MCB Certificate Programs

Students completing the requirements for a certificate will be presented with an official certificate and are free to highlight this credential on a CV, resume, or application for advanced study. Certificates do not provide transcript recognition. Please consult with an MCB advisor if you have questions about any of our certificate programs.

Neuroscience  Microbiology

Certificate in Neuroscience

The Certificate in Neuroscience option allows undergraduate students at Illinois to obtain recognition for completing coursework providing a foundational understanding of brain function at multiple levels of organization. Students completing the certificate will be presented with an official certificate document and can add this credential to a CV/resume or application for advanced study. The certificate does not provide transcript recognition.

To declare the certificate, students must complete this checklist by the drop deadline in their final semester. Certificate students must complete a minimum of twelve credit hours of coursework from the approved list of courses below.

Students majoring in Neuroscience are not eligible to complete the Neuroscience certificate.  The certificate is available for all other undergraduates on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. 

Notes on list of approved courses

MCB 461 and 462 are specifically required, but the remaining 6 hours can come from any courses on the Neuroscience Approved List. Up to 3 hours may come from MCB 290 undergraduate research conducted in the laboratory of an approved Neuroscience Program faculty member.

Courses marked with an asterisk (*) will also count toward the 15 hours of required approved advanced coursework for the MCB major. Courses not marked with an asterisk will count toward the certificate but will not count toward the 15 required advanced hours in the MCB major.

Certificate in Neuroscience Approved List of Courses

MCB 290: Undergraduate Research in approved neuroscience program lab (up to 3 hours)
*MCB/NEUR 314: Introduction to Neurobiology (3 hours, fall)
*MCB 401: Cellular Physiology (3 hours, fall)
PSYC/NEUR 403: Memory and Amnesia (3 hours, fall)
PSYC/NEUR 404/405: Cognitive Neuroscience (3 hours, spring)
*PSYC/NEUR 414: Brain, Learning and Memory (3 hours, spring)
PSYC/NEUR 417: Neuroscience of Eating and Drinking (3 hours, fall)
PSYC/NEUR 421: Principles of Psychophysiology (3 hours, fall)
IB/NEUR 432: Genes and Behavior (3 hours, spring)
PSYC/NEUR 433: Evolutionary Neuroscience (3 hours, fall)
PSYC/NEUR 450: Cognitive Psychophysiology (3 hours, fall)
PSYC/NEUR 453: Cog Neuroscience of Vision (3 hours, fall)
*MCB 460: Neuroanatomy Laboratory (2 hours, fall and spring)
*# MCB/NEUR 461: Cell & Molecular Neuroscience (3 hours, fall)
*# MCB/NEUR 462: Integrative Neuroscience (3 hours, spring)
*MCB 466: Neuro & Molecular Pharmacology (3 hours, spring)
*MCB 493: Neurobiology of Mental Illness (3 hours, spring)
*MCB 418: Neurobiology of Senses (3 hours, spring)

* Counts toward the required 15 hours of approved advanced courses in the MCB major
# Required for the certificate

Students are not guaranteed a seat in a course required by the certificate but are welcome to enroll in courses where seats remain available after any restriction, which may have been placed, has been removed.

NEUR/PSYC 413 only counts as an approved advanced MCB course for students who took it prior to spring 2022. Students who take the course spring 2022 or later cannot count it towards the certificate or towards their 15 required advanced MCB hours.

Courses may not be used to satisfy the requirements of more than one MCB certificate.  Students majoring in Neuroscience are not eligible to complete the certificate in Neuroscience.

Certificate in Microbiology

The Certificate in Microbiology option allows any undergraduate major at Illinois to obtain recognition for completing coursework providing a foundational understanding of the discipline of microbiology at multiple levels and from multiple perspectives. Students completing the certificate will be presented with an official certificate document and will be free to use this credential on a CV/resume or application for advanced study. The certificate does not provide transcript recognition.

To declare the certificate, students must complete this checklist by the drop deadline in their final semester. Certificate students must complete a minimum of eleven credit hours of coursework from the approved list of courses below.

Approved list of courses for Certificate in Microbiology 

One lecture course of 3 credit hours and one microbiology-focused laboratory course of at least 2 credit hours are required specifically. The remaining credit hours may come from any of the other courses on the Approved List below. Students are strongly encouraged to select a diverse set of courses (e.g., one in microbial physiology or biochemistry and one in pathogenesis) with at least one that includes discussions of primary literature.

Note all of these courses (except MCB 290) may also count toward the 15 credit hours of advanced MCB courses required for MCB majors.

One Microbiology lecture course is required:
MCB 300: Microbiology, 3 credit hrs, fall/spring

One of the following Microbiology laboratory or research courses is required: 
Laboratories
MCB 301: Experimental Microbiology, 3 credit hrs, fall and spring
MCB 428: Microbial Pathogens Laboratory, 2 credit hrs, fall

Research Courses
MCB 290: Undergraduate Research, 2 or more credit hrs, fall/spring/summer, conducted in an approved microbiology research laboratory
MCB 493 REM: Research Experience in Microbiology, spring

At least two of the following approved Microbiology lecture courses are required: 
MCB 421: Microbial Genetics, 3 credit hours, fall
MCB 424: Microbial Biochemistry, 3 credit hrs, spring
MCB 426: Bacterial Pathogenesis, 3 credit hrs, spring
MCB 429: Cellular Microbiology & Disease, 3 credit hrs (Not currently being offered.)
MCB 430: Molecular Microbiology, 3 credit hrs, spring
MCB 431: Microbial Physiology, 3 credit hrs, fall
MCB 432: Computing in Molecular Biology, 3 credit hrs, fall
MCB 435: Evolution of Infectious Disease, 3 credit hrs, spring
MCB 438: Viral Pathogenesis & Evolution, 3 credit hrs, fall

Additional notes:
Students are not guaranteed a seat in a course required by the certificate but are welcome to enroll in courses where seats remain available after any restriction, which may have been placed, has been removed.

Courses may not be used to satisfy the requirements of more than one MCB certificate.