General Education Foundations
Please use this link to view a list of courses that meet each GEF requirement.
NOTE: Some major requirements will fulfill specific GEF requirements. Please see the curriculum requirements listed below for details on which GEFs you will need to select.
| General Education Foundations | ||
| F1 - Composition & Rhetoric | 3-6 | |
| Introduction to Composition and Rhetoric and Composition, Rhetoric, and Research | ||
or ENGL 103 | Accelerated Academic Writing | |
| F2A/F2B - Science & Technology | 4-6 | |
| F3 - Math & Quantitative Reasoning | 3-4 | |
| F4 - Society & Connections | 3 | |
| F5 - Human Inquiry & the Past | 3 | |
| F6 - The Arts & Creativity | 3 | |
| F7 - Global Studies & Diversity | 3 | |
| F8 - Focus (may be satisfied by completion of a minor, double major, or dual degree) | 9 | |
| Total Hours | 31-37 | |
Please note that not all of the GEF courses are offered at all campuses. Students should consult with their advisor or academic department regarding the GEF course offerings available at their campus.
Degree Requirements
Students must complete WVU General Education Foundations requirements, College B.S. requirements, major requirements, and electives to total a minimum of 120 hours. For complete details on these requirements, visit the B.S. Degrees tab on the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences pages.
Departmental Requirements for the B.S. in Forensic Biology
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Capstone Requirement: The university requires the successful completion of a Capstone course. Forensic Biology majors must complete FIS 406.
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Writing and Communication Skills Requirement: The Forensic Biology Bachelor of Science is a SpeakWrite Certified ProgramTM. SpeakWrite Certified programs incorporate and develop students' written, verbal, visual, and mediated communication skills across the curriculum.
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Calculation of the GPA in the Major: To graduate with the Forensic Biology major, students must achieve a minimum overall GPA of 2.5 in all FIS courses with no grade lower than a C- in any FIS course, or in any course listed in the "STEM Foundations" or "Forensic and Investigative Science Major Requirements" areas below. If a course is repeated, all attempts will be included in the calculation of the GPA unless the course is eligible for a D/F repeat.
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Internship Requirement: All students are required to successfully complete the FIS 386 Forensic Identification Internship internship course for at least 3 hours of credit.
Curriculum Requirements
| UNIVERSITY REQUIREMENTS | 19 | |
| First-Year Seminar | ||
GEF: Number of credits will vary depending on overlap | ||
| COLLEGE REQUIREMENTS | ||
Global Studies & Diversity Requirement | ||
| Mathematics Requirement | 4 | |
| Calculus 1 | ||
| Calculus 1a with Precalculus and Calculus 1b with Precalculus | ||
| Science Requirement: | ||
Please see the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences' Bachelor of Science (B.S.) tab. | ||
| DEPARTMENTAL REQUIREMENTS | ||
| 1- STEM Foundations | 24 | |
| Fundamentals of Chemistry and Fundamentals of Chemistry 1 - Laboratory | ||
| Principles of Chemistry 1 and Principles of Chemistry 1 - Laboratory | ||
| Fundamentals of Chemistry and Fundamentals of Chemistry 2 - Laboratory | ||
| Principles of Chemistry 2 and Principles of Chemistry 2 - Laboratory | ||
| Organic Chemistry and Organic Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| Organic Chemistry and Organic Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| Introductory Physics 1 | ||
or PHYS 111 | General Physics | |
| Introductory Physics 2 | ||
or PHYS 112 | General Physics | |
| 2- Forensic Biology Major Requirements | ||
| Quantitative Coursework: | 6 | |
| Select one of the following pairs: | ||
