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Good Advice

Good Advice for Students Who Plan to Attend FSU

Prepare to Attend College

What can I do with a degree in Biology?

That is a loaded question we hear quite frequently and, as academic advisors in a department, we can't give you a good single answer. You really need to explore career choices - what do you like to do, what are your life goals, career goals, etc. Then, once you've got an idea about what kinds of things you might like to do, you can research specific disciplines and/or jobs. We do maintain a partial list of jobs by field in the Undergraduate Advising Office, but if you want something fast, you might try searching the web or your local library.

A good site to visit to see how this works was set up by the University of Central Florida for the Society for Marine Mammalogy. It addresses questions and concerns for people who are interested in Marine Mammalogy. Before searching for a site like it, you would have wanted to clarify for yourself what field or discipline was of primary to you as well as what kinds of activities you want to spend your working hours doing! The Career Center here at FSU, or elsewhere, can help you begin the career choice process. It takes a considerable amount of time to make choices like these, and you'll probably spend a lot of time fine-tuning and adjusting your career goals as you gain more experience in academe.

Should I be taking special classes?

You should be in a college prep track, but you can pick up courses once you get here if you are short. See the section for prospective students and class suggestions, as well as current student information on math and chemistry requirements. It's very important to be as prepared as possible.

I don't really like science classes other than biology, how much of them do I really need to do biology??

This department requires 2 semesters of college calculus (two statistics classes can be substituted for the second semester of calculus), 4 semesters of chemistry, and 2 semesters of physics. This means that incoming biology students who place at MAC 1105 (College Algebra) can anticipate that the first 4-5 semesters at FSU they will be taking math, chemistry, and biology every semester. So, in that first semester, an additional 3-6 hours of liberal studies classes will round out the academic load to ~15 hours. Later there will be physics and language to take the place of math and chemistry.

15 hours is a heavier load than I wanted...

The university suggests that 15 hours a semester be considered the appropriate full time load. We recommend that all new FSU students - freshman or transfers - start with a 12 hour load for the first semester to become acclimated to FSU. Less than 15 hours per semester will extend the time needed to graduate (unless summer classes are taken). It is important to progress in the degree, but students must also do well academically.

Can I take summer classes?

Yes! You can take any approved classes that count toward your degree requirements while at home for the summer, or stay here to do them. Biology classes are limited to 18 hours of accepted transfer hours. Many students use the summer to lessen the fall and spring load but still stay on time. Remember - the State of Florida requires all university students to enroll for at least 9 summer hours at one of the 10 State University System institutions. Community college credit will not count toward the 9 hour requirement.

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Expand your Skills

What do you mean by "skills"? More classes?

This is a long answer since the question is deceptive. Some careers may need only the skills you obtain while earning your degree. Anything beyond the basics they will either train you to do, or expect that you can already do them. For an exaggerated example...say you want to do marine research. The Research Technician I position (data collector) requires a bachelor's degree in Biology or related field. Additional skills required are a diving certification and experience using databases. The additional skills can be picked up while you are here, but they aren't a required part of the degree program.

It's important to anticipate what you will need in your chosen career. This is particularly true if you want to do something that is competitive (Examples: a job that is of popular interest but has low demand - like working with dolphins or big cats; a job that is popular, with medium demand but high skill level, and limited slots are available - like vetinary or human medicine). Any additonal skills or experiences you gain increase your marketability. You don't want to loose out on an opportunity for lack of something you could have picked up easily if you had planned in advance.

How can I tell what skills I need to plan for?

Start with what the degree will give you and recognize that in most cases a degree isn't going to give you everything you need to be succcessful in your chosen career. Most people change careers several times so you can't plan for everything. You can try to minimize the backtracking or retraining you might need to do.

Skills you will obtain with the degree are laid out in the university, college, and departmental requirements for that degree. Some of them address very general goals like skills in written and oral communication that are met through a variety of specified courses. Other goals are very specific like the "Introduction to Plant Biology" course that is required of all undergraduate biological science majors.

