The Life Sciences programs have been created for students interested in exploring topics focused upon aspects of human health and well-being. Learning expectations are designed to practice and master specific global competencies required in all post-graduate careers.
You can visit the McMaster Undergraduate Academic Calendar to view admission requirements to each program, course descriptions, and course lists.
- Select the current academic year calendar.
- Use the search bar at the top left if you know exactly what you are looking for, or you can also go straight to Course Listings to search individual courses or browse lists of courses by name (e.g. LIFESCI, BIOLOGY)
- To easily access our program pages, select “Programs (by Faculty) and Faculty Information” at the left. Then select “Faculty of Science”, “Department and Program Offerings”, and finally scroll to the bottom and select “Go to information for School of Interdisciplinary Science (SIS).”
- This page contains all information about programs in SIS, and at the bottom lists all of the unique program and specialization requirements, with each of these pages showing the courses required and course lists for your successful completion of the program.
Students can apply to enroll in one of 5 different Life Sciences Programs:
Students in any of the four Science Level I Gateways may choose admission into our largest program, Honours Life Sciences. This program encourages students to explore their diverse interests in the fields of Life Sciences including courses in nutrition, epidemiology, behaviour, neurobiology, cellular dynamics, global health and science communication.
Students in any of the four Science Level I Gateways may choose admission into our Honours Life Sciences – Origins of Disease (OD) specialization. This interdisciplinary program examines the chemical and physical basis of cell function, disease states, and current research in disease prevention and treatment. OD was created in partnership with the Departments of Chemistry & Chemical Biology and Physics & Astronomy. This program is limited enrolment.
Students in Level II of any Honours Life Sciences Program may apply to our Honours Life Sciences – Co-Op program. This is an exciting opportunity to get career-ready experience in a Life Sciences program through two 8 month co-op terms. Admission is competitive and this program is limited enrolment.
In this 3-year degree students are invited to explore the majority of Life Sciences courses. Students do not have access to Level IV seminar courses or independent projects. Students may transfer to the Honours program after consultation with the Office of the Associate Dean of Science (Academic).
Students in an Honours Life Sciences Program are required to complete the following core courses:
In this course, students practice skills around hypothesis testing and data analysis. Students are introduced to skills essential to science literacy and numeracy and are invited to practice these skills in small tutorial environments. The theme of the course is Stem Cell Biology.
This hands-on laboratory course explores diverse topics in Human Aging using model organisms and contemporary methodologies. Students are invited to examine the cellular, molecular, physiological and neurological characteristics of aging using state-of-the-art laboratory equipment, and reflect upon what we think about aging in current society. How might our understanding of the mechanisms of aging allow us to prepare our health care and urban planning systems for an increasing large and aging demographic?
In this course, students learn and practice the basics of effective written, visual and oral science communication. They create written reports and summaries, graphics and data visualizations, short talks and other communications on a range of scientific topics. They also engage with the growing field of science communication research.
Scientific numeracy demands practical understanding of the ways in which information is gathered and presented in graphs, diagrams, charts and tables. The Life Sciences programs require completion of an introductory statistics course to learn and practice methodologies to analyze and present real-world data.
Students in our programs require an understanding of the structure, function and transmission of genes, chromosomal basis of inheritence, mechanisms of gene function, and other genetics principles to be able to apply these concepts to larger scale topics in Life Sciences.
In addition to the required level II courses, students are asked to take one additional level II course that delves deeper into foundational material in an area of cell biology, neuroscience, behaviour, nutrition, or environmental impacts on human health. These courses help students to discover an area of the life sciences that could be of interest for a future career, and also act as prerequisite courses for level III and IV courses and seminars. Be sure to review upper year courses while considering which of these courses you would like to take – prerequisite requirements for interesting upper year courses could influence your level II course choice.
In Levels III and IV, students in an Honours Life Sciences program complete courses from the 4 pillars of the Program:
Science Communication, Laboratory Skills, Experiential Learning and Knowledge Transfer
This list includes the level III Life Sciences courses offered by SIS. These courses vary in topic across the wide range of areas of Life Sciences, from pathophysiology to computational modelling, from global health to the use of radioisotopes in medicine. Some of these courses have level II course prerequisites, so be sure to take those courses first.
Students in all Honours Programs are required to complete a minimum of 6 units from Course List A. Please note the specific requirements in the specializations.
An understanding of how research is conducted is essential to understanding science itself. In these laboratory and data courses, students learn basic laboratory skills, are introduced to using software and coding skills for life sciences data analysis, and practice communicating and interpreting research data. The topics available on this course list range from cells, plants, to animals, to ecological field methods, to large global health data sets, looking at development, disease, and more.
Students in all Honours Programs are required to complete a minimum of 3 units from Course List B. Please note the specific requirements in the two specializations.
“Tell me and I forget, Teach me and I may remember, Involve me and I learn.” -Benjamin Franklin
Students are encouraged in all of our programs to engage in diverse experiential learning opportunities. This provides students with a chance to apply knowledge and skills learned in the classroom, explore career options and become knowledge creators. Experiential opportunities include community or professional placements (LIFESCI 3EP3 and LIFESCI 4EP6) and research projects and theses on campus (SCICOMM 4A03, LIFESCI 4A03, LIFESCI 4B09, LIFESCI 4C12, and LIFESCI 4D15). There are also course-based community engagement opportunities, such as the CMTYENGA courses. In addition, our collection of peer mentoring courses give you a chance to apply your knowledge in the classroom as a leader and mentor to your fellow students.
Students in all Honours Programs are required to complete a minimum of 3 units from Course List C. Please note that students in the Co-op program are not required to complete courses from Course List C as the co-op term satisfies their experiential requirement.
In addition to the skills-based requirements indicated above, students in the Honours Life Sciences Program may choose 18 units of electives from the Life Science Course List which includes selected courses from a variety of departments and schools in the Faculty of Science. Please be aware of prerequisite requirements.
The Life Sciences seminar ballot process ensures all final year Honours Life Sciences students meet their program requirements for a capstone experience (Course List E). Students who wish to satisfy this course by using some of their Life Sciences research project or thesis credits can choose to not complete the ballot or a seminar course.
All Honours Life Science students must complete at least 3 units from Course List E, including Co-op students.
Eligible students will receive an email from the School of Interdisciplinary Science to their McMaster email account prompting them to participate in a preferential seminar ranking process in March. Students must use the ballot link in that email to complete and submit a ballot by the stated deadline (usually late March or early April) to indicate their preference of a seminar for the following academic year. The rank-matching functionality aims to maximize the number of students getting their top choice of seminar. The allotment is performed after the application closes.
Students will be informed of the outcome, and the seminar for which they have initial permission to enroll, in June. Outcomes will be communicated to your McMaster email.
Level IV Research Seminar topics may change from year to year. Research Seminar topics and descriptions are available on in the Academic Calendar, Honours Life Science Course list E.
List of Level IV LIFESCI Seminar Courses (2025/2026)
Life Sciences Level IV Ballot FAQ (2025)
Town Hall – Level IV LIFESCI Seminar Ballot Powerpoint Presentation (2025)
Live Recording of Seminar Ballot Presentation
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Students in a Life Sciences Program may choose elective courses from across campus. Please be aware of prerequisite requirements.
