Department of Genetics

Undergraduate

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OVERVIEW OF BSC DEGREE
Undergraduate

Genetics forms the foundation for understanding the intricate blueprint of life, enabling breakthroughs in health, agriculture, and biodiversity conservation. Our undergraduate program provides students with the opportunity to explore the genetic principles that govern living organisms and shape the world we live in.

With a curriculum designed to tackle some of the most critical global challenges, students acquire a strong foundation in genetic. They learn how genetics can enhance human health, improve crop resilience, and protect biodiversity. Combining theoretical knowledge with hands-on experience, the program equips students with the skills and expertise needed to contribute to scientific innovation, sustainable development, and environmental conservation.

Whether your goal is to advance medical research, transform agricultural systems, or protect endangered species, a degree in genetics opens the door to a world of possibilities. This program offers more than just education = it empowers you to play a pivotal role in shaping a better future through the power of genetic science.

BSc progamme

Download the full BSc programme

Modules

Biology

Module Name Credits Module Description
Biology 124 16
Cell Biology
Biology 154 8
Functional Biology

Biometry

Module Name Credits Module Description
Biometry 212 8
Introductory Biometry
Biometry 242 8
Application in Biometry

Genetics

Module Name Credits Module Description
Genetics 214 16
Introductory Genetics – Principle of Heredity
Genetics 244 16
Introductory Molecular Biology
Genetics 314 16
Genomes and Genome Analysis
Genetics 324 16
Molecular Population Genetics
Genetics 344 16
Advanced Topics in Molecular Genetics
Genetics 354 16
Quantitative Genetics
Module Name Credits Module Description
Biotechnology 215 16
Molecular Techniques
Biotechnology 245 8
Genetics Data Analysis
Biotechnology 315 8
Bioinformatics
Biotechnology 345 8
Scientific and Proposals Writing

Plant breeding

Module Name Credits Module Description
Genetics 414 16
Plant breeding techniques

My Lecturers

My lecturers

Module code Module name Module number Module coordinator Other Lecturers
Cell Biology; 124 Dr Marlon le Roux Ms Mandi Engelbrecht
11061 Introductory Biometrics 212 Mr Willem Botes Ms Cecile Bester
11061 Applications in Biometrics 242 Ms Cecile Bester Mr Willem Botes
13285 Introductory Genetics 214 Dr Nathan McGregor Dr Brendon Pearce,
Mr Michael Wolf,
Ms Mandi Engelbrecht(Pracs)
13285 Introductory Microbial Biotechnology 215 Prof James Lloyd Florian Bauwer,
Trudy Jansen (Micro),
Dawievan Niekerk
13285 Introductory Molecular Biology 244 Dr Barbara van Asch Prof Johan Burger,
Dr Manuela Campa,
Ms Mandi Engelbrecht(Pracs)
13285 Introductory Plant and Animal Biotechnology 245 Dr Christell vd Vyver Prof James Lloyd,
Lindy Rose
13285 Genomes and Genetic Analysis 314 Prof Anna-Maria Oberholster Prof Zander Myburg,
Dr Francois Burger
13285 Advanced biotechnology 315 Dr Paul Hills Florian Bauwer,
Melani Vivier,
Dr Bianca Loedolff
13285 Molecular Population Genetics 324 Prof Aletta vd Merwe Mr Michael Wolf(Pracs)
13285 Advanced Topics in Molecular Genetics 344 Prof Johan Burger Dr Justin Lashbrooke,
Dr Brendon Pearce
13285 Economic and legal aspects of biology 345 Dr Shaun Peters External Contractors
13285 Quantitative Genetics 354 Prof Clint Rhode Mr Michael Wolf (Pracs)
13285 Plant Breeding 414 Mrs Lezaan Hess

Contact us

Teaching & learning portfolio

Dr. Paul Hills
Laboratory: Plant Growth Promoting Substances Group, IPBB
Email: phills@sun.ac.za
Short Bio

Biology 124 – 16 credits
Cell Biology
Origin and early history of life. Cytology. Cell chemistry, biological membranes and cellular respiration. Fixation, transfer and expression of genetic information. Evolution.

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Biology 154 – 16 credits
Functional Biology
Plant anatomy and morphology; photosynthesis; water relations; transport in plants; plant mineral nutrition; growth and development; responses to the environment. Functional biology of animals. introduction to biotechnology.

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Biometry 212 – 8 credits
Introductory Biometry
Role of statistics in research; methods of tabulation and graphical representation of data; descriptive measures of locality, variation and association; the elementary principles of estimation, sampling, randomization, unbiasedness and distributions; simple linear and non-linear regression; calcualtion of standard errors; introduction to hypothesis testing; contingency tables and chi-square tests; tests for normality; F-test for homogeneity of variance. All data will be anlaysed using applicable software.

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Biometry 242 – 8 credits
Application in Biometry
Treatment and experimental design; efficiency of estimation; analysis of variance; hypothesis tests for means a​nd differences between means: F-test, t-test, Student’s LSD; confidence intervals; non-parametric tests; multiple linear regression. All data will be analysed using applicable software.

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Genetics 214 – 16 credits
Introductory Genetics – Principle of Heredity
Part I: Principles of Heredity
Molecular basis of genetic diversity and heredity; the cell cycle; mitosis and meiosis; chromosomes, genes and heredity; Mendelian genetics; linkage and crossing over of genes on a chromosome; linkage analysis and gene mapping; sexual reproduction and sex determining chromosomes; mutations that affect chromosome number and structure and their phenotypic effects.

 

Part II: Population Genetics
Introduction to population genetics; population diversity and genotype and allele frequencies; Hardy-Weinberg principle; quantitative genetics and heredity.

