Minor Requirements

Marine Biology Minor Requirements

Use the following tables to plan for a Minor in Marine Biology. Students can use the MyPlan online academic planning tool to check course availability and create a full academic plan over quarters and years. Course availability can vary, so please check the Marine Biology Courses page for quarterly offerings.

General Requirements

Core

Students complete the following four courses (19 credits):

Core Courses

Electives

Students must take at least 13 credits from the following approved electives lists, including at least 1 course from Oceanography, 1 course from Aquatic & Fishery Sciences, and 1 course from Biology or Friday Harbor Labs.

Aquatic and Fishery Sciences Electives

Course No.	Title	Cr.	Offered
FISH 310	Biology of Shellfishes	5	Sp
FISH / BIOL 311	Biology of Fishes	5	A
FISH 312	Fisheries Ecology	3	Sp
FISH 323	Conservation and Management of Aquatic Resources	5	W
FISH / BIOL 340	Genetics and Molecular Ecology	5	A
FISH / OCEAN / BIOL 370	Marine Evolutionary Biology	5	Sp
FISH 406	Parasite Ecology	5	A
FISH 423	Aquatic Invasion Ecology	4	A
FISH 427	Tropical Marine Biology	5	W
FISH 437	Fisheries Oceanography	4	A
FISH 441	Integrative Environmental Physiology	3	Variable
FISH 444	Conservation Genetics	5	Sp
FISH 450	Salmonid Behavior and Life History	5	A
FISH / Q SCI 454	Introduction to Quantitative Ecology	5	W
FISH / Q SCI 458	Quantitative Conservation and Management	5	Sp
FISH 460	Applied Marine Animal Physiology	5	Sp
FISH 464	Arctic Marine Ecology	4	W, odd yrs
FISH 470	Evolutionary Ecology of Marine Mammals	5	Sp
FISH / BIOL 478	Topics in Sustainable Fisheries	3	W

Oceanography Electives

Course No.	Title	Cr.	Offered
OCEAN 330	Marine Biogeochemical Cycles	5	Sp
OCEAN 370	Marine Evolutionary Biology	5	Sp
OCEAN 402	Advanced Marine Biogeochemical Processes	3	Variable
OCEAN 403	Southern Ocean: Climate and Ecosystems	5	Sp – Not offered Sp26
OCEAN 409	Marine Pollution	3	Sp
OCEAN 411	Special Topics in Marine Geology and Geophysics	Var	Var
OCEAN 432	Microbes in a Changing Ocean	3	W
OCEAN 450	Climatic Extremes	4	W
OCEAN 480	Global Ocean – Human Culture	3	Var
OCEAN 497	Advanced Special Topics in Oceanography	Var	Var

Biology or Friday Harbor Labs Electives

Course No.	Title	Cr.	Offered
BIOL / FISH 311	Biology of Fishes	5	A
FISH / BIOL 340	Genetics and Molecular Ecology	5	A
BIOL 423	Marine Ecological Processes	3	Variable
BIOL / MARBIO 433	Marine Ecology	5	Variable
BIOL 434	Invertebrate Zoology	5	W, Sp, Su
BIOL / FISH 478	Topics in Sustainable Fisheries	3	W
FHL 375	Marine Mammals of the Salish Sea	5	Sp
FHL / BIOL 430	Marine Zoology	5	Sp
FHL 432	Marine Invertebrate Zoology	9	Su
FHL 440 / BIOL 445	Marine Botany	5	Sp
FHL 446	Marine Botany: Diversity and Ecology	9	Su
FHL 469	Ecology and Human Interactions in the Salish Sea	5	A
FHL 471	Comparative Anatomy and Physiology of Marine Organisms	5	A
FHL 492	Ecology & Conservation of Marine Birds & Mammals	9	Su

Note: Courses highlighted in yellow with the FHL prefix take place in residence at Friday Harbor Labs, UW’s marine field station located on San Juan Island. Learn more about incorporating a quarter at FHL into your academic plan.

Special Topics

Integrative Experience

Most students fulfill the Integrative Experience requirement by completing the MARBIO 301 and MARBIO 302 combination on the Seattle campus or by participating in laboratory or field research courses at Friday Harbor Labs. Independent research credits through MARBIO 479 may also be used, and enrollment requires a learning contract with a faculty mentor.

When students take the approved MARBIO 301 and 302 combination, the two courses provide 2 of the 3 required Integrative Experience credits. The remaining 1 credit is automatically reassigned to Electives, which increases the total elective requirement from 13 credits to 14.

Course number	Title	Credits	Offered
FISH/OCEAN/BIOL 250	Marine Biology	5	A
OCEAN 210	Integrative Oceans	4	A
BIOL 180	Introduction to Biology	5	A, W, Sp, Su
Q SCI 381	Introduction to Probability and Statistics	5	A, W, Sp, Su

Course number	Title	Credits	Offered
FISH 497	Special Topics in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences	Var.	Variable
OCEAN 497	Advanced Special Topics in Oceanography	Var.	Variable
FHL 468	Advanced Topics in Ecology and Biomechanics	9	Variable

Course number	Title	Credits	Offered
MARBIO 301	Current Topics in Marine Biology	1	W
MARBIO 302	Conversations in Marine Biology	1	W
MARBIO 479	Independent Research in Marine Biology	3+	A, W, Sp, Su
FHL 450, 460, or 470	Research Experience in Marine Biology (FHL)	6	A, Sp
FHL 472	Research Apprenticeship in Marine Biology (FHL)	15	A