Four-year biology program for Eastern premedical students

Expected to begin fall semester of 2021, Utah State University Eastern is offering a bachelor’s degree in biology. A four-year biology degree at the Eastern campus is great news for biology students. Students will no longer disrupt their lives and transfer to another, often more expensive, university to complete their bachelor’s degree in biology. Instead, they will have the opportunity to directly apply to medical, pharmacy, dental and veterinarian schools after graduating from USUE. 

Associate professors Wayne Hatch, John Weber and Tyson Chappell and staff member Brad Watson worked tirelessly on this project. They completed surveys and evaluated student-level data and curriculum to determine what the new academic program needs at Eastern. They worked with the USU biology department to bring the required upper division classes to the Price campus. “We are making good progress on this and are close to being ready,” Hatch said.

Members of the biology department met on Thursday, April 1, to discuss the needs and requirements of hiring a new biology faculty member to the USUE campus to start fall semester 2021.

In an email sent to USUE staff on March 29, Greg Dart, associate vice president at USUE said, “We are constantly in the process of evaluating curricular offerings on the Eastern campus, looking at gaps to fill and examining how to best leverage all the resources of the university.” After describing the work being done to facilitate the new degree, Dart said,“We could not be more excited!” 

This is positive news for the local community. The new degree will draw more students to attend the Eastern campus. Additionally, doctors, dentists, veterinarians and pharmacists are likely to return to the area after their training, offering Castle Country more opportunities for care.