Biology Degree

Program Offerings

• Bachelor of science degree in Biology
• Master of science degree in Biomedical Engineering
• Doctor of philosophy degree in Biomedical Engineering
• Minor: Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Science

What is Biology?

Biology is the study of life itself.

As a biology major at South Dakota Mines, you will study how organisms come to exist, how they are built, how they grow and function, and what they do.

What does a biologist do?

As a biology major at South Dakota Mines, you will learn to research and explain the living world around you. You will study humans, plants, animals, and the environments in which they live, gaining a better understanding how the body and nature work and how external factors may influence specific organisms.

You will examine the relationship between life and the environment around it, studying adaptability, population change, famine, ecological change, and more. Some of your specific duties might include conducting research, collecting samples and measurements, performing tests and experiments, and interpreting and reporting the findings.

First-Year Courses

General chemistry
Calculus
General biology
Intro to Applied Biological Sciences
Composition

Course Curriculum

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Internships and Co-ops

At South Dakota Mines, 77% of our students land internships, earning an average hourly salary of $20.00. As a Mines biology major, you will have the opportunity to intern with businesses like:

• Sanford Medical Research
• Monument Health
• NASA
• Department of Energy
• Center for Community and Pediatric Research Avera-McKennon
• Game, Fish and Parks
• Avera Health
• Sanford Health
• South Dakota Department of Health
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory
• US Department of Defense
• Evidence section of the Rapid City Police Department
• POET

Career Outlook

Graduates often use their degree to launch into a professional healthcare program or graduate program. Our graduates have been accepted into many reputable programs including:

• Mayo Clinic Graduate Research Program
• Mayo Medical School
• Immunology Research Program at University of Alabama School of Medicine
• Sanford School of Medicine
• South Dakota Mines Biomedical Engineering or Nanoengineering
• Regenerative Medicine Utrecht (Netherlands)
• University of South Dakota Public Health
• Des Moines University of Osteopathic Medicine
The job placement rate for 2019-2020 biology graduates was 100%, with an average starting salary of $40,750.

Biology Research

As a biology major at South Dakota Mines, you don’t have to wait to do research. You will have the opportunity to do research in diverse areas of biological sciences, even as an undergrad, including:

• Environmental Planning and Management
• Extremophilic bioprocessing
• Uranium Biotransformation
• Human Telomere Biology and Cancer
• DNA Structure and Function/Neurodegenerative Disease