Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology

4 Years On Campus Bachelors Program

University of Kansas

Program Overview

The B.A. in Human Biology at the University of Kansas is an interdisciplinary four-year program that examines humans through biology, anthropology, applied behavioral science, and psychology, with coursework spanning anatomy, physiology, microbiology, genetics, and evolutionary biology. It is well suited to students interested in understanding human variation, health, biological systems, and evolution while building a broad scientific foundation for graduate study, healthcare-related pathways, research, or other postgraduate opportunities.

Curriculum Structure

First Year: Students establish their scientific foundation through BIOL 150: Principles of Molecular and Cellular Biology, BIOL 152: Principles of Organismal Biology, and BIOL 154: Introductory Biology Lab for STEM Majors. They also begin CHEM 130: General Chemistry I, CHEM 135: General Chemistry II, and the required BIOL 105: Biology Orientation Seminar, combining laboratory-based biology with chemistry and academic preparation.

Second Year: Students develop stronger quantitative and biological foundations through BIOL 370: Introduction to Biostatistics, BIOL 350: Principles of Genetics, and CHEM 330: Organic Chemistry I. The curriculum also introduces advanced laboratory work through a 400-level biology laboratory, while students complete mathematics and the BA second-language requirement.

Third Year: The program moves into advanced study of human biology through BIOL 600: Introductory Biochemistry, Lectures, BIOL 400: Fundamentals of Microbiology, and BIOL 412: Evolutionary Biology. Students also complete PHSX 114: College Physics I and continue their interdisciplinary BA requirements, strengthening their understanding of biological processes from molecular through evolutionary perspectives.

Fourth Year: Students concentrate on advanced human biology through BIOL 240: Fundamentals of Human Anatomy, BIOL 503: Immunology, and BIOL 546: Mammalian Physiology, alongside a Development and Disease option such as BIOL 595: Human Genetics, BIOL 435: Introduction to Neurobiology, or BIOL 417: Biology of Development. The year culminates in a biology capstone, with options including BIOL 449: Laboratory Methods in Human Biology, BIOL 490: Internship and Practical Applications, BIOL 423: Non-laboratory Independent Study, or BIOL 699: Biology Honors Research Colloquium.

Focus areas: Human anatomy and physiology, genetics, microbiology, evolutionary biology, human variation, development and disease, biochemistry, and interdisciplinary perspectives from biology, anthropology, applied behavioral science, and psychology.

Learning outcomes: Graduates learn to explain genetic variation and evolutionary change, understand gene expression and biological responses to environmental conditions, connect biological structures and functions across multiple levels of organization, apply scientific and quantitative methods, interpret biological data, communicate scientific findings clearly, and recognize ethical considerations in scientific research.

Professional Alignment (Accreditation): The University of Kansas is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The university's official accreditation information distinguishes institutional accreditation from programmatic accreditation, and the official accreditation listings do not identify a separate specialized accreditation for the B.A. in Human Biology.

Reputation (Employability Rankings): The University of Kansas does not publish a current program-specific employability ranking for the B.A. in Human Biology on its official program or catalog pages. Therefore, no specific QS, Guardian, or other employability ranking is stated for this program.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

The B.A. in Human Biology at the University of Kansas gives students substantial hands-on experience through laboratory courses, independent research, internships, and practical applications of human biology. Students can develop technical skills through courses such as BIOL 449: Laboratory Methods in Human Biology, which covers genetics, human osteology, anatomy, forensic anthropology, primatology, paleoanthropology, and human evolution, while BIOL 490: Internship and Practical Applications provides a structured route to workplace experience.

Key experiential opportunities include:

Human Biology Laboratory: BIOL 449: Laboratory Methods in Human Biology provides practical training in genetics, human osteology, anatomy, forensic anthropology, primatology, paleoanthropology, and human evolution.
Independent Research: Students can complete BIOL 423: Non-laboratory Independent Study or BIOL 424: Independent Study, allowing them to undertake faculty-guided research as part of their Human Biology electives.
Research Experience: KU Biology supports undergraduate students in finding research laboratories and provides opportunities to participate in research involving areas such as genetics, molecular biology, evolutionary biology, and physiology.
Research Funding: The Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships connects students with faculty research opportunities and offers $1,000 Undergraduate Research Awards each semester for eligible faculty-mentored projects.
Summer Research: KU's Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) offers a 10-week laboratory research experience with faculty and graduate-student mentoring, hypothesis development, experimental work, scientific communication workshops, and a final campus poster presentation.
Data Analysis: The KU REU program provides an introductory R programming course for biological data analysis, giving participating students exposure to a specific computational tool used in research.
Internships: BIOL 490: Internship and Practical Applications is listed among the approved Human Biology capstone courses, providing a direct academic route for practical professional experience.
Field & Conference Experience: The Howieson Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Opportunity can support travel to off-campus research laboratories, field research sites, or academic/scientific conferences for undergraduate biology researchers.
Research Presentation: Biology students can gain experience presenting undergraduate research at scientific meetings and conferences, with the Bioscholarship Program specifically supporting research presentation and scientific travel.
Teaching Experience: Advanced undergraduate biology students may serve as undergraduate teaching assistants, including assisting with undergraduate laboratory instruction.
Study Abroad: KU offers 165+ study-abroad programs across 70+ countries, including study, internship, service, and research options that students can use to complement their degree.
Research Facilities: KU's biological research ecosystem includes faculty laboratories across areas such as molecular biosciences, ecology and evolutionary biology, computational biology, and the Structural Biology Core Facility, providing research environments relevant to human biology students.

Progression & Future Opportunities

The B.A. in Human Biology at the University of Kansas gives students an interdisciplinary foundation in human biology, anatomy, physiology, microbiology, evolution, anthropology, psychology and related areas, supporting progression into healthcare, research and other science-focused fields. KU also highlights scientific research, data analysis and problem-solving as skills developed through the program, while the broad curriculum can support postgraduate study across several disciplines.

Career roles: Biological Research Assistant, Laboratory Technician, Healthcare Research Assistant, Biological Science Technician.

Career support: KU’s University Career Center provides career coaching, and the Undergraduate Biology Program specifically directs biology graduates who need help identifying careers or graduate-school options to career coaches; coaching is available for up to six months after graduation.
Research opportunities: Students can pursue faculty-supervised research and, through the Biology Honors pathway, complete an independent research project, write an honors thesis and present their findings at the honors research symposium.
Employment and salary: KU’s official Human Biology program page states that biology and healthcare-related fields continue to have demand, particularly in laboratory sciences and healthcare services, but it does not publish a Human Biology-specific employment rate or graduate salary figure; therefore, no program-specific salary figure is stated.
Industry partnerships: The official Human Biology and Undergraduate Biology pages do not identify a specific university-industry partnership exclusively connected to this B.A.; therefore, a program-specific partnership is not stated.
Professional accreditation: The B.A. in Human Biology is offered within KU’s accredited university framework; the official KU catalog does not identify a separate professional accreditation specific to the Human Biology major.
Graduation outcomes: Graduates can use the interdisciplinary preparation for careers in healthcare, research, education, biotechnology and other science-focused areas, or continue into postgraduate opportunities.
Further preparation: Students interested in competitive professional or research careers can strengthen their profile through faculty research, honors research and presentations, while academic advising and career advising help students plan their next step.

Further Academic Progression: After completing the B.A., students can continue into graduate or professional education depending on their career goal. KU’s Biology offerings include graduate-level pathways in related biological sciences, while the Human Biology curriculum can also provide preparation for further study in healthcare, biological sciences and other interdisciplinary fields.