Chair's Welcome

Christopher Osgood

CHRISTOPHER OSGOOD, PhD
Chair of Biological Sciences

Welcome to the Department of Biological Sciences!

We offer vigorous undergraduate and graduate training across a spectrum of research and pre-professional interest areas. We typically have 1,200-1,400 undergraduate biology majors pursuing the BS degree. Students can focus their studies on specific areas of study - for example, students may choose to follow the track in Marine Biology - or, students may choose a more general plan of study that can prepare them for many areas of future study or employment.

Our undergraduate program prepares students for careers in healthcare fields - approximately 50% of our students applying for medical, dental or physician assistant programs are accepted each year.

For students interested in ecological aspects of biology, many of our undergraduates find employment through agencies including the Army Corp of Engineers, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Plant biology research is a growing area of strength at ODU, led by Professor Lisa Wallace, the Stiffler Professor of Botany.