ADVANCE Program Milestones:

ADVANCE Milestone Requirements: All ADVANCE students must adhere to the following requirements. For Milestones #1-#3, failure to meet these milestones will prevent a student from matriculating to George Mason University and/or result in termination from ADVANCE. For Milestones #4-#7, failure to meet these milestones may delay matriculation to George Mason.
1. Students must graduate with the NOVA degree aligned with their ADVANCE academic pathway within 4 years of being admitted into ADVANCE. Students must ensure they are enrolled in the matching degree.
2. Students must maintain a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA at NOVA and must have a minimum 2.5 GPA upon matriculation to George Mason.
3. Students who wish to enroll at George Mason for the fall semester must apply for NOVA spring graduation by March 1 or summer graduation by June 1. Students who wish to enroll at George Mason for the spring semester must apply for NOVA fall graduation by October 1.
4. Students must begin developmental coursework no later than the first semester in ADVANCE at NOVA.
5. Students must take first college-level MTH course and ENG 111 in the semester immediately following the completion of any MDE or EDE courses (excluding summer).
6. In the first 30 credits, students must complete ENG 111 and ENG 112 with a C or better.
7. Students must complete a college level math course with a C or better no later than one semester before NOVA graduation. Refer to your pathway to select the appropriate MTH course(s).

A.S. Biology

Northern Virginia Community CollegeMASON
NOVA Degree Requirement NOVA Course Credits Transfer to MASON As MASON Degree Requirement
SDV Course SDV 100 College Success Skills or 1 UNIV 100 General Elective
SDV 101 Orientation to XXX UNIV 100
ENG 111 ENG 111 College Composition I 3 ENGH XXX General Elective
MTH 167 MTH 167 PreCalculus with Trigonometry1 5 MATH 105 General Elective
CHM 111 CHM 111 General Chemistry I 4 CHEM 211-213 Major & Nat Science
BIO 101 BIO 101 General Biology I 4 BIOL 103/105 Major & Nat Science
ENG 112 ENG 112 College Composition II 3 ENGH 101 Written Comm
MTH 263 MTH 263 Calculus I 4 MATH 113 Major & Quantitative
CHM 112 CHM 112 General Chemistry II 4 CHEM 212-214 Major
HIS Elective HIS 101 Western Civilizations Pre-1600 CE or 3 HIST 101T Global History
HIS 102 Western Civilizations Post-1600 CE or HIST 102T
HIS 112 World Civilizations Post-1500 CE (recommended) HIST 125
Humanities/Fine Arts #1 ART 100 Art Appreciation or 3-4 ARTH 101 Arts or COS BA Foreign Language
ART 101 History of Art: Prehistoric to Gothic or '3-4 ARTH 200
ART 102 History of Art: Renaissance to Modern or 46085 ARTH 201
CST 130 Introduction to Theatre or THR 101
CST 151 Film Appreciation I or ENGH L372
MUS 121 Music in Society or MUSI 101
Foreign Language 201 (if student places into language at 201/202 level)2 GMU Equivalent
BIO 102 (NOVA Catalog: BIO 102 or BIO 207) BIO 102 General Biology II 4 BIOL 102 Major
CST Course CST 100 Principles of Public Speaking or 3 COMM 100 Oral Comm
CST 110 Introduction to Human Communication COMM 101
Science Course (NOVA Catalog: MTH 264 or MTH 245 or Physical or Life Science Elective w/ Lab) PHY 201 General College Physics I or 4 PHYS 243/244 Major
PHY 202 PHY 202 General College Physics II or PHYS 245/246
GOL 105 Physical Geology or GEOL 101/103
GOL 106 Historical Geology GEOL 102/104
Social/Behavioral Sciences #1 ECO 201 Principles of Macroeconomics or 3 ECON 104 Soc/Behav
ECO 202 Principles of Microeconomics or ECON 103
GEO 210 People and the Land: An Introduction to Cultural Geography or GGS 103
HIS 121 United States History to 1877 or HIST 121
HIS 122 United States History Since 1865 or HIST 122
PLS 135 U.S. Government and Politics or GOVT 103
PSY 200 Principles of Psychology or PSYC 100
PSY 230 Developmental Psychology or PSYC 211
SOC 200 Introduction to Sociology or SOCI 101
SOC 211 Cultural Anthropology ANTH 114
BIO 206 BIO 206 Cell Biology 4 BIOL 213/215 Major
Science Course (NOVA Catalog: MTH 264, MTH 245, or Lab Science) BIO 256 General Genetics or 4 BIOL L311/L313 Major
BIO 270 Ecology BIOL L308/L338
Humanities/Fine Arts #2 ENG 225 Reading Literature: Culture and Ideas or 46085 ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only) Literature or COS BA Foreign Language
ENG 245 British Literature or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
ENG 246 American Literature or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
ENG 255 World Literature or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
ENG 258 African American Literature or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
ENG 275 Women in Literature or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
Any 200-Level ENG Literature course4 or ENGH 202 or FRLN L330 (ENG 255 only)
Foreign Language 202 (if student places into language at 201/202 level)2 GMU Equivalent
Physical or Life Science Elective w/ Lab PHY 201 General College Physics I or 4 PHYS 243/244 Major
PHY 202 General College Physics II or PHYS 245/246
GOL 105 Physical Geology or GEOL 101/103
GOL 106 Historical Geology GEOL 102/104
Total Credits: 63-65

