Courses

PBC students have several PBC courses to choose from and can also take courses across the university.  See the Graduate School Course Catalog for more information. Below are upcoming courses offered by the Plant Biology and Conservation (PBC) program. Students often take elective courses in the programs listed below. Only courses at the 300 level or above can be taken for graduate credit. Not all 300 level courses carry graduate credit, so if you are not sure consult with the PBC program assistant or director.

• Courses in Environmental Policy and Culture
• Courses in Environmental Science
• Courses in Earth and Planetary Science
• Courses in the Institute for Sustainability and Energy and Northwestern

Upcoming PBC Courses

Fall 2022

• PBC 435/BIO 337 Biostatistics
• PBC 451 - Critical Topics in Ecology and Conservation
• PBC 450 - Field and Lab Methods in Plant Biology and Conservation
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - GIS Level I
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - Urban Ecology

Winter 2023

• PBC 401/BIO 350 Plant Evolution and Diversity
• PBC 402/BIO 349 Community Ecology
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - GIS Level 1 (Geol Info Systems)
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - R Data Science
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - Analytical Toolkit

Spring 2023

• PBC 410 Plant-Animal Interactions

  • This course explores interactions between plants and animals, including antagonistic ones (e.g., herbivory), mutualistic ones (e.g., pollination, seed dispersal, ant-plant associations), and interactions among multiple species and across trophic levels. Through survey of the primary literature, we will investigate the causes of the interactions and their consequences for individual organisms, populations, communities, and entire ecosystems. Finally, we will examine how these various interactions are responding to global change, including habitat destruction and climate change.
• PBC 415/BIO 336 Spring Flora
  • This course takes a field-based approach to learning the process of identifying major components of the local flora in an evolutionary context. Understanding vegetative and reproductive structures of plants, and use of this knowledge to identify plants with taxonomic keys is emphasized. Ecological interactions, and related conservation issues are also covered.
• PBC 435 Biostatistics
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC – Urban Ecology
• PBC 470 Special Topics in PBC - R Data Science