Major Requirements for Transfer Students

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  1. Some Tips on IB
  2. Major Requirements
  3. Planning the IB Major
  4. Declaring IB

These courses are designed to provide students the necessary intellectual tools and techniques required to conduct multidisciplinary work in organismal biology.  Laboratory and field courses will provide you with experience in and methodologies for the study of both living and extinct organisms. 

1. Some Tips on IB:

  • The Integrative Biology (IB) major can be declared after your first successful semester at UCB, and before 85 units are earned.
  • A minimum 2.0 GPA in lower and upper division courses is required. 
  • Students may use a course to fulfill both a lab requirement and a requirement group. 
  • A statistics course is recommended for those planning on graduate study. 
  • Students may use up to two pre-approved courses from outside the IB major for elective credit in the major.
    (See the course list for a listing of these pre-approved electives.) 

Discuss with the Undergraduate Student Services Office your readiness to declare.
Be sure to bring a copy of your transcripts and current enrollments to that meeting. 

2. Major Requirements

See our Curriculum page for IB Major Requirements.

3. Planning the IB Major

To plan your IB major, you will need to visit the Forms page and print out the appropriate checksheet. Below are some sample plans to help guide you in the planning processl

Transfer Student Sample Academic Plans

Track 1—Ecology, Evolution & Organismal Biology

Track 2—Human Biology & Health Sciences

4. Declaring IB as a Major

The College of Letters & Science expects that all students declare by the time they earn or have in progress 90 units. Students who remain undeclared will have a registration blosck against enrollment in the next semester.

1. To declare IB as a major, students:

If you are still working on the requirements and have questions, your eligibility will be evaluated by the IB Undergraduate Services Office.

2. Note to Transfer Students:
It is strongly recommended that lower division courses be completed before arriving at Berkeley. This is recommended for three main reasons:

  • The College of Letters & Science sets a limit to the number of semesters or units you may accrue after transferring.
  • You MUST declare a major by the time you have completed 90 units (including those in progress). This means that transfers, by definition, must declare during their second semester. If the lower division is not completed, it is unlikely you'll be eligible to declare and meet this deadline.
  • Perhaps most importantly, coming to Cal ill-prepared for the major will severely detract from your experience here! Having to complete numerous lower division courses, which are diffcult to enroll in, detracts from the reason you’re here: the amazing upper division classes, as well as opportunities for research and other extracurricular activities. You will only get two years at Cal—make them count!

Transfers should also:

  • Attend a CALSO orientation during the summer before enrolling at Cal.
  • Communicate with the Undergraduate Student Services Office before the start of their first semester or soon after for advising and planning.
  • REQUIRED: Complete a successful semester at Berkeley prior to declaration.

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