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Please review our “Admission” Page for an overview of the requirements for entry into our Pre-Major.

The majority of our students complete ALL Pre-COMP BIO major requirements by the end of their Sophomore year. At this time, they complete our COMP BIO major application for consideration into the major. Once your application is submitted, it is a 10-15 business day turnaround (not including holidays and weekends). During high-volume inquiry times(start of the quarter/when enrollment opens) this turnaround may increase.

To enter the minor, students must be in good academic standing (2.0 grade-point average or better) and have completed Computer Science 31 or Program in Computing 10A with a grade of C or better. Requests to declare the minor must be sent via Message Center. The e-mail should include full name, UID number, and a request to declare the minor.

Students receiving a grade below C- in two LS Core Curriculum courses, either in separate courses or repetitions of the same course, are subject to being academically ineligible for our majors.

Students who receive a third grade below C- in the LS Core Curriculum will be dismissed from the major.

Yes, students who have started one series can switch to a different series for the purposes of COMP BIO. However, it is the student’s responsibility to confirm the enrollment process with the respective department of the course to ensure they are aware of any additional steps they need to take.

No, a student who has received AP credit for MATH 31A and/or MATH 31B should NOT switch to the Calculus & Statistics Series Option #2. The reason is that the Calculus & Statistics Series Option #2 requires C&S BIO M32, and a student with credit for MATH 31A and/or MATH 31B credit is ineligible for C&S BIO M32 credit. Meaning that if a student were to switch to the Calculus & Statistics Series Option #2 they will have no opportunity to satisfy the C&S BIO M32 requirement.

No, course credit via AP exam scores do not meet pre-health requirements. All requirements must be completed via college-level coursework. In this instance, we advise students to take the Calculus & Statistics Series Option #2, which will meet pre-major and pre-health requirements simultaneously.

Yes, we will manually substitute the course to your DARS if you submit a request via MESSAGE CENTER.

Effective FALL 2023, our department is no longer accepting AP credit for Physics or STATS.

Yes, students can take Pre-COMP BIO courses at another institution. However, we cannot guarantee that every single course you are considering will articulate. Thus, it is the student’s responsibility to ensure it will transfer and articulate to a UCLA course.  Here are a few steps we recommend taking for this process:

  • Review the course on Transferology.com to determine the articulation of the course to UCLA.
  • Confirm articulation with the UCLA subject area’s home department (ie, if taking a lower division chemistry course at another institution, confirm course articulation with the UCLA Chemistry department). Meet with a College Academic Counselor to confirm you can transfer the coursework for full credit.
  • Confirm with the CaSB Academic Advisor that the course will be accepted for the pre-major
  • Once the course is completed, send official transcripts to the UCLA Registrar’s Office for articulation and posting to your Degree Audit Report.
  • Monitor the Degree Audit Report for articulation of courses and placement in the pre-major category.
  • NOTE: The transfer credit and articulation of non-UCLA courses are at the complete discretion of the Registrar’s Office.

While these additional lower division courses are NOT required to be completed prior to applying for the major, it is recommended. This will allow you to begin on specific upper division coursework required for your track.

If you need a PTE # for a CaSB course, please email the instructor of the course. If they approve, please send a screenshot confirmation via MESSAGE CENTER so we may provide one.

Additionally, the department cannot assist with switching sections. Students need to do this on their own together. Ex: A student finds another student who wants to switch, and they change sections at the same time. Please be aware that we do not have any control over whether students get dropped- by switching labs, you are risking losing your seat, which we will not be able to assist with.

Students will create a contract via their MyUCLA under “Classes – Plan and Enroll- Contract Courses.” It is critical that you create the contract for the current term you are planning to enroll into. Once the contract is created you will have your Primary Investigator (PI) sign the form. Once the contract is signed you will submit it to our department via MESSAGE CENTER to the “Contract Courses” queue.

  • We provide a quarterly reminder regarding how to create a contract and the deadline to submit via BRUIN LEARN.

As a reminder, our department CANNOT assist/give PTE #s for courses offered by other departments unless we otherwise announce it via BRUIN LEARN. Please reach out to the respective department or instructor of the course for assistance. – For example, Life Science courses → Life Sciences Core Curriculum Office; Chemistry courses → Chemistry department

Transfer students: Please be aware that the enrollment system may not allow you to enroll in classes if you took the pre-requisite(s) at another school.

Major Change and/or Minor Declaration Requests: 10-15 business days (Effective Spring quarter, March 29, 2021). Please remember that if a major/minor change request is made during high volume periods(enrollment opens/start of the quarter) this turnaround window may extend.

Our office will only accept requests via Message Center during the following weeks of the quarter:

Fall & Winter Quarters: Weeks 0 – 3

Spring Quarter: Weeks 0 – 5

Summer Session A: Weeks 3 – 6

Summer Session C: Weeks 1 – 6

Students must be in good academic standing (i.e., not on Academic Probation or Subject to Dismissal) to be approved for the major change. 

Pre-Requisites for the Major (COMP BIO):

Freshman Admits

  • Completed one quarter at UCLA
  • Are in good academic standing
  • Have a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 or better
  • Have established a pre-major GPA of at least 2.7 by taking at least one pre-major course at UCLA for a letter grade

Transfer Admits

  • Must have been accepted as a student in a department within the Division of Life Sciences
  • Are in good academic standing
  • Have a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 or better
  • Have established a pre-major GPA of at least 2.7 by taking at least one pre-major course at UCLA for a letter grade

*It is recommended that some lower division courses be completed before arriving to UCLA.

Pre-Requisites for the Minors:

Mathematical Biology

  • Completion of COM SCI 31 or PIC 10A with a grade of C or better
  • Be in good academic standing(2.0 grade point average or better).
  • Enough units to complete the minor without exceeding your current unit maximum
  • Meet with the CaSB Academic Advisory to review minor requirements and declare the minor.