For academic policies and procedures, please see NOVA catalog - http://www.nvcc.edu/catalog/index.html

B.A. Biology

Concentrations: Students may select a concentration in Biological Illustration. See your Mason Biology advisor for more information.

MASON Degree Requirement Sequence Course Credits MASON Core/Degree Equivalent
Biology Core Courses BIOL 214 Biostatistics for Biology Majors 4 Major
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level, See: Advisor) 4 Major
College BA Requirement Select additional Upper Level Mason Core Arts, Literature, Global Contexts, or Social and Behavioral Sciences5(See Advisor) 3 COS BA Requirment
College Requirement: Foreign Language Approved foreign language course2,5 0-6 COS BA Foreign Lang.
College Requirement: Foreign Language or General Elective Approved foreign language course2,5OR Upper Level General Elective (if foreign language was taken at NOVA) 3 COS BA Foreign Lang.
Gen Ed: Written Communication (UL) ENGH 302 Advanced Composition 3 Written Comm
Biology Electives Any upper-level BIOL courses with lab5 4 Major
Biology Core Courses BIOL 308 Foundations of Ecology & Evolution AND 4 Major
BIOL 338 Foundations of Ecology and Evolution Lab (if BIO 256 is completed at NOVA) or
BIOL 311 General Genetics AND
BIOL 313 General Genetics Lab (if BIO 270 is completed at NOVA)
Biology Core Courses BIOL 400 News & Views 3 Writing Intensive
Gen Ed: Apex Approved Apex Course6 3 Apex
College Requirement: Foreign Language or General Elective Approved foreign language course2,5 or 3 COS BA Foreign Lang. or General Elective
Upper Level General Elective (if a foreign language was taken at NOVA)
Biology Electives Any upper-level BIOL courses5 4 Major
College BA Requirement Select additional Upper Level Mason Core Arts, Literature, Global Contexts, or Social and Behavioral Sciences5 3 COS BA Requirment
(Course must be in a different Mason Core category than selected in line 22 and in a different discipline than selected at NOVA; See Advisor)
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level: See Advisor) 3 General Electives
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level: See Advisor) 3 General Electives
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level: See Advisor) 3 General Electives
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level: See Advisor) 3 General Electives
General Elective General Electives (Upper-level: See Advisor) (As needed to reach 120 total credits and 45 total upper level credits) 2-4 General Electives
Supporting Core Courses and Gen Ed: Information Technology Approved Info Tech Course (Upper-level)6 3 Major & Info Tech
Total Credits: 120-124

*Denotes a course that must be taken at George Mason University while attending NOVA. Failure to complete your co-enrollment course(s) while attending NOVA can significantly affect your timeline for Mason graduation. Please see your ADVANCE Coach for more information and to enroll.

