Third year of study
In the third year of the bachelor's program in biology, a wide range of courses is available for students to choose from. Two types of courses are distinguished: the block courses and the concept courses. Students are free to choose the topics of the different courses. In this way, they receive a well-founded basis for decision-making, which facilitates the choice for a master's specialization. The third year is thus also designed as an orientation phase for transferring to one of the nine specializations of the master's program. In addition to the natural science courses, students take supplementary courses with general educational content from the area of humanities, social and political sciences (GESS).
Block courses
ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich together offer more than 100 different block courses that can be taken by students and are mutually recognized by both universities. Each course is dedicated to a specific topic and teaches biological science as a process.
- Duration per course: 3 ½ weeks
- Time: from Tuesday noon to Friday evening
- Form: mainly practical work on a selected topic in the research groups, accompanied by seminars and literature work
In this way, students make important contributions to the progress of a project and gain a first insight into research topics and the working methods of the research groups. They choose at least 5 block courses.
Block courses cover all aspects of modern biology and related disciplines. Some examples:
- Parallels between tissue repair and cancer
- Analysis of the reactions of human B and T cells to infectious agents
- Phytopathology
- Calculation methods in genome and sequence analysis
- Molecular mechanisms of cell growth and polarity
- Visualization of bacterial cells using electron cryotomography
- Bioactive natural substances from bacteria
- Multigen expression in mammalian cells
- Epigenetic mechanisms in mental health
- Cause and consequences of unstable genomes
- Cell biology of plant-fungus interaction
Concept courses
Apart from a focus in laboratory practice and insights into research in the third year, theory must not be neglected either. To this end, biology students can choose from a total of 13 concept courses, of which at least three need to be taken. These courses convey - within the framework of lectures - in-depth knowledge of important areas of biology, chemistry and other related subjects. They take place in 2- or 4-hour sessions from Monday morning to Tuesday noon.
The following courses are available:
- Evolutionary Genetics
- Microbiology
- Immunology
- Cell Biology in Health and Disease
- Cellular Biochemistry
- Molecular Life of Plants
- Systems Biology
- Molecular and Structural Biology
- Nucleic Acids and Carbohydrates
- Proteins and Lipids
- Concepts in Modern Genetics
- Bioinformatics
In summary, the first two years of the bachelor programme provide a broad scientific basis, while the third year is used for the personal orientation of the students and prepares them for the choice of the master specialization.