Biology is the scientific exploration of the vast and diverse world of living organisms; simply put, it is the study of life. Today, biological research, worldwide, extends from the microscopic scale of the molecules and cells that make up organisms to the global scale of the entire living planet. The study of biology not only solves puzzles about ourselves and about the millions of other organisms with whom we share this planet Earth, but also provides us with solutions to many problems facing our civilization from human diseases to loss of biodiversity and environmental quality to providing us with the much needed resources taking into account environmental problems that this may cause.
The Department of Biology was one of the first departments formed in the College of Science at its establishment in 1986. The department started by offering a B.Sc. degree in Biology, later this was considered old-fashioned and out-dated and does not satisfy the current advances in the field. It was therefore decided to replace the old B.Sc. in Biology with two B.Sc. degree plans, so currently the department offers a B.Sc. degree in two disciplines of Biological Sciences: B.Sc. in Biotechnology and B.Sc. in Environmental Biology. The department also offers two M.Sc. degrees; M.Sc. in Biology and M.Sc degree in Environmental Science, to which other departments at SQU contribute. The department also offers PhD degree in Biology which is basically a research programme in one of the fields of Biological Sciences.
Besides teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, the department also offers service courses to students from the Colleges of Agriculture, Education and Medicine and continues to provide leadership in biological research in the Sultanate.
The department offers a range of course from basic biology courses intended as general courses for non-specialized students to advanced specialized courses in various biology disciplines. The department has several state-of-the-art student and research laboratories.
The Department of Biology is committed to teaching modern biological sciences as well as to carrying out quality research. The faculty members and supporting technical staff are trained in various disciplines of biology, with emphasis on experimental and environmental biology.
Upon successful completion of their degrees, undergraduate and graduate students from the Department of Biology continue to serve Oman by working in either the public or private sectors.
Heads of Department of Biology, Chronological Listing
Prof Michael Delany 1986 – 1987
Prof Charles HilaryFry 1987 – 1993
Prof Reginald Victor 1993 – 2000
Dr Derek Roberts 2000 – 2002
Prof Abdelkadir Elshafie 2002 – 2006
Prof Saif Al Bahry 2006 – 2010
Dr Elsadig Eltayeb 2010 – 2016
Dr Aisha Al Khayat Al Shehi 2016 – 2022
Prof. Raeid Abed 2022- Date