Web Site: http://lifesci.rutgers.edu
Dean: Kenneth J. Breslauer
Director, Office of Undergraduate Instruction: Jamshid Rabii
Acting Chairperson, Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience: Wise Young
Chairperson, Department of Genetics: Jay A. Tischfield
Chairperson, Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry: Vincent Pirrotta
The Division of Life Sciences coordinates, fosters, and integrates the
instructional and research activities of a broad range of faculty with
interests in the biological sciences. The principal units of the
division include three departments: Cell Biology and Neuroscience,
Genetics, and Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, as well as two
sections, the biological chemistry section of the Department of
Chemistry and Chemical Biology, and the biopsychology and behavioral
neuroscience section of the Department of Psychology. The division's
primary goal is to provide a high caliber of interdisciplinary teaching
and research in the life sciences as it trains the next generation of
teachers, researchers, and future health professionals.
Instruction in the life sciences has undergone enormous changes over
the past 10 to 15 years. These changes reflect the intellectual
revolution of the last two decades, as well as technical advances that
have expanded greatly the tools available to life scientists. Today,
students majoring in the life sciences at Rutgers-New
Brunswick/Piscataway experience an exciting atmosphere of learning that
exposes them to the concepts and methods of these intellectual and
technological advances. The students have open to them a plethora of
learning avenues, ranging from thought- provoking lecture presentations
to original and cutting-edge research opportunities in state-of-the-art
laboratories. A first-class faculty, modern laboratory equipment, and
powerful computers used in teaching reflect the division`s commitment
to provide its students with the best learning environment.
The division offers a wide spectrum of majors for students interested
in the life sciences. These options range from a division-based major
in biological sciences, designed to provide a general life sciences
education, to department-based majors in cell biology and neuroscience,
genetics and microbiology, and molecular biology and biochemistry,
aimed at providing specialized training, with a strong emphasis on
research. Graduates of the division will be highly competitive for a
range of postbaccalaureate opportunities, including graduate education
and research, health-professions training, and biomedical and
biotechnological research positions, as well as teaching careers in the
sciences.
The first two years of the student's tenure at
Rutgers is expected to revolve around the life sciences core
curriculum, a series of basic offerings designed to provide the general
background required for pursuing upper-division courses in any of the
individual majors. Regardless of the major chosen, students are
encouraged to participate in independent study within a research
laboratory in order to take advantage of the rich expertise of the many
life sciences faculty in New Brunswick/Piscataway. The division also
has a highly developed advising system, with many faculty advisers
available to work with individual students in their selection of
courses and completion of their major requirements.
Students
may not major in more than one of the following majors in the
Division of Life Sciences: Biological Sciences (119), Cell Biology and
Neuroscience (146), Genetics (447), or Molecular Biology and
Biochemistry (694). Furthermore, students majoring in one of these four
majors may not minor in Biological Sciences (119).
For additional information and announcements about the Division of Life Sciences, please visit the division's web site.
