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Ecology & Evolution

Ecology & Evolution

Ecology and evolution are sister disciplines, both encompassing the study of natural selection, life history, development, adaptation, population, and inheritance. Ecology and evolution are broad disciplines seeking to understand the origins, diversity, and distribution of organisms.

Department
Degree

Honours Bachelor of Science

Program Options

Specialist

Program Plans

Plan your degree with these academic and co-curricular program overviews.

Tip Sheets

Learn more about further education, applying to jobs & more!

Potential Career Options
  • Environmental Educator
  • Zoologist
  • Environmental Health Officer
  • Conservation Officer
  • Genetic Counsellor
Career Centre

Admission Requirements

Admission Category
OUAC Code
TML
Competitive Average
Low to Mid 80s
Program Course Prerequisites
ENG4U, MHF4U, SBI4U, SCH4U; (recommended: Calculus, Physics)

Regional Requirements

Admissions Requirements

Life in Ecology & Evolution

Buzz Around Campus

Bees

Honeybees identify strangers in their midst using signals from the bacteria in the intruder’s digestive system, an international team of biologists says. Their work contributes to broader questions about the tools social animals use to distinguish between insiders and outsiders in their community.

Nervous System

It crawls! But how? That was the question Adriano Senatore faced in his study of Trichoplax adhaerens, an extremely simple aquatic animal that emerged more than 600 million years ago, and has been squirming around the planet ever since.

Marc Johnson

UTM evolutionary biology professor Marc Johnson had big plans for last May. He and his family were on tap to travel to Ottawa. They were going to stay in a fancy hotel, attend a reception at the Governor General’s residence and meet with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Sample Courses

This course will provide Biology Majors and Specialists particularly interested in ecology with integrated, practical exposure to field and laboratory research methods.

A survey of the population and community ecology of plants. Topics include resource acquisition, growth and reproduction, mutualisms, competition, defence, invasions, disturbance, and population dynamics.

We discuss the species concept, quantification and cost-benefit analysis of biodiversity and extinction, causes, consequence, diagnosis and treatment of population declines.

Other Programs to Consider

Anthropology

Anthropology (HBSc)

Anthropology is the study of humankind from its beginnings to the present day. anthropology seeks to understand the whole panorama of human existence -- in geographic space and evolutionary time -- through comparative and holistic study.

Biology

Biology

This program offers teachings in biology, the study of living organisms and involves observation and analysis of the tree of life. The foundation of biology is based upon the core concepts of evolution: natural selection and speciation.

Forensic Biology

Forensic Biology

Forensic Science is the study of physical evidence in a modern legal context. It is best defined as “science in service to the courts.” Forensic Biology is the study of forensics and molecular biology. UTM’s Forensic Science program, the first of its kind in Canada, is designed to provide the student with an understanding of scientific analyses, theories, laboratory skills, applications, and field techniques — while allowing the student to emphasize one particular area in greater detail.