• Program Description

• Admission Requirements

• Required & Elective Courses

• Tentative Course Cycle

• Program Coordinator

Program Description

The marine biology curriculum fulfills basic requirements for admission into graduate and professional schools. It also may serve as a terminal degree, with which to enter the job market. The program includes a laboratory field experience, currently available at FDU’s field station in Samana, Dominican Republic. At this station, students have a full semester of warm-water Caribbean field experience. The School of Natural Sciences’ semester at Samana contains 15 credits of Marine Biology courses with a research project and an option of taking one online course (e.g., University Core) for a total of 18 credits. Each of the marine biology courses consists of a lecture and a field-based component, the field component is supported by laboratory studies. Fieldwork study sites will include reefs, mangroves, sea grass beds and salt marshes. To participate in any field experience, a student must have earned a 2.25 in biology course work and be in good academic standing. Further information can be obtained form the school’s director.

Admission Requirements 

For matriculation in the marine biology curriculum, successful completion of secondary school courses in elementary algebra and plane geometry and a year of sciences are required. Candidates for the Bachelor of Science degree with a major in marine biology must complete the courses outlined below.

Required & Elective Courses   

MBIO 1000 Caribbean Biology, MBIO 1118/1128 Beach Ecology, MBIO 1209/1219 Intro to Marine Biology, MBIO 2000 Caribbean Organisms, CHEM 1201/1203 General Chemistry I, MATH 2237 Applied Statistics I, ENGL 1101 English Comp I, FRSH 1000 Freshman Seminar, CSCI Computers & Comp Software, ENVR 1111/1112 Oceanography, CHEM 1201/1204 General Chemistry II, MATH Sequence, ENGL 1102 English Comp II, CORE 1006 The Global Challenge, BIOL 1251/1253 General Biology I, CHEM 2261/2263 Organic Chemistry I, ENGL 2201 Masterpieces of World Lit. I, MATH Sequence, BIOL 1252/1254 General Biology II, CHEM 2262/2264 Organic Chemistry II, ENGL 2202 Masterpieces of World Lit. II, CORE 2007 Perspective on the Individual, MBIO 3200 Tropical Marine Vegetation, MBIO 3400 Tropical Marine Invertebrates, MBIO 3900 Tropical Marine Vertebrates, MBIO 3700 Tropical Marine Ecology, MBIO 4201 Marine Biology Research I, PHIL 1000 Life of the Mind, MBIO 3650/3651 Physiology Marine Animals, MBIO 4202 Marine Biology Research II, CORE 2008 Cross-Cultural Perspective, BIOL 3225/3226 General Microbiology, PHYS 2203/2201 General Physics, BIOL 3210/3211 Genetics, CORE 3009 The American Experience, BIOL 4414/4415 Animal Behavior, PHYS 2201/2202 University Physics, ENVR 6706 Applied principles Geographic Information Systems, CHEM 3281 Biochemistry I and 3 Electives as designated.   

Tentative Course Cycle

Program Coordinator

Marion McClary
Associate Professor and Associate Director
Voice: 201-692-2606
Fax: 201-692-7349
Email: marion_mcclary@fdu.edu
Website: http://inside.fdu.edu/pt/mcclary.html