ASSESSMENT PLAN
REPORT
Department of Biological Sciences
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, LAS VEGAS
UNDERGRADUATE ASSESSMENT
Department of Biological Sciences
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, LAS VEGAS
Departmental Mission Statement:
The primary mission of the Department of Biological Sciences is to provide a rich, contemporary learning environment that ensures an integrated educational experience spanning the full spectrum of biology, with focused training available to advance undergraduate and graduate students. Through these efforts, the Department of Biological Sciences will occupy central roles, both in creating scientific literacy among the diverse array of UNLV students, and in addressing biological issues of local, regional and global interest.
Institutional Objectives and Intended Knowledge Base
Objective 1: Students who graduate with a major in biological sciences at UNLV will receive skills and acquire:
(1A) -knowledge of the diversity and similarity of living organisms at organizational
levels ranging from molecules to the community.
(1B) -knowledge of the processes of inheritance and natural selection as they
influence the development of individuals, populations and species.
(1C) -knowledge of scientific methods and the relationships among theory,
experiment, analysis of data, and general knowledge.
(1D) -the ability to articulate, in oral and written form, knowledge of biology, biological
methods, and biological issues in context.
Objective 2: Students who graduate with a major in biological sciences will have fulfilled their personal goals and will indicate that they have been accepted into graduate or professional schools or into entry-level career positions.
Assessment Procedures
The Department of Biological Sciences will use a series of assessment tools to measure knowledge and skill acquisition by our undergraduate students.
Assessment of Objective 1:
-A diagnostic exam will be administered to a cohort of introductory biology majors each
year assessing foundational knowledge skills as an initial base for comparison. Major
field exams will be administered to a cohort of graduating seniors every two years.
Graduating students will on average score at the 40th percentile.
-Data provided by reporting of MCAT, DAT, GRE and other standardized test scores will
be gathered annually.
-In a continuing effort to improve our assessment tools and curriculum, an undergraduate
research experience (URE) supported by “capstone courses” has been developed within
the department. These courses, focused upon our undergraduate curricular tracts, will
be junior-senior level. They will be designed to measure student mastery of essential
theoretical and methodological issues associated with the primary focus areas in
contemporary biology. Within capstone courses we will be able to measure discipline-
specific perspectives throughout our curriculum, and determine if variation between
tracks is resulting from identifiable pedagogical differences.
Assessment of Objective 2:
-An “Expectations Survey” will be completed by all students at their first advising session
as entering Freshman.
-A “Graduation Outcomes Survey” will be administered to all students completing a
graduation application which will capture information concerning employment, graduate
schools, and satisfaction with the Department of Biological Sciences.
Survey and testing results will be compiled biannually, and will be used to monitor success of our undergraduate program and to enhance our curriculum.
Assessment Outcomes:
Profile of Biological Sciences majors:
Undergraduate enrollment (Biology majors) increased from 566 to 641 students over the past four years, an increase of over 13%. Based on 2002-03 course enrollment figures (introductory biology) we anticipate the number of biology majors to increase to approximately 700 this year. Graduation rate has remained relatively constant over the past four years, however the increase in declared biology majors observed over the past few years should be reflected as an increase in degrees conferred. The male/female ration has of 0.9 (female bias) has shifted over the past year to 0.5, with female graduates outnumbering males 2:1. Overall graduating GPA has remained unchanged over the past few years (Table 1).
Year / Enrollment Undergraduate / Degrees Conferred (male/females) / Overall GPA(male &female)
1999 / 566 / 78 (37/41)
2000 / 505 / 74 (35/39) / 3.26 (3.26/3.26)
2001 / 641 / 68 (23/45) / 3.22 (3.24/3.18)
2002 / 700+ (estimated)
Table 1: Trends in Department of Biological Sciences undergraduate enrollment, graduation rate and GPA for biology majors (male and female) over the past four years.
The % distribution of biology majors within the curricular concentrations has remained relatively unchanged over the past few years, with the IOB and CMB representing the predominance of preprofessional students within the department. A curricular restructuring in the academic year 2001-02 has resulted in the creation of five curricular concentrations to better serve our majors. These include: Comprehensive Biology, Preprofessional Biology, Educational Biology, Environmental Biology and Biotechnology. This change should generate more interest in biology as a career choice and will be reflected in our enrollment statistics over the next few years (Table 2).
