NON-DEGREE PROFESSIONAL DEGREE PROGRAMS
The Department of Biological Sciences offers several preparatory curricula to students seeking admission to professional healthcare schools, such as Schools of Pharmacy, Dental Hygiene, and Clinical Laboratory Science. These concentration areas are designed to earn for the student the prerequisites essential for entering such a professional school. These concentration areas are also designed to allow the student to continue at Nicholls and earn the Bachelor of Science in Biology. Because some requirements (application deadlines, specific elective courses, completion of standardized tests, letters of recommendation) vary between schools, students remain responsible for determining and completing all such requirements for the particular professional school(s) to which they intend to apply.
Pre-Dental Hygiene (PDHY)
Associate and baccalaureate degrees in dental hygiene are offered only by dental schools and some universities. These institutions accept students from colleges and universities with a pre-dental hygiene curriculum offering the prerequisites required for acceptance to their professional degree program.
The following curriculum was developed to provide the prerequisites required for the baccalaureate degree program at the Louisiana State University Dental School. Students applying to other degree granting institutions must obtain the current prerequisites from the school in which they intend to apply, and must consult with the pre-dental hygiene advisor in the Department of Biological Sciences. This curriculum is also designed to offer the student a means to pursue a baccalaureate degree in Biology at Nicholls State University.
- CLR – Computer Literacy Requirement
- GER – General Education Requirement
- OCR – Oral Communication Requirement
- UUR – University Requirement
Suggested Course Sequence:
| YEAR* | COURSE NAME | COURSE NUMBER | REQUIREMENT | CREDIT HRS |
| 1 | BIOL | 114 | 3 | |
| 1 | BIOL | 115 | 1 | |
| 1 | BIOL | 116 | 3 | |
| 1 | BIOL | 117 | 1 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 105 | 3 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 106 | 3 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 101 | 3 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 102 | 3 | |
| 1 | Freshman Seminar Course | 1 | ||
| 1 | MATH | 101 | 3 | |
| 1 | MATH | 102 or 214 | 3 | |
| 1 | PSYC | 101 | 3 | |
| 1 | SPCH | 101 | 3 | |
| 2 | Fine Arts Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | BIOL | 155 | 4 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 203 | 3 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 204 | 1 | |
| 2 | CMPS | 200 | 3 | |
| 2 | ENGL Literature Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | HIST Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | Humanities Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | Humanities Elective | 200-level or above | 3 | |
| 2 | SOCI | 151 | 3 | |
| 2 | Social Science Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | Elective | ** | 3 |
*Recommend complete as Freshman (1), Sophomore (2), Junior (3), Senior (4)
**Excludes courses in human performance education. Recommended courses include BIOL 156, Nutrition, Speech, or Psychology.
Pre-Clinical Laboratory Science (PMTC) (Formerly Pre-Medical Technology)
A baccalaureate degree in Pre-Clinical Laboratory Science is offered only by academic health centers, schools of allied health and some universities with Board of Regents-approved programs. These institutions accept students from colleges and universities with pre medical technology programs that offer the prerequisite course work required before acceptance to the professional level part of the degree program.
The program below is offered by the Department of Biological Sciences to provide the prerequisites necessary to qualify an applicant for the degree program at either Louisiana Tech, University of Louisiana at Monroe, or Louisiana State University. It does not exclude the prerequisites of other degree granting institutions.
Furthermore, a student may attend Nicholls State University and complete the degree requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology and then apply to a hospital-based program in Pre-Clinical Laboratory Science. For further information regarding these options students should consult with the pre-clinical laboratory science advisor or the department head.
