BIOL 99: Senior Research and Senior Honors in Biology
2024-2025 Information
To enroll in BIOL 99a for Fall semester: Complete the 99 Petition online no later than Sept 4, 2024. The Biology department will send you further instructions so you can register in BIOL 99 if the petition is complete, your faculty research sponsor has filled their separate form, and project requirements have been met. Please note that you must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher in the Biology Major in order for you to be eligible to enroll in Honors, but not to do senior research. We will be checking GPAs to determine eligibility, based on requirements for the BA degree.
To enroll in BIOL 99b for Spring semester: if you enrolled in BIOL 99a in the previous Fall, you do not need to submit the petition again to enroll in BIOL 99b in the spring. You must wait until you have received a grade in BIOL 99a to request to enroll in 99b. If you are enrolling in BIOL 99 for the first time (e.g., you did BIOL 93 in the Fall), you must complete the online 99 Petition no later than Jan. 21, 2025. The Biology department will send you further instructions so you can register in BIOL 99 if the petition is complete, your faculty research sponsor has filled their separate form, and project requirements have been met.
Contacts for AY24-25:
Biology Department Office: biology@brandeis.edu
Biology Research Coordinator: Prof. Kene Piasta, kpiasta@brandeis.edu
BIOL 99: Senior Research and Senior Honors in Biology
The Senior Research Program provides an opportunity for students concentrating in Biology to do a two-semester-long independent research project during their senior year and to receive both course and elective credit for that research. Research must ask and attempt to answer a novel question in biology, with the goal of contributing to biological knowledge. Any senior concentrating in Biology regardless of GPA can participate in Senior Research (BIOL 99) and ask to be considered for Senior Honors (see BIOL 99 petition). Eligibility for honors is determined by the student's research performance and final academic record.
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Students may seek the agreement of any member of the faculty in the Brandeis department of Biology as their research sponsor. If a student wishes to do research with a Brandeis professor in another department (e.g., Biochemistry, Chemistry), or with a faculty member at another institution in the Boston area, the student must receive permission from the BIOL 99 Research Coordinator to do so. If a student does BIOL 99 research with a non-Biology department faculty member (including non-Brandeis), the student must find a co-sponsor from the Brandeis Biology faculty, and this person must be able to evaluate the proposed research. In all cases, the proposed research must have a biological basis and ask a biological question.
BIOL Course Credit BIOL 99 is a two-semester course sequence restricted to seniors. Each of BIOL 99a and b is worth 4 credits and requires a minimum time commitment of 12 hours per week. A student should not take BIOL 99 as a one-semester course unless they have previously taken BIOL 93 (see below). Two semesters of BIOL 99 may be used as one elective toward the Biology major. To claim the elective credit, the student must complete the Registrar’s online major/minor substitution form, which will be reviewed by the Undergraduate Advising Head. (Note that the credit will not appear in a student’s Workday audit until the successful completion of the second semester of BIOL 99.)
Combining BIOL 93 and BIOL 99
BIOL 93 is a one-semester-long research internship (see BIOL 93 petition). Typically, students who take BIOL 93 intend to do only one semester of research. However, a student who really likes the BIOL 93 experience may want to continue doing research, and if this student is a senior, they can then take one semester of BIOL 99. The BIOL 99 research must be done with the same research sponsor as BIOL 93 and must be taken the semester immediately after BIOL 93 was taken. This two-semester combination of BIOL 93 and BIOL 99 can be used as one Biology elective (and also as Senior Research) so long as the student (i) fulfills the BIOL 93 requirements (see BIOL 93 for details), and (ii) writes a senior research thesis (see below) at the conclusion of BIOL 99. The BIOL 99 senior thesis may incorporate some of the BIOL 93 report but it must have a longer review and introduction, be more detailed, contain much more data, and have a lengthier discussion. It is unlikely that the two-semester combination of BIOL 93 and BIOL 99 will provide research sufficient for senior honors. However, a three-semester combination of research courses may also be taken: BIOL 93 in spring of junior year or the summer before senior year, followed by two semesters of BIOL 99 in senior year. This three-course combination will yield one elective for the Biology major and there may be sufficient research accomplished for candidacy for senior honors. BIOL 93 and 99 must be taken sequentially; BIOL 93 may not be taken at the same time as, or after, BIOL 99.
