BS Biology

BS Biology program is to provide students an outstanding and comprehensive education in the life sciences. We strive to provide our students with a fundamental understanding of the processes that govern living systems and the techniques necessary to study them. We prepare students to pursue careers in the life sciences, to understand complex biological issues, and to use scientific thinking throughout their lives. Student development occurs through a rigorous course of study that emphasizes interdisciplinary, experience-based classes, and research projects. Faculty accessibility to students is a priority; therefore, we endeavor to offer small classes with integrated laboratory and field research experiences that promote student and faculty interactions. Students gain occupational experience through internships and/or thesis research that are supervised by faculty and professional mentors.

Students graduating with a BS: Biology degree will be extremely well prepared to compete with their peers in many areas of the biological sciences. The BS: Biology degree is appropriate for students interested in attaining careers after graduation in fields as diverse as health care, biotechnology, the pharmaceutical industry, biomedical laboratories, forensics, and science education. In addition, the curriculum of this degree is tailored to provide students will all of the coursework necessary to attend top graduate programs in biology fields (in areas such as cell/molecular biology, microbiology, and public health) as well as veterinary, medical, dental, pharmacy, optometry, physical therapy, physician assistant, nursing, and sports medicine schools. The Option Areas listed for the BS: Biology degree is designed to allow students to focus on specific coursework in a number of exciting and popular areas within the biological sciences. The Molecular Bioscience Option is tailored for students interested in research and applied science careers in biotechnology, forensics, biomedical laboratories, and the pharmaceutical industry. The Pre-Professional Medical & Veterinary Sciences Option prepares students for graduate programs and professional schools in the variety of allied health fields and veterinary medicine and contains all of the necessary prerequisites for acceptance into the majority of these schools. The Integrative Biology Option is designed for students who want flexibility and independence to pursue coursework from across different science and mathematics disciplines. This Option is particularly appropriate for students who transfer to the University of Montana Western with specialized science courses not offered at our institution.

Founded in 1893, Montana Western is an institution committed to teaching, learning, and student success.

To further that commitment, our faculty and staff designed Experience One, an educational program unique in public higher education. Students here take one course at a time, allowing them not only to focus on a single area of exploration but to engage in real-world, hands-on learning.

Our award-winning faculty members focus on one group of students at a time, frequently including learning experiences in the community, places of business, national parks, fields, and streams. Our dedicated staff members ensure that Montana Western students receive guidance and support from day one.

The results, more than a decade after Experience One was created, are extraordinary. Students at Montana Western finish what they start. We lead the state in enrollment growth, percentage of courses completed, number of degrees, even the average credit load that students take. All of this adds up to fewer wasted hours, fewer wasted dollars, and greater learning. Our graduates are highly competitive, whether entering the job market or pursuing graduate studies.

All of this takes place in an extraordinary environment, the charming and lively town of Dillon, which is surrounded by the beautiful mountain ranges and valleys of southwest Montana and on the western edge of the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.