| Calculus 2 and Introduction to Probability and Statistics | ||
| Elementary Statistical Inference and Intermediate Statistical Methods | ||
| Biology & Biochemistry Coursework: | 26 | |
| Introductory Biochemistry | ||
or BIOC 339 | Introduction to Biochemistry | |
| Principles of Biology and Principles of Biology Laboratory | ||
| Introductory Physiology and Introductory Physiology Laboratory | ||
| The Living Cell and The Living Cell Laboratory | ||
| Advanced Cellular/Molecular Biology | ||
| Molecular Genetics and Molecular Genetics Laboratory | ||
or GEN 371 | Principles of Genetics | |
| Forensic Biology and Forensic Biology Laboratory | ||
| Forensic Science Core: | 21 | |
| Introduction to Forensic Identification | ||
| Crime Scene Investigation Overview | ||
| Biological Evidence for Forensic Examiners | ||
| Introduction to Microscopy | ||
| Professional Internship Preparation | ||
| Forensic Identification Internship | ||
| Law and Evidence | ||
| Forensic Quality Assurance | ||
| Forensic Biology Electives: * | 6 | |
| Science/Technology of Fingerprint Identification ** | ||
| Science and Culture of Illicit Drugs | ||
| Principles of Forensic Photography | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Gravesite Forensics | ||
| Professional Ethics in Forensic Science | ||
| Teaching Practicum | ||
| Professional Field Experience | ||
| Directed Study | ||
| Independent Study | ||
| Research | ||
| Honors | ||
| Capstone Experience | 3 | |
| Court Testimony | ||
| General Electives: | 11 | |
| Number of Electives may vary depending on course selection. | ||
| Total Hours | 120 | |
| * | A maximum of 3 credits combined may come from FIS 490, 491, 492, 495, or 497. FIS 498C may not be used to fulfill this requirement |
| ** | FIS 301 is typically reserved for Forensic Examiner majors. If there is a seat available, it will be open to Forensic Biology majors as an option. |
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| FIS 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (GEF 1) | 3 | ||
| BIOL 115 & BIOL 116 (B.S. First Area 1; GEF 2) | 4 | BIOL 117 & BIOL 118 (GEF 8; B.S. First Area 2) | 4 | ||
| CHEM 115 & 115L (GEF 8; B.S. Second Area 1) | 4 | CHEM 116 & 116L (GEF 8; B.S. Second Area 2) | 4 | ||
| FIS 201 | 3 | MATH 156 (Math & Stats Elective 1) | 4 | ||
| MATH 155 (B.S. Math Requirement, GEF 3) | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 15 | ||||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| BIOL 219 & BIOL 220 | 4 | ENGL 102 (GEF 1) | 3 | ||
| CHEM 233 & CHEM 235 | 4 | CHEM 234 & CHEM 236 | 4 | ||
| PHYS 101 (B.S. Third Area 1) | 4 | PHYS 102 (B.S. Third Area 2) | 4 | ||
| STAT 215 (Math and Stat Requirement 2) | 3 | FIS 202 | 3 | ||
| General Elective | 1 | ||||
| 15 | 15 | ||||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer | Hours |
| GEF 4 | 3 | BIOL 432 & BIOL 434 | 4 | FIS 386 | 3-6 |
| FIS 305 | 3 | BIOL 324 & BIOL 325 | 4 | ||
| BIOL 310 | 3 | GEF 5 | 3 | ||
| FIS 314 | 3 | General Elective | 3 | ||
| FIS 385 | 1 | ||||
| FIS 480 | 2 | ||||
| 15 | 14 | 3 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| FIS 404 | 3 | AGBI 410 or BIOC 339 | 3 | ||
| FIS 406 (Capstone) | 3 | Forensic Biology Elective 2 | 3 | ||
| Forensic Biology Elective 1 | 3 | GEF 7 | 3 | ||
| GEF 6 | 3 | General Elective | 3 | ||
| General Elective | 3 | ||||
| 15 | 12 | ||||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||||
Major Learning Outcomes
Forensic Biology
Upon graduation from the Forensic Biology major, students will be able to:
- Apply scientific methodology and evaluate techniques in the collection, processing, analysis, and evaluation of forensic evidence.
- Assess and defend data generated during forensic investigations
- Present scientific data in written, verbal, and visual formats.
- Demonstrate the professionalism and high ethical standards demanded by the justice system and the forensic science community.