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BRL is a research methods course disguised as a first-year lab
Its official structure is less about verifying lecture facts and more about teaching how biological evidence is collected, organized, checked, and communicated.
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01:119:117 · Biological Sciences · School 01 — New Brunswick School of Arts and Sciences
Biological Research Laboratory is Rutgers' 2-credit companion lab for the General Biology sequence. Official Rutgers materials describe it as an in-person, team-based research course built around lab skills, aquatic ecology, DNA barcoding, and a multi-week capstone project that ends in a paper and oral presentation.
How hard?
Students rate teaching
SIRS · 6,067 responses · 2016–2025
Spring 2027
35 open in snapshot · 1 instructor
When it meets
Busch, C/D
Checked-in sections · current seat counts are unavailable.
F 10:20 AM · Busch, C/D · 35 sections · 35 open
AI-generated overview
Higher means more demanding · AI summary
5 units · topic sequence may vary by instructor
The course opens by teaching how to function in a real lab setting: safety, basic skills, quizzes, teamwork roles, and the scientific method. The syllabus makes clear that BRL is not just a place to follow directions; it is meant to train students in how research work is organized and documented.
Early labs use local aquatic systems to teach students how to collect, compare, and interpret environmental data. Aquatic ecology and the Water Quality Index provide the first real dataset students work with and also feed into later capstone thinking.
The second major block shifts from field-style ecology to molecular identification. Rutgers structures this unit around PCR, agarose gel electrophoresis, FinchTV-based sequence analysis, and BLAST-style interpretation so students can see how biodiversity questions are approached with sequence data.
Mid-semester, BRL turns from training exercises into student-designed work. Teams develop a capstone proposal, set up experiments, and prepare for the practical exam, which the syllabus treats as a real check on whether students can execute the semester's methods rather than just recognize them on paper.
The final stage asks students to turn results into scientific communication. Sequence analysis, capstone data interpretation, the final paper, and the BRL research symposium presentation all push students to explain what their evidence shows and how convincingly it answers the group's question.
Public r/rutgers discussion usually frames Bio 117 as more tedious and group-dependent than conceptually brutal. Students often say the course is doable, but they warn that proposal deadlines, the practical, and group coordination can create stress if you assume the lab will run itself.
Its official structure is less about verifying lecture facts and more about teaching how biological evidence is collected, organized, checked, and communicated.
The syllabus gives weight not only to projects and quizzes, but also to a practical exam and analysis assignments that test whether students can use methods correctly.
Rutgers explicitly defines rotating team roles and expects collaboration to be a real skill students practice, not just a logistical convenience.
The paper and symposium presentation matter because the course treats scientific communication as part of doing science, not as an afterthought once the experiments are over.
Common pitfall
Instead
Preview procedures and quiz expectations beforehand so in-lab time goes to execution and troubleshooting, not first exposure.
Common pitfall
Instead
Assign responsibilities early and keep written checkpoints for proposal, data collection, analysis, and presentation prep.
Common pitfall
Instead
Review what each tool or assay is for, what the steps are, and what kinds of mistakes would change the result.
35 open · Busch, C/D
| Section | Status | Instructor | Meeting | Campus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0113631 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Monday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 0213632 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Monday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
| 0313633 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 0413634 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 0513635 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
| 0613636 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
| 0713637 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 160ARC 103BLC 160 | Busch |
| 0813638 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Tuesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 160ARC 103BLC 160 | Busch |
| 0913639 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 1013640 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 1113641 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
| 1213642 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
| 1313643 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 160ARC 103BLC 160 | Busch |
| 1413644 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Wednesday 1:10 PM-5:10 PM at BLC 160ARC 103BLC 160 | Busch |
| 1513645 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Thursday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 142ARC 103BLC 142 | Busch |
| 1613646 | Open | Monica Torres | Friday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 103; Thursday 8:30 AM-12:30 PM at BLC 145ARC 103BLC 145 | Busch |
Historical student surveys
Teaching
3.75
Course quality
3.45
Response rate
46.7%
Coverage
46 offerings · 2016–2025
| Instructor | Offerings | Teaching | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monica Torres | 22 | 3.63 | 3.41 |
| Torres M. | 8 | 3.29 | 3.08 |
| Monica Torres | 4 | 3.05 | 2.70 |
| Hawkins D | 2 | 4.85 | 4.30 |
| Feldman P. | 2 | 4.75 | 4.25 |
| Gilbert Sam | 2 | 4.60 | 4.05 |
Catalog and planning context
Credits
2
Current campuses
Busch, C/D
Current availability
35 open of 35
Catalog terms
Fall, Spring, Summer
Core codes
None listed
Loaded terms
4
(01:119:115)
No direct degree-list membership appears in the checked-in requirement index.