% IOB Majors / % CMB Majors / % EEB Majors / *% Preprofessional / Non-declared/other2000 / 19 / 27 / 2 / 42 / 11
2001 / 40 / 32 / 7 / 18 / 4
Table 2: Distribution of biology majors between the three curricular concentrations. (IOB – Integrative and Organismal Biology, CMB – Cellular and Molecular Biology and EEB – Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) *Preprofessional biology students are included as students who have specifically declared themselves as interested in medical, dental or optometry. Both the IOB and CMB concentrations contain significant percentages of preprofessional students.
The UNLV Office of Institutional Analysis has provided a profile of average entering UNLV freshman SAT and ACT scores (Tables 3A-C). These data are used as the initial base line assessment data for foundational knowledge and are used to evaluate the progress of biology majors at the completion of their degree. Percentile scores on the SAT and ACT standardized evaluations are compared to performance on standardized evaluations for admission into professional programs, which include the MCAT, DAT, OAT and the GRE. Entering UNLV students perform between the 25th and 75th percentiles in the verbal and English sections of both the SAT and ACT exam. Performance on the math sections are slightly higher than the verbal and English.
25th Percentile / 75th PercentileSAT I Verbal / 430 / 560
SAT I Math / 450 / 570
ACT Composite / 19 / 24
ACT English / 18 / 23
ACT Math / 18 / 25
Table 3A: Distribution of SAT and ACT scores for UNLV freshman
SAT I Verbal / SAT I Math700-800 / 0.9 / 1.9
600-699 / 13.1 / 13.3
500-599 / 37.0 / 40.4
400-499 / 37.8 / 35.7
300-399 / 10.5 / 8.3
200-299 / 0.8 / 0.4
Table 3B: Average performance and distribution of UNLV freshman taking the SAT exam.
ACT Composite / ACT English / ACT Math30-36 / 2.0 / 2.8 / 4.5
24-29 / 26.5 / 22.1 / 24.5
18-23 / 55.5 / 51.6 / 48.7
12-17 / 15.9 / 20.7 / 22.3
6-11 / 0.1 / 2.9 / 0
Below 6 / 0 / 0 / 0
Table 3C: Average performance and distribution of UNLV freshman taking the ACT exam.
Objective 1: Students who graduate with a major in biological sciences at UNLV will acquire fundamental skills in defined areas of biology. As biology majors move through the curriculum they are assessed to assure adequate progress is being made toward objectives A-D, as well as meeting performance standard for moving into curricular focus areas.
(1A) -Diversity and similarity of living organism at organizational levels ranging from
molecules to the community.
Effective student acquisition and integration of the skills and knowledge associate with biological organization at the molecular, cellular and physiological level are assessed initially in first semester Introductory Biology (Bio 190).
Biology majors show an average performance at or above the 75 percentile in first semester introductory biology (Bio 190), based on national standards of rigor (Table 4). Biology majors consistently outperform non-biology majors at this level. Bio 190 consists of only 25% biology majors with the difference composed of majors from the Colleges of Health Sciences and Education.
Bio 190 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002 (Spring only)Total Biology Majors Enrolled / 121 / 189 / 54
A / 21 (20%) / 31 (19%) / 9 (15%)
B / 27 (26%) / 57 (35%) / 21 (34%)
C / 30 (29%) / 44 (27%) / 14 (23%)
D / 9 (9%) / 16 (10%) / 12 (19%)
F / 18 (17%) / 14 (9%) / 6 (10%)
Table 4: Grade distribution of biology majors taking first semester introductory biology. This course is taken by all biology majors and provides the foundational knowledge of molecular, cellular and physiology diversity.
(1B) -inheritance and natural selection as they influence the development of individuals,
populations and species.
Effective student acquisition and integration of the skills and knowledge associated with biological principles centered on genetics, evolution and diversity are assessed initially in second semester Introductory Biology (Bio 191).
Biology majors show an average performance above the 70 percentile in first semester introductory biology (Bio 191), based on national standards of rigor (Table 5). Bio 191 is composed of 50% biology majors, with the difference made up of students from the Colleges of Urban Affairs and Education. When students complete this course they will proceed to our core biology courses, which are intended to provide the intellectual framework for students to move into their curricular concentrations. With the completion of Bio 191, biology majors are well prepared to meet the rigorous demands that will be placed on them in the upper division curriculum as indicated by their performance in both Bio 190 and 191.