The student should meet with their faculty research sponsor (and co-sponsor, when appropriate). The student then submits the completed BIOL 99 Petition online. The Biology department will then email the research sponsor (and co-sponsor, when appropriate) a Sponsor’s Agreement form to complete. The enrollment application will be complete only when the student and research sponsor (and co-sponsor, when appropriate) have submitted their forms. The Biology department will then send a further instruction to the student so they can enroll in BIOL 99. Note that you must be on campus or connected to the Brandeis VPN in order to access the online petition.
At the completion of the first semester of BIOL 99, the student writes a paper that reviews the literature in the scientific field pertinent to their research and includes a bibliography of cited papers. Requirements for the review paper:
In a minimum of 8 pages of double-spaced text, the student should describe and discuss the scientific literature that is important for the problem being investigated. If there are models or hypotheses, the review should describe what they are. What evidence supports or negates the models? What is the specific question or problem being explored and how will it be solved? The review should include references in the text and provide a bibliography containing those citations [the bibliography does not count toward the 8 pages of text]. This review will be useful when writing the introduction to the senior thesis.
The student must give their review to the Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and send a PDF copy to biology@brandeis.edu in the Biology office by the deadline (see timetable).
At the completion of the 2nd semester of BIOL 99, students write a Senior Research thesis that contains the following sections:
- Title Page: includes student’s name, the title of senior research, and date.
- Abstract (not more than 250 words): summarizes the nature of the research project, the results obtained, and the relevance of those results.
- Introduction: poses the research question that was asked in the context of current knowledge in the relevant field.
- Materials and Methods: provides in sufficient detail all aspects related to how the experiments were conducted.
- Results: provides a written description along with figures and tables, of the experimental data obtained.
- Discussion: evaluates the results obtained and their relevance and significance to current models and data in the field.
- References: includes complete citations (authors' names, paper titles, journal, volume, page, year). See the journal Cell for examples.
The student must give the thesis to the Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and send a PDF copy to biology@brandeis.edu in the Biology office by the deadline (see timetable).
Students who are taking BIOL 199 should follow the Thesis and Dissertation Guide.
To become a candidate for Senior Honors, students must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher in the Biology major, based on the courses required to complete the BA degree for the major (regardless of whether the student is completing a BA or BS degree). The student must enroll in two semesters of BIOL 99 in senior year and complete the BIOL 99 petition including the section asking to be considered a candidate for Senior Honors. Senior Honors is the departmental award for Distinction in Biology and requires both excellence in laboratory research and a strong academic record (GPA eligibility): Biology majors enrolled in BIOL 99 are eligible for honors if they obtain a B+ or higher in both BIOL 99a and BIOL 99b, and write and defend a thesis. Also, the student’s faculty research mentor must support the student’s honors candidacy.
All the 1st and 2nd semester BIOL 99 course requirements given above for Senior Research apply to candidates for Senior Honors. The Honors candidate must write an Honors thesis using the format of the Senior Research thesis (see above) and give a public oral presentation and defense of their work to a designated Faculty Research Committee, which is composed of the student's research sponsor (and co-sponsor, when appropriate) and two additional faculty members in the Biology department. The oral presentation and defense should last one hour. Typically, the candidate prepares a 30-35 minute talk that includes an introduction that shows why the work was undertaken, what goals were set, the results obtained and why they are significant. Throughout this presentation, the research committee members will ask questions. Presentations may include the use of a blackboard, handouts, and/or PowerPoint presentations, etc. Each member of the research committee evaluates the written thesis and oral presentation/defense and makes a recommendation to the Biology faculty that the candidate graduate with no Honors, Honors, High Honors, or Highest Honors. Assuming GPA eligibility has been met, these recommendations are considered by the Biology department faculty who make the final determination about the candidate's Honors status. Students will learn about their honors status at graduation.
