Course Catalogue

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Biology 1C introduces students to Biology at the unicellular and multicellular level. Students will carry out detailed investigations of the molecular make-up of biological systems and organisms and relate these to real-life examples and current research.

There is normally 4 x 1 hour lectures and a 3 hour lab per week.

Normally, only available to first-year Life Sciences students from a visiting programme, Northeastern University, Boston. Maybe available as an elective for non-Life Sciences students, numbers permitting.

BIOL1001 Biology 1A

BIOL1002 Biology 1B

Level 1 Chemistry (new course developed for the same students)

The course will be assessed by a 60-minute examination (30%) plus in-course assessment (70%) consisting of:

■ 2x written assignments (5% and 15%)

■ 1x group project (15%)

■ 2 MCQ tests (35%)

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. Where, exceptionally, reassessment on Honours courses is required to satisfy professional/accreditation requirements, only the overall course grade achieved at the first attempt will contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

The group project is non-replicable. This is 15% of the course assessment.

The aims of the course are:

■ to provide a broad-based understanding of modern biology at the molecular and cellular and organismal level

■ to develop general scientific skills and graduate attributes

■ to develop an awareness of current scientific research in Life Sciences

■ To provide a broad-based understanding of modern biology at molecular, cellular, and organismal levels

■ To develop general scientific skills and awareness of current scientific research in Life Sciences.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ describe key biological molecules, processes and systems

■ discuss evolutionary theories as they apply to Life Sciences

■ analyse and interpret scientific data and literature

■ demonstrate practical laboratory skills

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.