A.B. or Sc.B Biology

For the A.B. or Sc.B  in Biology at Brown University, students build practical skills through required laboratory or fieldwork courses, experimental-design training, independent research, and faculty-mentored projects. The program gives students access to research across molecular, cellular, organismal, and population biology, with opportunities to work in faculty laboratories and use Brown’s advanced biomedical research infrastructure. For Sc.B. students, research is a required part of the concentration, while A.B. students can pursue research for credit or through independent-study opportunities.

Practical and research opportunities include:

• Laboratory & Fieldwork: Biology concentrators must complete at least three courses containing a laboratory or fieldwork component, providing hands-on experience alongside classroom study.
• Independent Research: Students can undertake BIOL 1950/1960 Directed Research/Independent Study with faculty mentors, while longer-term projects can develop into a senior honors thesis.
• Phage Research: BIOL 0190 Foundations: Phage Hunters gives first-year students an early research experience and is designated as a laboratory and research-question course.
• Research Training: Brown offers a Lab Techniques Workshop and a Finding, Securing and Succeeding at Research Workshop to help students develop laboratory skills and prepare for faculty-lab research.
• Summer Research: Karen T. Romer Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards (UTRAs) support students working with Brown faculty on research or teaching projects during the summer or academic year.
• Genomics Tools: The Genomics Core Facility provides access to Next Generation Sequencing, qPCR, Affymetrix microarrays, DNA/RNA shearing, nucleic-acid quality-control equipment, NanoString platforms, and digital PCR, with training and support in experimental design and data analysis.
• Bioimaging: The Leduc Bioimaging Facility provides high-resolution imaging equipment and training for life-science research.
• Flow Cytometry & Cell Sorting: Brown's Flow Cytometry and Cell Sorter Facility provides specialized instrumentation and technical resources for biological research.
• Proteomics & Molecular Analysis: The Proteomics Facility supports protein identification and quantification, while the Structural Biology Facility uses X-ray diffraction, scattering, and magnetic resonance for biomolecular structure research.
• Genome Editing: The Transgenic and Genome Editing Facility provides specialized research services supporting genome-editing and transgenic research.
• Biomedical Research: Students can benefit from Brown's close relationship with the Warren Alpert Medical School, including opportunities to combine fundamental biology and clinical science in research projects at Brown-affiliated hospitals.
• Research Centers & Institutes: Biology students can engage with research environments including the Center for Biomedical Engineering, Center for Biomedical Informatics, Center for Computational Molecular Biology, Brown Center on the Biology of Aging, Carney Institute for Brain Science, and Institute at Brown for Environment and Society.
• Sciences Library: Brown's Sciences Library provides print and digital resources supporting biology and other sciences, alongside study spaces, seminar rooms, multimedia stations, Wi-Fi, research assistance, and training.
• Collaborative Research: Biology students can work with faculty across multiple departments, while Brown also supports interdisciplinary connections in areas such as Computational Biology, Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Biomedical Engineering. 

Brown’s Biology A.B. and Sc.B. prepare students for diverse pathways in medicine, research, teaching, business, and the life sciences, with opportunities to build practical laboratory and research experience during the degree. Brown Biology graduates have gone on to work with organizations including Pfizer, Massachusetts General Hospital, the Broad Institute, the National Institutes of Health, Mayo Clinic, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Typical Job Roles: Research Assistant, Clinical Research Coordinator, Research Technician, Computational Biologist.

Career Support & Employment Opportunities:

• Career Counseling: Brown’s Lizzie & Jonathan Tisch Center for Career Exploration provides one-to-one advising, skills assessments, mock interviews, career planning, and support for developing professional networks.
• BrownConnect+: Students can search for internships, research opportunities, jobs, and fellowships while also connecting with Brown alumni through professional networks.
• Research Preparation: Biology students can access laboratory-technique workshops, faculty research opportunities, UTRA funding, independent study, and senior research projects.
• Employment Pathways: Nearly 10% of Brown graduates immediately pursue careers in science and engineering across private and public-sector organizations.

Employment Statistics & Salary Figures:

• Immediate Outcomes: Brown reports that 96% of graduating seniors in 2021 went directly into employment opportunities or graduate/professional school.
• Internships & Research: 82% of undergraduate students participated in summer internships, fellowships, or research projects in 2021.
• Graduate & Professional Study: 25% of Brown’s Class of 2022 pursued graduate or professional studies.
• Salary Data: Brown’s official Biology and Career Exploration pages do not publish a Biology-specific graduate salary figure, so a salary range or median is not stated rather than estimated.

University–Industry Connections: Brown Biology’s official career materials identify employers such as Pfizer, Broad Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Medtronic, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Google, Microsoft, the National Cancer Institute, and NIH among organizations that have hired biological-science graduates.

Accreditation Value: Brown University undergoes institutional reaccreditation through the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), with Brown’s most recent reaccreditation completed in 2018 and the institution undergoing the process every 10 years. The university does not state a separate professional accreditation specifically for the Biology A.B. or Sc.B.

Graduation Outcomes: Brown Biology alumni have progressed into medicine, research, business, teaching, and other professional fields, while the university maintains undergraduate alumni outcome data that can be searched by concentration. Biology graduates have also progressed to leading graduate and medical schools including Brown, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Oxford, Stanford, Yale, and the Warren Alpert Medical School.

Further Academic Progression: After completing the Biology A.B. or Sc.B., students can continue into master’s or Ph.D. study in biology and related life-science fields, pursue medical education, or enter specialized programs such as biotechnology. Brown offers graduate pathways including Biotechnology, Biomedical Engineering, Biology, and a joint MD/PhD program, while Biology’s pre-graduate advising supports students with graduate-school planning, networking, recommendation preparation, and application timelines.