Biotechnology is at the heart of today's most significant scientific discoveries, improving health, transforming food systems, and reshaping medicine. As a Biotechnology major at FSC, you will not only study those discoveries, you will contribute to them.
Biotechnology professionals improve living conditions across the globe, from the medicines that treat disease to the agricultural innovations that feed populations to the biofuels that power a more sustainable future. The field is expanding rapidly, and the demand for graduates who can work at the intersection of biology, genetics, and applied science has never been greater.
FSC's BS in Biotechnology builds a rigorous foundation in biology, genetics, microbiology, and bioinformatics, then puts you in the lab with the techniques that define professional practice, such as nucleic acid and cloning research, protein purification and tissue culture and cell signaling. Every Biotechnology major completes a research experience, working with microorganisms, cells, DNA, and proteins in FSC's state-of-the-art facilities. Central Florida's expanding biotech industry, home to medical device manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and a growing research and development community, creates internship, research, and employment opportunities that extend this experience into the professional world.
Biotechnology at FSC is something you do, not something you watch. Here is what that adds up to.
FSC is part of the Tiny Earth Network, a consortium of more than 540 institutions worldwide contributing to the search for new antibiotics—one of medicine’s most urgent challenges.
After gaining research experience on campus, FSC Biotechnology students are competitive applicants for NSF-funded summer research programs. Mocs have earned positions at the University of Chicago and the University of New Mexico.
FSC's accelerated program agreement with Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine provides priority admission to qualified Biotechnology students — a direct pathway to medical, dental, podiatry, or pharmacy school.
FSC Biotechnology graduates have gone on to study at top research universities including Duke and Johns Hopkins, among the most competitive graduate programs in the biological and biomedical sciences.
A research-driven, interdisciplinary degree at the frontier of one of science's most dynamic fields. Biotechnology at FSC connects undergraduate research with real-world applications across medicine, agriculture, food science, and the pharmaceutical industry.
All freshman applicants to Florida Southern Colleges full-time degree programs must submit the following information:
Applying to Florida Southern as a transfer student is easy. Submit:
If transferring fewer than 24 credits, also include your official high school transcript and SAT/ACT scores.
Learn More about transfer admissionsFSC's Biotechnology curriculum is research-oriented and interdisciplinary, building from a strong foundation in the biological sciences toward applied laboratory technique and independent research.
Required coursework spans biology, genetics, microbiology, bioinformatics, biostatistics, and chemistry, providing the scientific breadth that graduate programs and biotechnology employers expect. Technique-focused laboratory courses in nucleic acid and cloning research, protein purification, and tissue culture and cell signaling develop the hands-on skills specific to biotechnology practice. A senior seminar connects that training to the profession, and every biotechnology major completes a research experience in FSC's state-of-the-art facilities.
Beyond the required core, students choose 12 hours from a curated list of courses that let them shape the degree toward a career direction: organic chemistry and biochemistry for graduate and professional school, horticulture for agricultural biotechnology, parasitology and neuroscience for biomedical interests, management or healthcare administration for industry roles, and a biology internship for applied experience.
The BS in Biotechnology is a 124-hour degree: 34 hours of WRIGHT Foundations, 54–59 hours of major requirements, 12 hours of Bachelor of Science degree requirements, and 19–24 hours of free electives.
Required Core
Choose 12 Hours From:
Research Requirement — Choose One:
Biotechnology students at FSC are part of a close-knit scientific community with access to a strong network of pre-professional and honor organizations. Get involved with:
Every FSC Biotechnology major completes a research requirement, choosing from molecular biology research, site-specific field research, research methods in integrative biology, or an Honors senior thesis. You will work in FSC's state-of-the-art facilities with the tools of professional biotechnology research, microorganisms, cells, DNA, and proteins, guided by faculty who are active researchers themselves.
After building research experience on campus, FSC Biotechnology students are competitive applicants for NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs. Mocs have earned summer research positions at the University of Chicago and the University of New Mexico — extending their research beyond campus before they graduate.
Central Florida is home to medical device manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and an expanding biotech research and development community. FSC's location between Tampa and Orlando puts Biotechnology students within reach of internship, research, and employment opportunities across that market — and the Biology Internship course lets you earn credit for them.
Whether your interests run toward pharmaceutical research, biomedical devices, agricultural biotechnology, or clinical laboratory science, the Central Florida biotech market creates the professional connections and applied experience that make FSC graduates competitive in the global market.