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Genetics 244 – 16 credits
Introductory Molecular Biology
The biology of the molecule of life. The structure of double-stranded DNA; the processes of replication and recombination of DNA; the deciphering and nature of the genetic code; the processes of transcription and translation; protein structure and function; the regulation of gene expression in prokaryotes and eukaryotes; DNA mutations; DNA repair and transposable elements; the construction and analysis of DNA clones; applications and ethics of recombinant DNA technology; introduction to bio-informatics.

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Genetics 314 – 16 credits
Genomes and Genome Analysis
The module focuses on the organisation, structure and functionality of genomes and covers the following aspects: genome structure, genome organisation, genome function and methods to study genomes. Chromosome structure and organisation are also studied. Other complementary topics include: Introductory Bioinformatics to study genomes; chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes; genome models; genetics of development.

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Genetics 324 – 16 credits
Molecular Population Genetics
The genetic structure and dynamics of populations; frequencies of genes and genotypes; genetic polymorphisms; random mating and the Hardy-Weinberg principle; factors that determine genetic change and genetic equilibrium: mutation, migration, selection and population size; linkage disequilibrium, heterozygosity in subdivided populations; genetic relationships between populations; implications for genetic identifications (DNA typing).

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Genetics 344 – 16 credits
Advanced Topics in Molecular Genetics

Various advanced topics are addressed in this module, which is designed to give you as a student an introduction to the newest and most exciting developments in molecular genetics and to particularly apply this knowledge through problem solving, analytical- and critical thinking. Topics include pharmacogenomics and personalised medicine, advanced plant molecular genetics and precision breeding, genetic engineering and genome editing, and an introduction to viruses.

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Genetics 354 – 16 credits
Quantitative Genetics
Various advanced topics are addressed in this module and include: DNA markers and applications in mapping of genes involved with genetic diseases; diagnostic applications in human genetics; marker-assisted selection in plant and animal breeding; DNA fingerprinting and forensic science; applications from genome projects; personalised medicine and pharmacogenetics; epigenomics; genetic modification; cancer and apoptosis; gene therapy; genetics of behavioural traits.

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Biotechnology 215 – 16 credits
Introductory Microbial Biotechnology
Biotechnology is an applied science, aimed at utilising biological systems and organisms. Biotechnologists therefore use their knowledge of biological systems to generate products or deliver services. This module introduces the student to microbial biotechnology by focussing on the most important aspects of first- and second-generation microbial biotechnology. Themes that will be discussed include bioprospecting, fermentation and bioreactors, microbial metabolic pathways for respiration and fermentation, production of baker’s yeast and single-cell protein, the beer- and wine making processes, production of bio-ethanol and the production of pharmaceutically important compounds and enzymes.

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Biotechnology 245 – 16 credits
Plant and Animal Biotechnology
This module follows on from the Genetics 215 module and introduces the student to first- and second-generation biotechnology in eukaryotic systems, including plants, animals and humans. First-generation biotechnology entails the use of organisms/ biological systems as they are, e.g. extracting pharmaceutical products from plants. In contrast, second-generation biotechnology focuses on more specialised techniques, e.g. in vitro propagation, mutagenesis and breeding. Themes that will be discussed include aquaculture, aquatic bioremediation, aquatic bioprocessing, embryogeny, assisted reproduction and embryo manipulation, cell and tissue culture for both plant and animal systems, micropropagation, and the identification, characterisation and production of valuable natural products and pharmaceuticals in plants.

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Biotechnology 315 – 16 credits
Advanced Biotechnology
This module focuses on the most important aspects of third-generation biotechnology. Third-generation biotechnology can also be described as molecular biotechnology and the themes covered include genetic fingerprinting and molecular forensics, molecular diagnostics, genetic engineering, gene therapy, bio-processing, metabolic engineering (integrated metabolism), bioinformatics and mathematical modelling of biological systems, applied “-omics” and nano-biotechnology.

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Biotechnology 345 – 16 credits
Economic and Legal Aspects of Biotechnology
This module is aimed at introducing the biotechnology student to the non-biological (non-natural science) aspects of biotechnology. Students will be introduced to concepts such as the generation and development of creative ideas, entrepreneurship, market research, feasibility studies, the generation of a business plan, financing, profitability, the South African legal system, intellectual property law, patents, plant breeders’ rights, trademarks and copyright, licensing agreements, regulatory measures and prerequisites in terms of research practice and GMOs, good laboratory practice, quality control and project management in a research environment.

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Genetics 414 – 16 credits
Plant breeding techniques
Plant breeding objectives; reproduction in plants; cell and tissue culture; breeding strategies for self- and cross-pollinating crops; the utilisation of hybrid vigour; mutation breeding; breeding for insect and disease resistance; variations in chromosome number and its exploitation in breeding programmes; plant breeders’ rights.

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Dr. Paul Hills

BSc (summa cum laude), BScHonours (cum laude), PhD (University of Natal)
Research Environment - Plant Biotechnology
Laboratory: Plant Growth Promoting Substances Group, IPBB
Teaching Courses: Biology 154; Genetics 315, Genetics 712
Email: phills@sun.ac.za
Short bio Dr Paul Hills’ research program focusses on the molecular physiology of plant growth, with the goal of identifying novel ways to enhance crop yield and productivity. Most of this research is applied and has an industry-based focus. Dr Hills is particularly interested in the role of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria and biostimulants in boosting plant growth and health, and has a strong interest in micropropagation and tissue culture. His research is interdisciplinary and includes several collaborations across the Stellenbosch campus. Dr Hills has a PhD in Botany from the University of Natal (Pietermaritzburg) and teaches advanced Biotechnology.
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