Systems Biology

  • Completion of COM SCI 31 or PIC 10A with a grade of C or better
  • Be in good academic standing(2.0 grade point average or better).
  • Enough units to complete the minor without exceeding your current unit maximum
  • Meet with the CaSB Academic Advisory to review minor requirements and declare the minor.

If a course is closed and there is an established wait list, that will be the only way students will be able to wait list in a course. Please be advised a spot on a wait list does not guarantee enrollment in a course. The only way to get enrolled is if a student drops from the course and you automatically get enrolled.

Students in all majors may request to have courses evaluated for equivalency for major requirements. To submit, fill out the appropriate petition form for your situation and submit the petition form to MESSAGE CENTER with the following information: your full name, UID, major, course petition type completed, and the SYLLABUS from the course that you are petitioning.

Students can start research at any time they wish, as long as they have a lab to work in. We recommend that students take on research after they have been at UCLA for a couple of quarters. For many, this is around their 2nd – 4th year. It is recommended that a student discuss the capstone requirement with the CaSB Academic Advisor as soon as they can.

Students usually find their faculty mentors by contacting the professors whose lab they find most interesting. A good starting point is the CaSB Affiliated Faculty page. Keep in mind that this page does not show all labs a student can join to complete the COMP BIO capstone requirement. If you join a non-affiliated professor’s lab, please meet with the CaSB Academic Advisor to discuss. The earlier a student begins to contact faculty, the more likely it is that they will find a research lab that aligns with their interests.

Take the time to identify faculty members on campus whose research is of interest to you. If you had a positive learning experience in one of your classes, you may want to ask your professor if he/she is accepting undergraduates to their lab. You may also want to consult your teaching assistants about finding a research position on campus.

Students can use the MyUCLA Degree Audit feature to track progress toward the degree. Any time prior to graduation, a student may request a review of degree progress. Official degree checks detail requirements remaining to complete the bachelor’s degree.

Students with a grade-point average of 3.5 or better in required major courses and a 3.0 cumulative GPA may apply for departmental honors or highest honors during their final undergraduate quarter. Honors or highest honors will be granted at the discretion of the faculty sponsor and the faculty committee to students demonstrating exceptional ability on the senior research thesis.

Exceptional Computational Biology(COMP BIO) students may be eligible to apply to the Departmental Scholar Program, a 5-year B.S./M.S. program in which students complete their B.S. in Computational Biology and their M.S. in Bioinformatics at UCLA in approximately five years. More information and eligibility requirements can be found here: https://casb.ucla.edu/5-year-bs-ms-departmental-scholar-program/.

The annual CASB Commencement Celebration is usually on the Sunday of Commencement Weekend at the end of Spring Quarter. Students are required to submit their RSVP and ticket orders for all Commencement ceremonies they plan to participate in (including the College ceremony as well as the CASB ceremony) via MyUCLA during a designated ordering period, which is usually from late-April to mid-May. Information is posted on the general Commencement website (commencement.ucla.edu) as well as on the CASB webpage.

The University of California Education Abroad Program (UCEAP) is the official, system-wide study abroad program for the University of California. UCEAP is partnered with 115 universities worldwide and offers programs in 42 countries. These UC-approved programs combine immersive learning with engaging activities. UCEAP students enroll in courses abroad while earning UC units and maintaining UCLA student status. Many programs offer internships, research, and volunteer opportunities. Check out their website here. NOTE: Satisfying upper-division course credit via Study Abroad credit is very difficult to do. It is recommended that a student in CaSB use Study Abroad to satisfy Lower-Division/General Education requirements.

The department does not have their own student organization for CaSB students. However, the Computational Biologists Society is a student-initiated organization recognized by UCLA Student Organizations, Leadership & Engagement (SOLE), which we’d recommend checking out, as many of our students collaborate with them.

The Annual Research Expo provides an excellent opportunity for faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates to present their work and informally discuss the research that is taking place within the Department. The Symposium consists of a Poster Session and a Seminar given by a department alumnus/a.  It is held in Spring Quarter. Students enrolled in C&S BIO M187 are required to participate. Details are provided directly by their instructors during the start of the Spring quarter.

Any student who is not enrolled in C&S BIO M187 and is interested in participating should contact the C&S BIO Undergraduate Office via Message Center to request to participate in the event. As long as space isn’t an issue, CaSB will attempt to accommodate all students who wish to participate in the event. Poster printing is provided by the CaSB Undergraduate Office for any student who is enrolled in C&S BIO M187. Any student not enrolled in the course who wishes to print a poster for the event will need to cover the cost of the poster themselves.

The correct department to contact would be your main College counseling unit: College Academic Counseling; Academic Advancement Program, Honors, or Athletics.

You can check which is your main counseling unit by going to your DARS on the right-hand side. For example:

To make an appointment, please CLICK HERE.

All appointments will be in 20-minute increments. Appointments will be conducted via Zoom.

If you are currently in a different time zone and all appointment times are in the middle of the night your time, I am happy to accommodate appointments outside of my normal hours at a mutually agreeable time. Please contact me via MESSAGE CENTER to set up an appointment outside of the 9-4 Pacific Time.

Please be mindful of other students when booking appointments and, if needed, please cancel or reschedule your appointment at least 2 hours in advance so another student can have your timeslot. Please be on time for appointments. If you are more than 5 minutes late, your appointment will be considered a “No-Show” and you will need to reschedule. If a student misses (or cancels with less than 2 hours’ notice) three or more appointments in a quarter, the student will lose access to the online booking system and will have to email the counselor to set up an appointment.

All information related to Academic Advising can be found here.