Students must complete gateway courses with at least a C- and meet all LEP requirements before they can apply and declare Biological Sciences.
Biological Sciences is a Limited Enrollment Program (LEP). Students can be admitted as either a freshman applicant (which is a competitive application), or as an internal or external transfer student (which is a non-competitive application).
If you are in high school, or if you have fewer than 12 semester hours or 18 quarter hours of university-level credit, then you must apply to the University of Maryland as a freshman applicant to be considered for admission.
HAVE A QUESTION? FIND AN ANSWER:
⮑ Go-to Answers-FAQ for next steps, or email your question to bscique@umd.edu for more information.
Limited Enrollment Program (LEP)
ACADEMIC POLICIES
1. Only one gateway course may be repeated to earn the required grade (of C- or better) and that course may only be repeated once.
2. When more than one course can satisfy a gateway requirement, taking a second course from the list will count as a repeat. Please note that a grade of "W" is considered an attempt and must be repeated.
3. Students may apply once to an LEP.
4. Students who were directly admitted and fail to meet the performance review criteria will be dismissed from the major and may not reapply.
5. Students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 after admission to an LEP. Failure to do so will result in dismissal from the major.
6. Any student denied admission or dismissed from the major may appeal in writing to the individual LEP.
LEP-Gateway Courses
MATH135 (OR) MATH140 [Discrete Math or Calculus I]
BSCI170 + BSCI171 [Molecular & Cell Biology w/ lab]
BSCI160 + BSCI161 [Ecology & Evolution w/ lab]
CHEM131 + CHEM132 [General Chemistry I w/ lab]
CHEM231 + CHEM232 [Organic Chemistry I w/ lab]
A minimum grade point average of 2.7 in all courses taken at the University of Maryland and all other institutions is required for internal and external transfer students.
Transfer students must meet the LEP-Gateway requirements posted to be eligible for admission. Students who were not admitted into Biological Sciences as freshman applicants may apply as an internal transfer student once.
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Next steps to declare Biological Sciences are based on your current major or student type.
Current UMD Students, Any Major or Letters & Sciences
Who want to switch their degree program to Biological Sciences (leave current major) or want to add Biological Sciences as a second major or degree:
REVIEW the Specializations for Biological Sciences and choose the one you want to pursue
MEET with a CMNS Peer Mentor (a fellow student) to create a rough grad plan for Biological Sciences
Ensure that the rough plan follows the Expectations for responsible grad planning posted on bsci.umd.edu/gradplan and that courses are appropriately sequenced using the Model Grad Plan (MGP) for your specific BSCI specialization
EMAIL a copy of your rough grad plan to bscique@umd.edu and it will be proofread by an Academic Advisor from the Biological Sciences Program
Academic advisors will document whether students’ grad plans are responsible or must be revised by email (no meeting is necessary until students are officially declared)
COMPLETE all LEP-Gateway Courses with at least a C-
SUBMIT the Limited Enrollment Program (LEP) application.
Students must apply by the 5th business day of January for Spring semester admission, and the 5th business day of June for Fall semester admission
Do NOT submit the LEP application until all LEP-Gateway course requirements are satisfied
The Biological Sciences Program does NOT administer the LEP application. All inquiries about the application itself and related deadlines should be emailed to lep@umd.edu
Current UMD Students in Qualifying LEP Majors
Applicable to Chemistry (CHEM) and Biochemistry (BCHM) majors who are looking to switch their degree program to Biological Sciences or to add BSCI as a second program.
Applicable to Neuroscience (NEUR) majors who are looking to change their degree program to Biological Sciences.
None of the specializations for Biological Sciences can be combined with Neuroscience (NEUR) due to a significant overlap in the requirements for both programs.
REVIEW the Specializations for Biological Sciences and choose the one you want to pursue
MEET with a CMNS Peer Mentor (a fellow student) to create a rough grad plan for Biological Sciences
Ensure that the rough plan follows the Expectations for responsible grad planning posted on bsci.umd.edu/gradplan and that courses are appropriately sequenced using the Model Grad Plan (MGP) for your specific BSCI specialization
EMAIL a copy of your rough grad plan to bscique@umd.edu and it will be proofread by an Academic Advisor from the Biological Sciences Program
Academic advisors will document whether students’ grad plans are responsible or must be revised by email (no meeting is necessary until students are officially declared)
COMPLETE all LEP-Gateway Courses with at least a C-
SUBMIT a major change form via TerpEngage
Do NOT submit the major change form until all LEP-Gateway course requirements are satisfied
Incoming Transfer Students (accepted to UMD)
CONSULT with an academic advisor from the College of Letters and Sciences about their Interim Advising Program (IAP), pending your LEP Application to the Biological Sciences major
Prospective Transfer Students (still applying to UMD)
CONNECT with an academic advisor from the University’s Pre-Transfer Advising Program
Transfer Students may also use the Transfer Course Database to determine how past, current or future courses may transfer to the University of Maryland
