The Department of Biology has received national recognition for the contributions of its faculty in genetics, neuroscience, development, population biology, plant biology, and other areas of specialization. Work being done in the Department has broad implications for the treatment of disease and genetic anomalies, the preservation of endangered species, the development of food crops, and many other global problems centered in the life sciences. The Biology Department has a distinguished history, highlighted by the 1986 Nobel Prize awarded to two former members of the department, Rita Levi-Montalcini and Stanley Cohen, for their discovery at Washington University of the Nerve Growth Factor. Today, the Department includes three professors who are members of the National Academy of Sciences and many others who have gained international distinction for their research.

Careers include biological research, education, health care, industrial biotechnology, and the computational, legal and business careers related to biotechnology