Suggested Course Sequence:
| YEAR* | COURSE NAME | COURSE NUMBER | REQUIREMENT | CREDIT HRS |
| 1 | BIOL | 155 | See advisor | 4 |
| 1 | BIOL | 156 | See advisor | 4 |
| 1 | CHEM | 105 | 3 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 106 | 3 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 110 | 2 | |
| 1 | CMPS | 200 | 3 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 101 | 3 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 102 | 3 | |
| 1 | Freshman Seminar Course | 1 | ||
| 1 | MATH | 101 | 3 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 114 | See advisor | 3 |
| 2 | BIOL | 115 | See advisor | 1 |
| 2 | BIOL | 116 | See advisor | 3 |
| 2 | BIOL | 117 | See advisor | 1 |
| 2 | BIOL | 203 | 3 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 204 | 1 | |
| 2 | CHEM | 208 | 3 | |
| 2 | CHEM | 221 or 300 and 302 |
See advisor | 3-5 |
| 2 | ENGL Literature Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | HIST Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | MATH | 214 or 301 | 3 | |
| 2 | SPCH | 101 | 3 | |
| 3 | Fine Arts Elective | 3 | ||
| 3 | BIOL | 315 | 4 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 328 | 3 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 329 | 2 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 371 | 4 | |
| 3 | ENGL | 368 or 468 | 3 | |
| 3 | Humanities Elective | 3 | ||
| 3 | Social Sciences Elective | See advisor | 3 | |
| 3 | Social Sciences Elective | See advisor | 3 |
*Recommend complete as Freshman (1), Sophomore (2), Junior (3), Senior (4)
Note: Students must consult with an advisor regarding these courses.
Pre Pharmacy (PPHA)
Pre Pharmacy is a three-year non-degree program that prepares a student to enter a school of pharmacy. The program below follows that of The University of Louisiana at Monroe, which has the only public school of pharmacy in Louisiana. For other programs, the student must consult with the pre pharmacy advisor in the Department of Biological Sciences.
For electives in this curriculum, a minimum of 9 semester hours must be selected from the areas of foreign languages, history, literature, philosophy, and humanities. A minimum of 3 semester hours must be selected from the areas of art, dance, music, or theater. This curriculum is also designed to offer the student a means to earn the Bachelor of Science in Biology at Nicholls State University. Students seeking admissions to the School of Pharmacy at the University of Louisiana-Monroe (ULM) must meet all additional requirements (GPA, PCAT exam, interview, and PHARMCAS application) by the early November deadline at that school.
Suggested Course Sequence:
| YEAR* | COURSE NAME | COURSE NUMBER | REQUIREMENT | CREDIT HRS |
| 1 | Fine Arts Elective | 3 | ||
| 1 | BIOL | 155 | 4 | |
| 1 | BIOL | 156 | 4 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 105 | 3 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 106 | 3 | |
| 1 | CHEM | 110 | 2 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 101 | 3 | |
| 1 | ENGL | 102 | 3 | |
| 1 | Freshman Seminar Course | UR | 1 | |
| 1 | HPED | 270 | 2 | |
| 1 | HIST Elective | 3 | ||
| 1 | MATH | 165** | 5 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 203 | 3 | |
| 2 | BIOL | 204 | 1 | |
| 2 | CHEM | 221 | 3 | |
| 2 | CHEM | 222 | 3 | |
| 2 | CHEM | 226 | 2 | |
| 2 | ECON | 211 and 212 or 255 |
3-6 | |
| 2 | ENGL Literature Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | Humanities Elective | 3 | ||
| 2 | MATH | 166 | 4 | |
| 2 | PHYS | 101*** | 3 | |
| 2 | PHYS | 103*** | 1 | |
| 2 | PHYS | 102*** | 3 | |
| 2 | PHYS | 104*** | 1 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 320 | 4 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 326 or 327 | 4 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 371 | 4 | |
| 3 | BIOL | 440 | 3 | |
| 3 | BSAD | 310 | 3 | |
| 3 | CHEM | 435 | 3 | |
| 3 | ENGL | 368 or 468 | 3 | |
| 3 | HIST Elective | 3 | ||
| 3 | MATH | 301 | 3 | |
| 3 | MNGT | 301 | 3 | |
| 3 | SPCH | 101 | 3 |
*Recommend complete as Freshman (1), Sophomore (2), Junior (3), Senior (4)
**MATH 165 is the entry-level course for this major. All prerequisites for MATH 165 must be met.
***Physics requirements for Xavier University is PHYS 201-203 and PHYS 202-204.
