USC Quantitative Biology
Transfer Requirements and Classes
The major preparation USC lists for Quantitative Biology transfers starts with QBIO 105, MATH 125g and BISC 120Lg; the full list is below.
82 California community colleges have a current transfer agreement with USC for this major. Pick yours below to see which of its classes count.
Your community college
Which classes count at your community college?
Pick your college to see its class for each USC requirement.
Major Requirements
USC Quantitative Biology Major Preparation
The courses USC lists as Quantitative Biology major preparation for transfer applicants, for the 2026-27 academic year. Course numbers are USC's own; pick your community college above to see the matching class there.
Required Introductory Course (2 units)
Required
- QBIO 105 Introduction to Quantitative Biology Seminar
Required Foundational Science Courses (24 units)
Required
- MATH 125g Calculus I
Complete 1 of these
- BISC 120Lg General Biology: Organismal Biology and Evolution
- BISC 121Lg Advanced General Biology: Organismal Biology and Evolution
Complete 1 of these
- BISC 220Lg General Biology: Cell Biology and Physiology
- BISC 221Lg Advanced General Biology: Cell Biology and Physiology
Complete 1 of these
- CHEM 105aLg General Chemistry
- CHEM 115aLg Advanced General Chemistry
Complete 1 of these
- PHYS 135aLg Physics for the Life Sciences
- PHYS 151Lg Fundamentals of Physics I: Mechanics, Oscillations and Waves
- PHYS 161Lg Advanced Principles of Physics I
- PHYS 171Lg Applied Physics I: Mechanics
Complete 1 of these
- QBIO 310 Statistical Thinking for Quantitative Biology
- MATH 307 Statistical Inference and Data Analysis I
Required Foundational Computing Courses (12 units)
Complete all of these
- CSCI 113x Programming Fundamentals for Computing
- CSCI 114x Programming for Applications of Computing
- QBIO 401 Introduction to Computational Analysis of Biological Data
- QBIO 460 Introduction to Machine Learning in Biology
- QBIO 465 Artificial Intelligence in Biology and Medicine
- CSCI 103L Object Oriented Programming
Complete 1 of these
- CSCI 103L Object Oriented Programming
- CSCI 104L Data Structures
- CSCI 170 Discrete Methods in Computer Science
Specialization Courses (12 units)
Complete 1 of these
- CHEM 105bL General Chemistry
- CHEM 115bL Advanced General Chemistry
Complete 1 of these
- CHEM 322aL Organic Chemistry
- CHEM 322bL Organic Chemistry
- CSCI 270 Introduction to Algorithms and Theory of Computing
- MATH 126g Calculus II
- MATH 127 Enhanced Calculus II
- MATH 129 Calculus II for Engineers and Scientists
- MATH 225 Linear Algebra and Linear Differential Equations
- MATH 245 Mathematics of Physics and Engineering I
- MATH 226g Calculus III
- MATH 227 Enhanced Calculus III
- MATH 229 Calculus III for Engineers and Scientists
- MATH 407 Probability Theory
- MATH 308 Statistical Inference and Data Analysis II
- MATH 408 Mathematical Statistics
- PHYS 135bL Physics for the Life Sciences
- PHYS 152L Fundamentals of Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism
- PHYS 162L Advanced Principles of Physics II
- PHYS 172L Applied Physics II: Electricity, Magnetism and Optics
- QBIO 401 Introduction to Computational Analysis of Biological Data
- QBIO 460 Introduction to Machine Learning in Biology
- QBIO 465 Artificial Intelligence in Biology and Medicine
Capstone Courses (8 units)
Complete 1 of these
- QBIO 475 Statistical and Evolutionary Genetics
- QBIO 478 Computational Genome Analysis
- QBIO 481 Structural Bioinformatics: From Atoms to Cells
- QBIO 482 Systems Biology: Modeling the Dynamics of Life
Research Experience (6 units)
Complete all of these
- QBIO 493 Quantitative Biology Honors Seminar
- QBIO 494 Quantitative Biology Honors Thesis
Also listed by USC
USC lists these under the headings shown, apart from the list above.
Upper-Division Electives (minimum 8 units)
- SCRM 487 Regenerative Medicine: Principles, Paradigms and Practice
1 of these
- BISC 300L Microbiology
- BISC 307L General Physiology
- BISC 313L Evolution and Population Genetics
- BISC 315L Introduction to Ecology
- BISC 320Lg Molecular Biology
- BISC 325 Genetics
- BISC 330L Biochemistry
- BISC 312x Molecular Biochemistry
- CHEM 350 Molecular Principles of Biochemistry
- BISC 403 Advanced Molecular Biology
- BISC 406L Biotechnology
- BISC 407 Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
- BISC 408 Systems Neuroscience: From Synapses to Perception
- BISC 410 Applications of Molecular Biology to Medicine
- BISC 411 Advanced Cell Biology
- BISC 421 Neurobiology
- BISC 423 Epilepsy to Ecstasy: Biological Basis of Neurological Disorders
- BISC 424 Brain Architecture
- BISC 434 Introduction to Genome Science
- BISC 435 Advanced Biochemistry
- BISC 450L Principles of Immunology
- BISC 473L Biological Oceanography
- BME 430 Principles and Applications of Systems Biology
- CSCI 360 Artificial Intelligence: Principles and Foundations
- CSCI 467 Foundations of Machine Learning
- ECON 460 Economic Applications of Machine Learning
- LING 486 Natural Language Processing
- LING 487 Speech Synthesis and Recognition
- MATH 447 Mathematics of Machine Learning
- MATH 466 Dynamic Modeling
- MATH 467 Theory and Computational Methods for Optimization
- PHYS 444 Physical Biology: From Molecules to Cells
- PSYC 450 Neural Network Models of Social and Cognitive Processes
- QBIO 401 Introduction to Computational Analysis of Biological Data
- QBIO 460 Introduction to Machine Learning in Biology
- QBIO 465 Artificial Intelligence in Biology and Medicine
- QBIO 475 Statistical and Evolutionary Genetics
- QBIO 478 Computational Genome Analysis
- QBIO 479L Computational Genome Analysis Laboratory
- QBIO 481 Structural Bioinformatics: From Atoms to Cells
- QBIO 482 Systems Biology: Modeling the Dynamics of Life
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Does USC have a Quantitative Biology major for transfer students?
Yes. USC offers Quantitative Biology and lists the major preparation it expects transfer applicants to complete.
What classes do I need to transfer to USC for Quantitative Biology?
USC's Quantitative Biology major preparation includes QBIO 105, MATH 125g, BISC 120Lg, BISC 121Lg, BISC 220Lg and BISC 221Lg, with more courses in the list on this page. Pick your community college on this page to see which of its classes match.
Explore More
Build your USC Quantitative Biology plan
Pick your community college and see which of its classes count, term by term.
Pick your college