Professional Biology Concentration

The most flexible of the biology concentrations, the professional biology concentration at Gordon College offers broad exposure and allows you to tailor your elective courses to your area of interest. You’ll form a strong biology foundation—including subcellular, cellular, organismal and ecological—and discover its intersection with many other scientific fields. With the option to choose between a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree, you will be well prepared for graduate school, teaching and research careers.

Explore the professional biology concentration

Why study biology at Gordon?

Massachusetts is a global leader in life sciences—and Gordon’s prime location on Boston’s North Shore offers students regular opportunities to see biology in action through immersive research experiences in our own 450-acre backyard and nearby coastal hotspots. You’ll develop a full complement of lab skills in our state-of-the-art facilities (funded in large part through the Life Sciences Consortium of the North Shore), with coaching from expert faculty.

Learn about other biology concentrations ➔

What careers can I pursue with a biology major?

Careers in biology are vast and varied. Depending on whether you want to work in the field, research lab or classroom, you can tailor your studies to achieve your goals. Students in the professional biology concentration have gone on to a variety of distinguished graduate programs including Ohio State, Rochester Institute of Technology, Virginia Tech, the University of Georgia, and the University of California San Francisco. Whether straight out of Gordon or after graduate or medical school, lots of options are available to you.

• High school science teacher
• College or university professor
• Research director
• Field coordinator
• Medical care specialist
• Health administrator
• Lab manager
• Nutritionist
• Allied healthcare provider

Learn more about jobs and internships ➔

Experiential learning in professional biology

Gordon’s emphasis on creation care is part of a longstanding commitment to sustainability, maintained by our campus-wide effort called Restore Creation. The Biology Club hosts regular gatherings to maintain the close-knit community within one of Gordon’s largest majors.

Off campus, students complete internships at a range of institutions including:

• Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
• Massachusetts Audubon Society
• Ocean Genome Legacy
• Trustees of Reservations
• New England Aquarium
• New England Biolabs
• Museum of Science, Boston
• Harvard Medical School
• Dana-Farber Cancer Research Institute
• Cell Signaling Technologies
• NOAA
• Sustainable farms

Global Opportunities

Expand your global perspectives on biology through short-term and semester-long programs.

• Creation Care Studies (Belize and New Zealand)
• Au Sable Institute (Michigan, India and Costa Rica)
• Marine Biology Institute (New England)

Related Programs

It’s common for students to pair a biology concentration (professional concentration) with a second major or minor in chemistry, kinesiology or psychology. However, studying biology within a Christian liberal arts framework offers you the flexibility to add a program outside the sciences, as well.

The professional biology concentration is part of the biology major.