Important Academic Information:
1Students may also use MTH 161/162.
2Students who opt to complete language courses at NOVA may need to replace these credits with upper level general electives at Mason to reach 120 total credits. Consult with your ADVANCE Coach or Biology advisor.
3Students planning to pursue a professional clinical program (e.g. Medical school, Dental School, Physical Therapy, etc.) should select PSY 200, PSY 230, or SOC 200 based on the admission requirements of their particular clinical program. See the prerequisite recommendations on the George Mason Prehealth website for more specific information: https://prehealth.gmu.edu/professions/
4200-level ENG literature classes include: ENG 225, ENG 230, ENG 236, ENG 237, ENG 245, ENG 246, ENG 250, ENG 255, ENG 256, ENG 257, ENG 258, ENG 271, ENG 275, and ENG 279.
5For Approved Biology Elective options, the COS College BA Requirement options, and the approved Foreign Language courses, please visit: https://catalog.gmu.edu/colleges-schools/science/biology/biology-ba/#requirementstext. If foreign language completed at Mason, students may opt to take a two course, 101/102 sequence if available.
6For approved Mason Core courses, please visit - https://catalog.gmu.edu/mason-core/

General Education Waiver Policy and Guidance:
• Students who complete a VCCS transfer associate degree (AS, AA, or AFA) will receive a waiver of the Foundation and Exploration (lower division) Mason
Core general education categories, which can be found here: https://catalog.gmu.edu/mason-core/ . To be eligible for the waiver, the students must provide the Mason Office of Admissions with a final, official transcript reflecting the degree conferral date. As a prerequisite for ENGH 302, ENGH 101 is not waived.
Students must complete ENGH 100 or ENGH 101, or an equivalent, with a C or higher.
• When a course fulfills a Mason Core requirement and a major or college requirement (e.g. Major & Quant), students must complete the course listed on the pathway to fulfill the major/college requirement. Courses that fulfill only Mason Core Foundation and Exploration categories are recommendations. In most pathways, ADVANCE students must complete a Quantitative Reasoning course to matriculate through ADVANCE.
• ADVANCE students must complete the associate degree indicated on their pathway (see the ADVANCE Program Milestones listed above). Students who withdraw from ADVANCE and transfer without the associate degree or UCGS are required to complete each Mason Core general education category.

Additional General Notes & Resources:
1. Biology majors must earn a minimum grade of 'C' in all of the biology core courses.
2. Students may not count BIOL 124 Human Anatomy and Physiology and/or BIOL 125 Human Anatomy and Physiology toward any biology major requirement.
3. Students who transfer in both BIOL 303 Animal Biology and BIOL 304 Plant Biology will satisfy BIOL 300 BioDiversity plus four credits of biology elective coursework.
4. BIOL 495 Directed Studies in Biology, and BIOL 497 Special Problems in Biology do not count toward the upper-level laboratory course requirement. The courses do, however, count as non-laboratory electives. The total limit for BIOL 493 Honors Research in Biology, BIOL 495 Directed Studies in Biology and BIOL 497 Special Problems in Biology combined is 3 credits toward the BA.
• Students interested in Pre-Health Professions (Pre-Med, Pre-Dentistry, Pre-Podiatry, Pre-Optometry, Pre-Veterinary, Pre-Pharmacy, Pre-Physician Assistant, Pre-Occupational Therapy, and Pre-Physical Therapy) are strongly encouraged to meet with the Health Professions Advisor regarding the appropriate prerequisite courses for their field of choice. For more information, please visit: https://prehealth.gmu.edu/
• For academic policies and procedures, please see George Mason catalog - https://catalog.gmu.edu/policies/
• Students seeking a bachelor's degree must apply at least 45 credits of upper-level courses (numbered 300 or above) toward graduation.