BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN BIOLOGY

The Bachelor of Science in Biology program, commonly known as B.S. in Biology, was first offered by the Institute of Biology, UP Diliman in 1986 when the Department of Botany and the Department of Zoology merged. The program is a 4-year undergraduate course that requires a number of 152-156 course units.

The graduates of the B.S. in Biology program should be able to:

1. generate an integrative understanding of biological principles learned from various courses;
2. develop laboratory and field techniques important in biological research;
3. perform analytical techniques in examining biological and other related data/information;
4. construct scientifically valid ideas that can help resolve critical biological issues of national and international importance;
5. produce relevant biological research outputs;
6. communicate biological research outputs effectively through written and oral methods; and
7. demonstrate scientific values and positive work ethics.

The attributes of B.S. in Biology graduates:

1. competent
2. innovative
3. nationalistic
4. internationally Competitive
5. service-oriented
6. ethical

Admission Requirement
The Institute of Biology follows the University of the Philippines admission policy for incoming freshmen at the Bachelor’s level. The B.S. in Biology program is a quota-course meaning it only accepts a limited number of freshmen students; around 120 freshmen every Academic Year. The University through the Office of Admissions conducts the University of the Philippines College Admission Test (UPCAT), which is administered once every year prior to the start of the coming Academic Year.

Applicants of the UPCAT must be a senior high school student expected to graduate before the start of the next academic year from an accredited high school of the Department of Education or from a secondary school abroad. They may also be Philippine Educational Placement Test (PEPT) taker, provided that they have the certification of eligibility to enter college. In addition, the applicant must have final grades for three years in high school preceding the year of its graduation and must not have taken the UPCAT previously and must not have taken any college subject/s prior to taking the UPCAT.

An application for the UPCAT is processed in five steps. First, applicants may choose to fill out the UPCAT Form 1, also called the UPCAT Application for Freshman Admission, in two ways: through the online application or through the manual application. The forms for the manual application can be obtained from the System Office of Admissions or from the authorized school representative. Second, the UPCAT Form 2, also known as the Secondary School Record, contains the high school records of the applicant and is given to authorized school officials, who then fill out the form. Third, the applicant will need to pay a non-refundable application fee to the authorized bank account. However, some applicants may be exempt from paying the fee provided that they belong to the top ten of their graduating batch or if their annual gross family income is equal to or less than Php 130,000.00. Fourth, the applicant will need to submit the fully accomplished UPCAT Form 1 and Form 2 and other required documents to the UP Office of the Admissions, Diliman campus, or to any selected regional UPCAT application filing center. Lastly, once the forms and documents are submitted, an officer at the UP Office of the Admissions will give a test permit to the applicant.

In the UPCAT Application forms, applicants are asked to choose 2 UP campuses among all UP campuses nationwide, as well as their choice of degree programs, up to 4 for each campus in order of their preference. The UPCAT is usually held over the course of two days to accommodate a large number of applicants. The exam lasts for about five hours and consists of four subtests, namely, Language Proficiency (English and Filipino), Science, Math, and Reading Comprehension (English and Filipino). The standardized UPCAT scores of the applicants take into consideration the weighted average of the applicant’s high school final grades for three years, as well as their UPCAT performance, and will serve as their UP admission grade. The applicant is then ranked based on their UP admission grade and will be screened based on their choice of campus because each UP campus has a certain cut-off grade. Moreover, the socioeconomic and geographic factors are also taken into consideration along with the UP admission grade. Applicants that fail to qualify for their first choice of UP Campus are automatically screened for their second choice of UP campus.

The results are usually released a year after the examination before the new academic year starts. The list of the qualified applicants will be released through online media, posted at the Office of the Admissions of the University, sent to the school principal and individual notices will also be sent to all examinees. The qualified applicants will need to register according to the instruction provided by the college or unit to which he/she have been accepted.