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2020-2021 Undergraduate & Graduate Catalog

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Cell and Molecular Biology

For additional information about opportunities your college offers, please refer to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences section in this catalog.

Website: gvsu.edu/cmb

Cell and molecular biology (CMB) is for students with a passion for the life sciences who want to prepare for employment in their field or for graduate/professional training. This interdisciplinary subject draws on diverse fields such as biochemistry, biophysics, computational biology, genetics and developmental biology and is the basis for many applied fields including biotechnology, pharmacology, and biomedicine. CMB is focused on determining how cells develop and function and the significance of those functions in the living organism. The Bachelor of Science in cell and molecular biology at Grand Valley prepares students for employment or graduate training in the critically important and dynamic fields of cell and molecular biology, biotechnology, evolutionary development, and biomedical research. In addition, the B.S. in CMB provides excellent preparation for successful application to professional programs. The major requires core courses that address issues specific to cell and molecular biology, which are supplemented by courses from the biology, biomedical sciences, chemistry and physics departments. A unique and defining part of Grand Valley's CMB degree is the student's participation in independent research/internship. Each student will have a research mentor from CMB or another participating GVSU department or from an area business or research institute, ensuring that students will get practical experience conducting original research in their area of interest. This practical experience, in addition to the rigorous curriculum, has been demonstrated to contribute to our graduates' success in the workforce as well as in graduate and professional programs.

Many upper-level classes in the CMB degree have several prerequisites, thus it is important for students to begin their chemistry, biology and physics course sequences as early as possible. Students who wish to major in cell and molecular biology should see a member of the CMB faculty to plan their program of study as soon as possible.

Participating Programs

Faculty members from the Annis Water Resources Institute, biology, biomedical science, and chemistry departments contribute to the CMB program.

Faculty members from the CMB program contribute to the Professional Science Master's program at GVSU.

Program Requirements

The following programs are available:


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