough academic credit to fulfill the requirements of the specialization. | |
| 10 If more than one of these courses are taken, the extra courses can count as part of the 6 credits of courses from the Biotechnology selection list. | |
| 11 The MICB 448 directed laboratory research project must be in the field of molecular biology. MICB 448 would normally be 3 credits. It may be taken as 6 credits if the total number of electives in fourth and fifth years is lowered from 9 credits to 6 credits, so the total required credit remains at 42 credits. | |
Co-operative Education Program: Biotechnology in Microbiology and Immunology
See the Microbiology and Immunology program.
