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

Majority of our students successfully complete ALL Pre-CaSB major requirements by the end of their Sophomore year. At this time, they complete our CaSB 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).

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 by e-mail to the program. The e-mail should include full name, UID number, and 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 CaSB. However, it is the students 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.

While we recommend completing Option #1 based on MATH 31A/B being fulfilled through your AP credit, yes, you are welcome to pursue Option #2.

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-CaSB 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 articulation of 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 UCLA Chemistry department.)Meet with College Academic Counselor to confirm you can transfer the coursework for full credit.
  • Confirm with CaSB Academic Counselor that course will be accepted for the pre-major
  • Once course is completed, send official transcripts to UCLA Registrar’s Office for articulating and posting to your Degree Audit Report.
  • Monitor Degree Audit Report for articulation of course and placement in 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 on 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).

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) in order to be approved for the major change. 

Pre-Requisites for the Majors (Biology; Ecology, Behavior and Evolution; Marine Biology):

Freshman Admits

  • Completion of Life Sciences 7B with a grade of C- or better
  • Enough units to complete the major without exceeding your current unit maximum
  • Successful completion of latest attempt of a Life Science Core Curriculum course (C- or better)

Transfer Admits

  • Must have been accepted as a student in department within the Division of Life Sciences
  • Completion of Life Sciences 7B with a grade of C- or better
  • Enough units to complete the major without exceeding your current unit maximum
  • Successful completion of latest attempt of a Life Science Core Curriculum course (C- or better)

*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
  • Completion of MATH 33A with a grade of C or better
  • Completion of MATH 33B121 with a grade of C or better
  • Enough units to complete the minor with exceeding your current unit maximum

Structural Biology

  • Completion of COM SCI 31 or PIC 10A with a grade of C or better
  • Completion of MATH 33A with a grade of C or better
  • Enough units to complete the minor with exceeding your current unit maximum

Systems Biology

  • Completion of COM SCI 31 or PIC 10A with a grade of C or better
  • Completion of MATH 33A with a grade of C or better
  • Completion of MATH 33B121 with a grade of C or better
  • Enough units to complete the minor with exceeding your current unit maximum

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 upper division major requirements. Send your request to MESSAGE CENTER with the following information: your full name, UID, major, course substitution petition 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.

Students usually find their faculty mentors through classes they take, i.e., their professors. Who you choose to contact depends on your interest. 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.

If you are interested in doing research with an affiliated CaSB faculty member, you can go on our CaSB website to get the names and contact information of faculty who are currently affiliated with the department and may be suitable research mentors.

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 CaSB 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 & Systems 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.

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

Students are required to take ALL Pre-Major and Major courses for a letter grade of C or better with the exception of C&S BIO M184 which is a P/NP only course.

NOTE:
PASS/NO PASS GRADING OPTION FOR SPRING 2020 – SUMMER 2021 ONLY

  • Students have the option to take CASB courses (e.g. CASB 100) for a letter grade or Pass/No Pass. This grading option, Student Option (SO), has been updated in the system.
    • Student have the option to change their grading basis without a petition up until Friday of Week 9.
  • Students in our majors and minors are approved to complete requirements (lower and upper division) with a “Pass” grade.
  • If you are considering changing the grading basis for your courses toward your degree requirements from the Letter Grade to Pass/No Pass option, it is important to take the following points into consideration:
    • A grade of “Pass” has no effect on the GPA, but can fulfill requirements.
    • A grade of “No Pass” (NP) is based on receiving a cumulative grade in a course equivalent to a C- or below, and it does not fulfill requirements.
  • Reminder that this policy has and continues to be a quarter-by-quarter basis.
  • Reminder that a grade of Pass meets requirements (major and minor) during the University-designated quarter.

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.

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 and in-person.

If you are currently on 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 setup 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 to 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, students will lose access to the online booking system and will have to email the counselor to setup an appointment.