You can think of the curriculum you take as a student in a particular degree program as the set of skills that faculty have defined as being necessary to earn the degree. These curriculi are not arbitrary but instead reflect both the philosophy and mission of the university, department, and the field as a whole.

These goals aren't always laid out with a clear rationale (why or because) statement. But if you look carefully, you can piece together what the curriculum is trying to tell you. For example, biological science majors are required to have 5 laboratory or field oriented courses as part of the degree requirements. This tells you that the department, and the field of biology as a whole, values applied experiences that teach skills and techniques. Similarly, 4 semesters of chemistry and 2 semester of physics are required of all majors so you know that some basic knowledge in other science disciplines is important to succeed in this discipline.

Now do research on what you want to do: Who will hire you? What skills do they want? Who can teach them to you? Does it matter where or how you learn them? What level of competence do you need? Etc.

Can't you give me any specific skills for biological science?

Beyond all the chemistry and math you can stand? :-) Well, if you want to do research you want to be good with data - so look at skills in statistics, spreadsheets and databases. You'll also want to get experience doing research with a DIS or Internship. Communication skills are important so try presentation skills - from powerpoint to speech and journalistic writing. Look at other departments for elective courses that might enhance your background. For example, if you are interested in the environment, you might want classes that deal with hazardous waste disposal, urban and regional planning, business law, and education. None of these are part of the degree but may be useful to you later - or not. It will depend upon your career interests.

I need more help!

See the section below - and remember that you can always go back to pick up what you need. It's just harder to do when you have a mortgage, kids, and a full-time job! :-)

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A Proactive Stance to College

What do you mean by proactive?

When you come to college it's important to be responsible for the success of your own education. This should be taken in an active sense. Higher education is founded on the idea that students are responsible adults capable of managing their own educational goals and needs. As much as possible, the univeristy and departments provide information and services to help students take advantage of the academic environment, but the initiative is up to the student. Too often students go along without seeking available help from instructors, advisors, or the university. "Yes, there are stupid questions...the ones that don't get asked!" is true. No one knows what you need like you do, so be proactive about your education and do what you need to do to succeed!

What are some examples of the things I should be doing?

Come to class prepared. Yes - that reading assignments is supposed to be completed before class!

Have a list of questions ready. If they don't get answered in lecture, ask them!

Seek detailed feedback. This includes exams, papers, quizzes...figure out what you can and then bring your list of questions to an appointment.

Take advantage of study or help sessions, form a study group. A rule of thumb is that you "owe" two to three hours of preparation outside of class for every hour in class. That may be more for you when you take Organic Chemistry and less in something else.

Plan. You know when your exams and papers are due. Time management is a hidden skill you learn with your degree.

Contact the instructor/the university when you have conflicts - in advance if possible. Usually we can help you if you give us something to work with. You've shortened everyones options when you wait to seek help.

Learning isn't a given. You can't pick it out and buy it. Sometimes its fun and easy or its frustrating and painful. Sometimes it could have been better. Recognize when you can change it (seek help or study more) or when you just have grin and get through it.

Keep records of all your contacts - who said what, syllabi, class schedules, etc. Make sure your records are accurate and get them fixed right away if they aren't. Human error is a given, so be responsible for your stuff - from quiz grades to your transcript.

Know all of your deadlines! Exceptions are rare and non-existent for some things...or with nasty penalties.

Be positive - faculty and staff don't really bite. It's not all roses but they aren't out to get you either. Keep asking and someone can help.

This is a lot to assimilate - who can help me do all of this!?!

Instructors and Advisors can usually get you to where you need to be. A great deal of information is in the General Bulletin, each semester's Schedule of Classes, in the department and on the web. Also, other information for new students can be found at the site for the Office of New Student & Family Programs.

What else should I be doing?

Do some good research on career choices. For career guidance, you can research libraries, look at places like FSU's Career Center and do some value searching for yourself. What do you know it important to you? An academic advisor would be able to help you make decisions about coursework, but sometimes you'll need more than that for career counseling. A good bit of the work on this is old fashioned research...and you really do need to have some specific questions before you start looking for answers.

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