Robin in snow covered tree

Admission to the Biological Sciences Major

College of Arts and Sciences

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) information: 

  • I am a student in the College of Arts and Sciences, seeking to declare biological sciences as my major. 
  • I am a student in the College of Arts and Sciences, seeking to add biological sciences as a double major. 
Application to the Major

Academic Requirements: 

  • Minimum cumulative Cornell GPA of 2.75.
  • One semester Introductory Biology Cluster course or Evolutionary Biology and Diversity course completed before transfer.
  • One other course in the Biological Sciences curriculum completed before transfer.
  • Grades of C or better in all completed required courses for the Biological Sciences major.
  • It is essential that the General Chemistry sequence be completed before the beginning of junior year.
  • First Year Applicants: CAS students who want to declare the biological sciences major during their freshmen year will do so at a first-year planning meeting that takes place during the spring semester. Applications will be reviewed and processed at the end of the spring semester, and students will be notified over the summer before the start of their sophomore year. 

Major Requirements-CAS

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) information: 

  • I am a student in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, seeking to change my major to biological sciences.  
  • I am a student in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, seeking to add biological sciences as a double major. 
Application to the Major

Academic Requirements: 

  • Minimum cumulative Cornell GPA of 2.75.
  • One semester Introductory Biology Cluster course or Evolutionary Biology and Diversity course completed before transfer.
  • One other course in the Biological Sciences curriculum completed before transfer.
  • Grades of C or better in all completed required courses for the Biological Sciences major.
  • It is essential that the General Chemistry sequence be completed before the beginning of junior year.
  • First Year Applicants: CALS students who want to declare the biological sciences major during their freshmen year will do so at a first-year planning meeting that takes place during the spring semester. Applications will be reviewed and processed at the end of the spring semester, and students will be notified over the summer before the start of their sophomore year.

Major Requirements-CALS

Internal Transfer 

More Information: 

  • Students can apply for internal transfer into the biological sciences major through either the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) or the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). For both colleges, the first opportunity to apply is as a rising sophomore, or at the end of your second semester. Applications submitted after a single semester will be denied.
  • Students need to complete both the application to the major and the university's Internal Transfer Application.
  • Students are strongly encouraged to schedule an appointment with an bioadvising [at] cornell.edu (OUB Advisor) before applying to the major.
  • Students must meet the following criteria to be eligible:
    • Minimum cumulative Cornell GPA of 2.75.
    • One semester Introductory Biology Cluster course or Evolutionary Biology and Diversity course completed before transfer.
    • One other course in the Biological Sciences curriculum completed before transfer.
    • Grades of C or better in all completed required courses for the Biological Sciences major.
    • It is essential that the General Chemistry sequence be completed before the beginning of junior year.

Major Requirements-CAS

Major Requirements-CALS

External Transfer

  • I externally transferred to Cornell as an undeclared major, and I want to internally transfer into biological sciences (CAS and CALS). 
  • I externally transferred to Cornell into a different major, and I want to internally transfer into the biological sciences major. 
  • I externally transferred to Cornell into a major other than biological sciences, and I want to add or change my major to biological sciences. 

Students who externally transferred to Cornell and are interested in applying for Internal Transfer to the biological sciences major will only be considered if they were admissible to the major in accordance with the transfer criteria for Biological Sciences at the time of matriculation to Cornell. The criteria is listed below: 

 

For transfers entering as sophomores or transfers with two full-time college semesters of study (post-high school) completed or in progress at the time of application.

Required: 

 

For transfers entering as juniors or transfers with four full-time college semesters of study (post-high school) completed or in progress at the time of application.

Required:

Major Requirements-CAS

Major Requirements-CALS

Next Steps: 

If you believe you have met the criteria for internal transfer as an external transfer student, you will need to take the following steps:

  • Send your unofficial transcript via the Cornell Secure File Transfer link. Log in with your Cornell NetID, click on the Prepare Upload button at the top, and send your transcript to anh7 [at] cornell.edu.
    • Please highlight all of the courses that you believe meet the criteria listed above.
  • The OUB will review your transcript and let you know if you have met the criteria. If so, an appointment will be arranged to meet with an advisor in the OUB and for instructions on the application process. 

* To ensure fairness to all applicants, we are only able to consider applications that meet the required criteria. This is a firm policy in place to uphold equity across the admissions process.