Meeting With Your Advisor

All Northern Michigan University students are encouraged to meet regularly with their advisors. Freshmen are required to meet with advisors before registering for the next semester's courses. Along with providing guidance on course selection, advisors are an invaluable resource to students in that they usually know who to contact to get questions answered and problems solved.

Make an appointment with your advisor well in advance of registration. Also, take care of any holds (adviser, financial, medical, etc.) as soon as you can. You will not be allowed to register until the holds are lifted. If you don't know who your advisor is, you can access that information at Mynmu.nmu.edu under the Students Information – Academic Information menu.

See below for information on when biology courses are typically offered, tips for taking full advantage of advising, and additional resources for success. 

 

Meet Our Success Advisors!

Not sure who to talk to or where to direct your questions? Start with your advisor!

Our Success Advisors are committed to helping our students succeed and reach their goals. They may be assigned as your academic adviser, but they are here for more than just course registration! Take a look to the right for some of the ways that you can utilize them during your time here.

Ruth Abbott: rabbott@nmu.edu

Lauren Anargyros: lanargyr@nmu.edu

Kelsey Avey: kavey@nmu.edu

José Garcia: jogarcia@nmu.edu

What the Success Advisors can do for you:

  • Course registration
  • Understanding program requirements
  • Going over degree evaluations
  • Degree planning/semester mapping
  • Academic skill-building/tips for staying on track
  • Time management
  • Referral/connecting to campus resources
  • Brainstorming alternative major/career paths
  • Problem-solving unique situations
  • Addressing other questions/concerns

Biology Course Timetable

The Biology Course Timetable shows which semesters courses offered by the Biology Department are taught. As indicated, courses in the “Biology Core” all Biology majors must take are offered every semester. BI 207 and BI 208 (Human Anatomy & Physiology I & II) are also offered every semester. 

This course guide is intended to help students to plan when they will take courses required for their degree. However, the semesters courses are actually offered may vary from that shown on the Course Timetable. A particular course may not have enough students for that course to be offered or we may not have sufficient staffing to offer the course. Be sure to check the online course schedule to determine if a particular course is actually being offered.

The timetable indicates whether a course is offered:

  • Every Fall
  • Every Winter
  • Fall, Even Years
  • Fall, Odd Years
  • Winter, Even Years
  • Winter, Odd Years

If you'd like to download a copy of the timetable, you can do so in excel or PDF formats:

 

Course Number Credits Course Title Every
Fall
Every
Winter
Fall, Even Years Fall, Odd Years Winter, Even Years Winter, Odd Years
BI 100 4 Biological Science Yes Yes        
BI 104 4 Human Anatomy & Physiology Yes Yes        
BI 111 4 Intro Biology: Principles Yes Yes        
BI 112 4 Intro Biology: Diversity Yes Yes        
BI 203 5 Medical Microbiology Yes Yes        
BI 203A 3 Medical Microbiology Yes Yes        
BI 207 4 Human Anatomy & Physiology I Yes Yes        
BI 208 4 Human Anatomy & Physiology II Yes Yes        
BI 210 4 Princ Of Ecology Yes Yes        
BI 215 4 Principles of Evolution Yes Yes        
BI 218 4 Intro To Cell & Molecular Bio Yes Yes        
BI 221 4 Comparative Anatomy   Yes        
BI 229 1-4 Field Marine Biology         Yes (?)  
BI 230 4 Plant Kingdom Yes (?) Yes        
BI 240 4 Conservation Biology   Yes        
BI 262 3 Field Ornithology Offered during the summer, starting soon after the end of Winter semester. Not offered every year.
BI 290 1 Fisheries & Wildlife Seminar   Yes        
BI 303 5 General Microbiology   Yes        
BI 305 4 Ecology North Forest Yes (?)          
BI 310 4 Ecology Theory and Methods Yes          
BI 312 4 Genetics Yes Yes        
BI 314 4 Introduction to Marine Biology         Yes  
BI 321 4 Embryology   Yes        
BI 322 4 Vertebrate Zoology   Yes        
BI 324 4 Invertebrate Zoology   Yes        
BI 327 4 Animal Physiology Yes Yes        
BI 333 3 Genetics for Natural Resources   Yes        
BI 402 4 Microbial Ecology     Yes      
BI 404 3 Virology       Yes    
BI 405 3 Immunology   Yes        
BI 406 4 Advanced Cell Biology   Yes        
BI 410 4 Ecology of the Great Lakes           Yes
BI 411 4 Limnology Yes          
BI 412 4 Biostatistics Yes Yes        
BI 413 4 Biochemistry of Development Times offered depends upon staffing and demand.  
BI 415 4 Evolutionary Analysis Times offered depends upon staffing and demand.  
BI 417 4 Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy Yes           
BI 418 4 Molecular Biology Yes          
BI 419 4 Biology Of Cancer       Yes    
BI 420 4 Neuroscience   Yes        
BI 423 3 Parasitology Yes          
BI 424 4 Entomology       Yes    
BI 425 3 Endocrinology Yes          
BI 426 4 Human Histology     Yes      
BI 427 4 Ecological Animal Physiology           Yes (?)
BI 428 4 Behavioral Ecology     Yes      
BI 429 1-4 Advanced Field Marine Biology         Yes (?)  
BI 431 4 Plant Physiology Yes Yes (?)        
BI 433 3 Boreal Flora Yes (?)          
BI 434 4 Plant Ecology     Yes      
BI 435 4 Boreal Ecosystems Offered during the summer. Not offered every year.
BI 441 4 Fisheries Management Yes          
BI 442 4 Wildlife Management Yes          
BI 443 4 Aquaculture           Yes
BI 460 4 Ichthyology         Yes  
BI 461 4 Herpetology Times offered depends upon staffing and demand.  
BI 462 4 Ornithology         Yes  
BI 463 3 Mammalogy   Yes        
BI 465 4 Aquatic Insect Ecology     Yes      
BI 466 4 Stream Ecology         Yes  
BI 467 4 Fish Ecology         Yes  
BI 469 3 Wildlife and Fish Population Analysis       Yes    

Things to do to get the greatest benefit from advising:

  • Pay attention to information coming via e-mail from the registrar, Student Success Department, and your adviser.
  • Prepare to meet your adviser. You should do so early and often every semester.
  • Go online to look at courses being offered. Remember to write down course registration numbers (CRNs) in case you need to refer to them later without the benefit of being online.
  • Go to your adviser with a tentative course schedule. Be aware that he or she may advise you to take different courses.
  • Talk to your adviser about some alternative courses in case the courses you chose are closed when you are registering.
  • Ask for help if you need it. Your adviser wants you to succeed.

Things that will not help your advising experience:

  • Don't wait until the last minute to see your academic adviser.
  • Don't go to your adviser un- or under-prepared.
  • Don't depend on your adviser to select your courses for you.
  • Don't rely on your roommate, a friend down the hall, your landlord, etc., to serve as your adviser or to definitively provide answers to policy questions.
  • Don't select courses based on other students' opinions of an instructor. They may dislike an instructor that you'll truly enjoy.
  • Don't accept "I don't know" as a definitive answer. Go to other advisers in your department, department head, ACAC, until you find someone who can provide you the information you need.
  • Don't be afraid to ask for help. Don't leave a meeting with your adviser if you are confused. Keep talking until you understand the information being provided.

Additional Resources