Timeline for students starting Senior/Honors research Fall 2024, graduating Spring 2025:
Fall Semester 2024
No later than September 4th: To request enrollment in BIOL 99a (for BA and BS students) or BIOL 199a (for combined 4-year BS/MS students only), complete and submit the online BIOL 99 petition. If you want to do BIOL 99 with someone who is not a member of the Brandeis Biology faculty, you will need a Brandeis Biology faculty co-sponsor and approval from the BIOL 99 research coordinator.
By December 18th at 5pm: The review paper on your field of research is due. Send it as a PDF to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and to the Biology office.
Spring Semester 2025
No later than January 21st: If you are a senior wanting to combine BIOL 93 (Fall) and BIOL 99b (Spring), complete and submit the online BIOL 99 petition.
If you took BIOL 99a/199a in the Fall, you must wait until you have received a grade in BIOL 99a/199a to request an override to enroll in 99b/199b. You must complete your registration by January 28th.
If you are a BIOL 99 OR BIOL 199 Senior Honors Candidate and are Defending in the Spring Semester:
- by April 16th: Send a PDF and Microsoft Word document of your Senior Honors Research thesis to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and ask for feedback by April 21st. You then have time to incorporate any feedback and send the final version to your research sponsor and the other members of your committee by April 24th (and give paper copies, if asked). You will be told beforehand who the committee members are. If you are observing Passover, the final version of your thesis is due to your committee by April 25th.
- on May 1st, 2nd, and 5th: Honors Oral Presentation and Defenses
- by May 11th at 5pm: Send a final version of your Senior Honors Research thesis, with any revisions requested by your committee, to your faculty sponsor and a pdf copy to the Biology office.
- BIOL 199 Only: Complete the instructions in the Brandeis Thesis and Dissertation Guide.
If you are not doing Senior Honors but are concluding Senior Research in the Spring:
- by May 11th at 5pm: Send a PDF of your Senior Honors Research thesis to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and to the Biology office.
Deadlines for students who began Senior/Honors Research in Spring 2024 and are finishing in Fall 2024:
If you are a BIOL 99 OR BIOL 199 Senior Honors Candidate who is defending at the end of Fall Semester:
- by November 26th: Send a PDF and Microsoft Word document of your Senior Honors Research thesis to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and ask for feedback by December 2nd. You then have time to incorporate any feedback and send the final version to your research sponsor and the other members of your committee by December 4th (and give paper copies, if asked). You will be told beforehand who the committee members are.
- on December 11th, 12th, and 13th: Honors Oral Presentation and Defense
- by December 18th at 5pm: Send a final version of your Senior Honors Research thesis, with any revisions requested by your committee, to your faculty sponsor and a pdf copy to the Biology office.
- BIOL 199 Only: Complete the instructions in the Brandeis Thesis and Dissertation Guide.
If you are concluding Senior Research in the Fall (it is your second semester of BIOL 99) but are not an Honors Candidate:
- by December 18th at 5pm: Send a PDF of your Senior Honors Research thesis to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and to the Biology office.
Deadlines for students beginning Senior/Honors Research in Spring 2025 and finishing in Fall 2025:
No later than
January 21st: To request enrollment in BIOL 99a (for BA and BS students) or BIOL 199a (for combined 4-year BS/MS students only), complete and submit the online BIOL 99 petition. If you want to do BIOL 99/199 with someone who is not a member of the Brandeis faculty, you will need a Brandeis faculty co-sponsor and approval from the BIOL 99 Research Coordinator.
By
May 11th at 5pm: The review paper on your field of research is due. Send it as a PDF to your Brandeis research sponsor or co-sponsor and to the Biology office.
You will then be provided information on how to enroll in BIOL 99 or BIOL 199 in the Fall.
Accessing the BIOL 99 Application
The BIOL 99 petition is a FileMaker application that uses your UNET ID and password. You will need to connect to this application if on-campus or via VPN if off-campus.
Important Notes
- You will need your Student ID.
- Log in with your Brandeis ID (the first part of your email) and your password.
- Use a non-Firefox browser (Safari, Chrome or IE/Edge are all fine).
- Connect from on campus (or use VPN first, see VPN Instructions for instructions to install Junos Pulse, not a one time connection).
- Please be patient – the application saves frequently so that you don't lose anything, but it makes it a little slow.