Biotechnology professionals work across one of the most diverse and rapidly expanding fields in science, improving human health, agricultural systems, food safety, and environmental sustainability.
FSC Biotechnology graduates have been accepted to top research universities, including Duke and Johns Hopkins, to pursue graduate study in biotechnology, biochemistry, molecular biology, biomedical research, and related fields. The required research experience and REU placements make graduates highly competitive applicants for doctoral and master's programs.
Biotechnology is a strong pre-professional science foundation. Paired with organic chemistry and biochemistry from the elective list, the curriculum covers the prerequisites professional programs expect, and FSC's LECOM early acceptance agreement adds a structured pathway to medical, dental, podiatry, and pharmacy school.
Pharmaceutical researchers, biomedical scientists, and laboratory technicians in drug development and clinical research draw directly on the skills FSC Biotechnology students develop: cloning and nucleic acid techniques, protein purification or tissue culture, bioinformatics, and the analytical thinking that research builds. Central Florida's pharmaceutical and biotech industry creates direct pathways to these careers.
Modern biotechnology runs on data. FSC's required Bioinformatics and Biostatistics coursework prepares students for roles analyzing genomic and molecular datasets, a skill set in short supply across pharmaceutical, agricultural, and clinical research.
Epidemiologists and public health researchers apply biological principles to understand and address disease at the population level. FSC's Biotechnology curriculum, with its emphasis on microbiology, biostatistics, and research methods, provides strong preparation for careers and graduate programs in this growing field.
Biotechnology's applications in agriculture and food science, from crop development to food safety to sustainable production, represent one of the field's fastest-growing sectors. Elective coursework in horticultural science lets Biotechnology students develop expertise in this direction.
From antibiotic discovery research through the Tiny Earth Network and NSF summer programs at the University of Chicago, to Junior Journey travel, and the LECOM early acceptance pathway, FSC Biotechnology students work at the frontier of the discipline. Every research experience, every internship, and every global opportunity builds the scientific credibility that biotechnology careers demand.
Meet the educators who will shape the scientist you become.
Associate Professor of Marine Biology, Biotechnology Program Director
Department Chair, Professor of Biology
Professor of Biology, George W. Truitt Chair in the Sciences, Marine Biology Program Director
Biotechnology is the application of biological systems and living organisms to develop products and processes that improve human health, agriculture, food science, and the environment. FSC Biotechnology graduates pursue careers in pharmaceutical research, biomedical science, bioinformatics, epidemiology, agricultural biotechnology, food science, and clinical laboratory science — and many go on to graduate programs in biotechnology, biochemistry, or biomedical research, or to professional programs in medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy.
The Tiny Earth Network is an authentic undergraduate research program affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison that engages students in the search for novel antibiotics from soil bacteria — one of the most urgent challenges in modern medicine. FSC is a partner institution, and Biotechnology students take part in that research as part of their coursework.
Every FSC Biotechnology major completes a research requirement, choosing from molecular biology research, site-specific research in biology, research methods in integrative biology, or an Honors senior thesis — working with microorganisms, cells, DNA, and proteins in state-of-the-art facilities alongside faculty mentors. FSC Biotechnology students are also competitive applicants for NSF-funded REU summer research programs, with Mocs earning positions at the University of Chicago and the University of New Mexico.
FSC's accelerated program agreement with Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) provides priority admission to qualified students for LECOM's College of Medicine, School of Dental Medicine, School of Pharmacy, or School of Podiatric Medicine. For Biotechnology students with professional school goals, this agreement provides a structured pathway alongside rigorous scientific preparation.
Yes. Biotechnology provides the biology, genetics, microbiology, and research methods foundation medical schools expect, and students on a pre-med track use their elective hours for organic chemistry and biochemistry to complete the standard prerequisites. FSC's LECOM agreement and Pre-Health Professional Program (P3) add structured support, and FSC Biotechnology graduates have been accepted to graduate and professional programs at Duke, Johns Hopkins, and other leading institutions.
Read the latest from FSC's Department of Biology, from student research achievements and NSF placements to faculty recognition and graduate school acceptances.
At FSC, you are the focus. Our team loves connecting with prospective students to answer questions about the BS in Biotechnology and explore how the program can fit your goals.
Department Chair, Professor of Biology
If you are drawn to the biological and applied sciences, FSC offers additional programs that pair naturally with a Biotechnology foundation:
From antibiotic discovery research to graduate programs at Duke and Johns Hopkins, FSC Biotechnology gives you the preparation, the mentorship, and the opportunities to lead in one of science's most exciting fields.