Bio 191 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002 (Spring only)Total Biology Majors Enrolled / 110 / 110 / 102
A / 21 (19%) / 19 (17%) / 23 (23%)
B / 21 (19%) / 24 (22%) / 20 (20%)
C / 25 (23%) / 39 (35%) / 39 (39%)
D / 18 (16%) / 14 (13%) / 7 (7%)
F / 12 (11%) / 6 (5%) / 2 (2%)
Table 5: Grade distribution of biology majors taking second semester introductory biology. This course is taken by all biology majors and provides the foundational knowledge of genetic, evolution and diversity.
(1C) -knowledge of scientific methods and the relationships among theory, experiment,
analysis of data, and general knowledge.
(1D) -The ability to articulate, in oral and written form, knowledge of biology, biological
methods, and biological issues in context.
Once biology majors complete the two semester introductory biology series, they proceed to the core biology courses which consist of Cell biology (Bio 209), Genetics (Bio 300) and Evolution (Bio 310). These courses are intended to provide a substantial understanding of not only the fundamentals in a defined area, but to also develop critical thinking and reading skills which allow students to explore the primary literature of the field. These courses prepare students to move into their curricular focus areas. Assessment at this level represents the student’s ability to acquire detailed information, understand complex interactions, and integrate material, as well as develop an understanding of scientific methods, experimental data sets and critical evaluative methods (objective C). Embedded within these concepts is the assessment of articulation ability, oral and written expression in a scientific context, and a deeper appreciation of biological complexities (objective D).
As biology majors move through the core courses, their average performance is above the 80 percentile in Cell (Bio 209) (Table 6). Biology majors consistently outperform non-biology majors at this level. Bio 209 consists of 60% biology majors, with the difference composed of preprofessional majors from all Colleges.
Bio 209 / 2000 / 2001Total Biology Majors Enrolled / 107 / 115
A / 26 (24%) / 25 (22%)
B / 27 (25%) / 21 (18%)
C / 19 (18%) / 11 (10%)
D / 19 (9%) / 10 (9%)
F / 9 (8%) / 10 (9%)
Table 6: Grade distribution of biology majors taking Cell biology (Bio 209). This course is taken primarily by biology majors and is the first course in the core biology curriculum which provides the foundation of cellular and molecular concepts.
Biology majors average scores are at the 85 percentile in Genetics (Bio 300) (Table 7). This course is intended to develop a student’s ability to think synthetically, as well as to provide a detailed understanding of both transmission genetics and molecular genetics. Biology majors consistently outperform non-biology majors at this level. Bio 300 consists of 70% biology majors with the difference composed of preprofessional majors from all Colleges.
Bio 300 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002 Spring onlyTotal Biology Majors Enrolled / 120 / 67 / 45
A / 24 (20%) / 10 (24%) / 13 (29%)
B / 39 (33%) / 8 (20%) / 22 (49%)
C / 27 (23%) / 13 (32%) / 4 (9%)
D / 9 (8%) / 5 (12%) / 1 (2%)
F / 13 (11%) / 0 / 1 (2%)
Table 7: Grade distribution of biology majors taking General Genetics (Bio 300). This course is taken primarily by biology majors and is the second course in the core biology curriculum which provides a detailed understanding of both transmission genetics and molecular genetics.
The final course taken in the biology core is Evolution (Bio 310) and biology majors average score is at the 85 percentile (Table 8). This course is intended to develop a student’s ability to think synthetically, as well as to provide the principles and mathematical modeling of evolutionary theory and population dynamics. Bio 310 consists exclusively of biology majors and is a primary indicator of their performance in upper division (400 level) courses oriented toward curricular specialization.
Bio 310 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002 Spring onlyTotal Biology Majors Enrolled / 47 / 88 / 24
A / 12 (26%) / 37 (42%) / 9 (38%)
B / 15 (32%) / 20 (23%) / 5 (21%)
C / 9 (19%) / 18 (20%) / 4 (17%)
D / 2 (4%) / 7 (8%) / 1 (4%)
F / 4 (9%) / 4 (5%) / 0
Table 8: Grade distribution of biology majors taking Evolution (Bio 310). This course is taken only by biology majors and is the last course in the core biology curriculum which provides a detailed understanding of evolutionary principles and population dynamics.
Objective 2: Students who graduate with a major in biological sciences will have fulfilled their personal goals and will indicate they have been accepted into graduate or professional schools or into entry-level career positions.