PLSCI at Cornell University

Gateway courses

Each of these unlocks the largest share of downstream work on this map. Courses from other departments can appear here when they genuinely gate PLSCI coursework.

• CHEM 2080General Chemistry IIopens 15 courses (3 directly)
• CHEM 3530Principles of Organic Chemistryopens 12 courses (2 directly)
• CHEM 3570Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciencesopens 12 courses (2 directly)
• CHEM 1570Introduction to Organic and Biological Chemistryopens 12 courses (1.5 directly)
• BIOMG 3300Principles of Biochemistry, Individualized Instructionopens 7 courses (3.8 directly)
• BIOMG 3310Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins and Metabolismopens 6 courses (4.3 directly)

The map

Intro tiers at the top, advanced work below; arrows point from a prerequisite to the course it unlocks. Courses from other departments appear where they gate PLSCI work. Click any course to see what it requires and unlocks without leaving this page; hovering lights up its neighbors. The lists on this page carry the same courses in text form.

Showing the 110 PLSCI and feeder courses that have prerequisite links. 126 more PLSCI courses have no recorded prerequisites. They are listed under Tracks below, not drawn as loose dots here.

Concentration routes

The concentrations and majors that build on PLSCI, and how their requirements are structured. Expand a program to see which courses satisfy each group, then plan it in the Planner.

Tracks

Upper-level clusters, grouped by the gateway that opens them.

The longest ladders

The deepest prerequisite chains in PLSCI. These are the routes that take the most semesters to climb.

• 7 courses deep, ending at PLSCI 4302

  1. CHEM 2070General Chemistry I
  2. CHEM 2080General Chemistry II
  3. CHEM 3530Principles of Organic Chemistry
  4. BIOMG 3300Principles of Biochemistry, Individualized Instruction
  5. BIOMG 4400Laboratory in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
  6. PLSCI 4300Applications in Molecular Diagnostics
  7. PLSCI 4302Molecular Diagnostics: From Lab to Viñedo

• 6 courses deep, ending at PLSCI 6010

  1. CHEM 2070General Chemistry I
  2. CHEM 2080General Chemistry II
  3. CHEM 3530Principles of Organic Chemistry

• 5 courses deep, ending at PLSCI 4000

  1. CHEM 2070General Chemistry I
  2. CHEM 2080General Chemistry II
  3. CHEM 3530Principles of Organic Chemistry

• 4 courses deep, ending at PLSCI 4420

  1. PLSCI 3421Plant Physiology, Laboratory
  2. PLSCI 3420Plant Physiology, Lectures
  3. PLSCI 4420Mineral Nutrition: From Plants to Humans

Grade medians

Teaching in Fall 2026

Instructors on PLSCI sections in Fall 2026, from the registrar's schedule.

• Aaron Sexton
• Andrew McDonald
• Antonio DiTommaso
• Carmen Catala
• Casey Barickman
• Chelsea Specht
• Clare Casteel
• Dan Katz
• Daniel Anstett
• Dominique Holtappels
• Gaurav Moghe
• Giulia Friso
• Gregory Peck
• Hale Tufan
• Harold Van Es
• Jeffrey Perry
• Johannes Lehmann
• Jonathan Russell-Anelli
• Justine Vanden Heuvel
• Karen Snover-Clift
• Kathie Hodge
• Kerik Cox
• Klaas Van Wijk
• Laura Gunn
• Lauren Boggs
• Laurie Drinkwater
• Lindsey Becker
• Lori Huberman
• Mark Sorrells
• Marvin Pritts
• Michael Gore
• Michael Scanlon
• Miguel Pineros
• Nazir Sharifi
• Neil Mattson
• Rachel Bezner Kerr
• Randy Wayne
• Rebecca Nelson
• Sijin Li
• Taryn Bauerle
• + 11 more

Cornell professor board

Clubs & organizations

No clubs or organizations on record under PLSCI yet.

Clubs students here join

Department events

PLSCI does not run a page here yet. When it does, its events show up here and on the Cornell campus feed.