Biological Basis of Behavior Program

BBB Major Requirements

Students should declare their major before the end of their sophomore year. Each student should prepare a Penn InTouch worksheet and then meet with their assigned Academic Advisor. Students should next meet with a BBB advisor who will assist the student in further refining his/her major plan. The advisors will approve the plan on-line.

A student must have 36 total credit units to graduate with a degree in BBB. The major requires 18.5 credit units. Each major will be required to take all 10.5 credit units of the core requirements. Students can then take any eight (8) credit units from the approved course offerings. BBB majors in the Class of 2010 and following must have a minimum of 5 courses that they count only towards the BBB major and not also towards another major or minor. Students are encouraged to pursue independent research for credit during their junior or senior year

A sample schedule for BBB majors can be found at http://www.psych.upenn.edu/bbb/BBBSchedule.htm.

Any modification in the requirements (e.g. course substitutions) must be requested by the student no later than the first semester of their junior year. Course substitutions are not encouraged and must be brought to the attention of the Director or Associate Director. If such a petition is granted, it is the student's responsibility to ensure the exception is entered on their Penn InTouch worksheet.

Any student requesting credit away or abroad credit to count towards the major must contact the Director or Associate Director for pre-approval. No credit will be considered after completion of a course taken elsewhere. Transfer students should consult the College for information regarding course credit requirements: (http://www.admissionsug.upenn.edu/applying/transinfo.php).

Core Requirements (10.5 c.u.) for the Classes of 2010 and 2011

Chemistry (2 c.u.)
CHEM 001 or 101 and 102
Introductory Psychology (1 c.u.)
PSYC 001 - NOTE: Students with a waiver for PSYC 001 may satisfy the requirement with a BBB-approved PSYC elective course (see list of approved courses below)
Introductory Biology (3 c.u.)
BIOL 101 and 102 OR
BIOL 121, 124, and one course chosen from: BIOL 202, 221, 230 or 240 (CGS BIOL courses are not accepted)
Introduction to Brain and Behavior (1 c.u.)
BIBB 109
Animal Behavior or Human Anthropology (1 c.u.)
BIBB 231 or ANTH 003
Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology (1.5 c.u.)
BIBB 251
Statistics (1 c.u.)
BIOL 446 or STAT 111 or 112, 101 or 102, or
PSYC 020

Core Requirements (10.5 c.u.) for the Class of 2012 and Following

Chemistry (2 c.u.)
CHEM 001 or 101 and 102
Introductory Biology (3 c.u.)
BIOL 101 and 102 OR
BIOL 121, 124, and one course chosen from: BIOL 202, 221, 230 or 240 (CGS BIOL courses are not accepted)
Introduction to Brain and Behavior (1 c.u.)
BIBB 109
Animal Behavior (1 c.u.)
BIBB 231
Behavioral or Cognitive Neuroscience (1 c.u.)
200-level BIBB course chosen from: BIBB 227, 249, 269, or 270
Neurobiology (1.5 c.u.)
BIBB 251
Statistics (1 c.u.)
BIOL 446 or STAT 111, 101 or PSYC 020

Areas of Interest (8 c.u.)

Students may pick any of the following classes. These categories are set up to assist students.

Cellular & Molecular Neuroscience

BIBB 350 - Developmental Neurobiology
BIOL 202 - Cellular Biology and Biochemistry
BIOL 306 - Histology
BIOL 442 - Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
BIOL 451 - System Neuroscience

Neurochemistry and Neuropharmacology

BIBB 269 - Chemistry of the Brain
BIBB 270 - Drugs, Brain and Mind
BIBB 475 - Neurodegenerative Disorders
BIBB 480 - Biological Basis of Psychiatric Disorders
BIBB 481 - Behavioral Pharmacology
BIBB 482 - Clinical Psychopharmacology

Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience

BIBB 249 - Cognitive Neuroscience
BIBB 421 - Human Brain Imaging
PSYC 107 - Introduction to Cognitive Science
PSYC 135 - Psychology of Language
PSYC 151 - Cognitive Psychology

Sensory and Motor Neural Systems

BIBB 217 - Visual Neuroscience
BIBB 310 - Lab in the Structure of Nervous System
BIBB 420 - Smell and Taste
PSYC 111 - Perception

Behavioral Genetics and Behavioral Medicine

BIBB 410 - Behavioral Medicine: Experimental and Animal Models
BIBB 451 - Behavioral Genetics
ANTH 170 - Primate Behavior and Human Evolution
BIOL 409 - Physiology of Psychosocial and Nutritional Influences on Health
PSYC 162 - Abnormal Psychology
PSYC 441 - Genetics, Evolution and Behavior

Behavioral Neuroscience

BIBB 227 - Physiology of Motivated Behaviors
BIBB 340 - Human Chronobiology and Sleep
BIBB 460 - Neuroendocrinology
PSYC 121 - Learning
PSYC 123 - Motivation
PSYC 155 - Memory and Attention
PSYC 159 - Human Memory
PSYC 180 - Developmental Psychology

Research

BIBB 320 - Clinical Research in Emergency Medicine I
BIBB 321 - Clinical Research in Emergency Medicine II
BIBB 399 - Sponsored Research
BIBB 492 - Experimental Methods in Synaptic Physiology
BIBB 499 - Senior Honors Thesis
PSYC 327 - Research Experience in Motivation

Graduate Level Courses

Students interested in taking graduate level courses for BBB credit should consult with the Director or Associate Director. A link to current neuroscience graduate course listings may be found at http://www.med.upenn.edu/ins/ngg.html.

Additional Elective Courses

CHEM* 241, 242, 245 or 251 - Organic Chemistry
MATH** 104, 114 and 115- Calculus
PHYS# 101 & 102 or 150 & 151 or 170 & 171 - Physics
STAT 102 or 112 - Statistics

*Students may count only 1 c.u. of advanced chemistry towards the major

**Students in the Class of 2009 and prior must take two semesters to count toward the major. Students in the Class of 2010 and 2011 may count one or two semesters toward the major. Students in the Class of 2012 and Following may count only one semester toward the major.

# All students must take two semesters to count toward the major. Only two credit units of physics may be counted toward the major. The lab portion of this course (1 c.u.) may be used to satisfy general SAS elective requirements