Undergraduate School
As part of the "Luiz de Queiroz" School of Agriculture”, ESALQ/USP, our faculty offer undergraduate courses in Agronomic Engineering, Forest Engineering, Food Science, Environmental Management and Biological Sciences.
Historically, our Department hosts the Coordination of the Undergraduate Course in Biological Sciences of ESALQ / USP.
The idea of creating a Biological Sciences Course resulted from the great expansion, in the academic environment of the region, of areas focused on Applied Biology and Conservation of Ecosystems. The continuous need of trained human resources prepared to work in these areas of knowledge between the fields of Agricultural Sciences and the conservation of the environment was also a driven force.
To materialize this idea of creating a Graduate Course in Biological Sciences at the "Luiz de Queiroz" School of Agriculture, a working group was formed in 1998, composed of faculty members from the various departments that were part of the administrative structure available on campus at that time. After months of work, a proposal was presented to the Technical Administrative Council (CTA) of the ESALQ, which determined its referral for analysis and complementation of studies by the ESALQ Undergraduate Commission; On February 12, 2001, a definite proposal was approved unanimously in that Commission, and was ratified on February 22 of that year by the ESALQ Congregation.
The result of this idealism and the hard work of the working group allowed the realization, in 2002, of the first examination that led to the selection of the first group of 30 out of 404 candidate students.
The Undergraduate Program in Biological Sciences offers 30 vacancies (night course, with a minimum duration of ten semesters in the Bachelor's modality, and the student may choose to obtain a licentiate degree) and has the objective of training professionals with solid knowledge in areas such as Botany, Cytology, Zoology, Genetics, Ecology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, adding a strong insertion potential in areas of growing interest in the market, such as Agrobiology, Biotechnology and Wildlife Management.
It concentrates efforts in the relations of human beings with the environment, aiming to reduce the degradation of ecosystems, while observing the possibilities of economic development through environmental management and wild species. It should be noted that due to the tradition of this School in agricultural and forestry research and the international recognition of its teaching staff in the biological research area, the Undergraduate Course in Biological Sciences of ESALQ / USP presents sui generis characteristics that grant the graduates, in addition of solid and necessary basic training, knowledge in other areas such as:
Biology focused on agricultural development or Agrobiology: preparing a professional capable of developing research, teaching and applying biological concepts and techniques aimed at the development and improvement of agricultural production and forest products. In this context, we can also mention that our students are trained in techniques aimed at the recovery of degraded forest and non-forest areas and in the resolution of problems that are becoming more and more common due to the mosaic of landscapes resulting from anthropic activities, seeking to minimize harmful and irreparable consequences to the environment.
Biology focused on wildlife management or simply Wildlife Management: preparing a professional through the modern concepts related to the exploitation of natural resources of our flora and fauna and, therefore, preparing students to participate in the implementation of economic exploration systems that favor the conservation of endangered species and the generation of income for the populations involved. In this context, the coherent training of this professional will be essential for the verification of distribution patterns and abundance of wild species (cataloguing biodiversity for later conservation) and, thus, directing the most appropriate management, monitoring the ecosystem to detect succeeding problems, pointing out diagnoses and applying the appropriate solutions.
Biology focused on biotechnological development, or biotechnology: given the pioneering and recognition of ESALQ / USP research activities in this important scientific branch that is the application of biological processes in the elaboration of products through techniques of molecular biology, genomics and genetic engineering, It became possible to offer differentiated training to our students enabling them to act as vectors for the development of research and teaching in this area, including public and / or private research centers.
It is also worth mentioning that, among the objectives proposed, the licentiate program, in compliance with current legislation and the guidelines of the Permanent Licentiate Commission of USP, offers the student body the possibility of training teachers in Science and Biology.
Our educational objectives aim at training a professional profile capable of producing science, of developing and applying modern techniques, especially in biological activities geared to agricultural development, biotechnology and wildlife management.
Graduate School
We host the Graduate Program in Plant Physiology and Biochemistry that began in 1988 and since then has been training highly qualified masters and doctors for research and teaching in Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, emphasizing the understanding of the physiological, biochemical and molecular processes involved in the development of plants.
