The last day to apply for the autumn courses and programmes this year was 19 April. The Bachelor's programme in Biology, which has 48 places, received exactly one first-choice applicant per place, which is the same as last year. The marine biology programme has only 12 places but received a total of 54 first-choice applicants, also the same as last year. The Bachelor's programme in Molecular Biology has 16 places this autumn, a decrease of 8 places compared to last year, but now received 28 first-choice applicants. This is an increase compared to 2021, when only 21 applied for the programme in the first place (and even fewer applied the year before).

When it comes to applications for courses, the picture is more diverse, but it is clear that distance courses are popular. Certainly there are many students who during the pandemic have become accustomed to distance learning and want to continue with it. Some examples are The Evolution, Genetics and Behaviour of the Dog 7.5 credits (an introductory evening course), Tropical Marine Biology 7.5 credits (a supplementary course at undergraduate level) and Ecosystem Analysis 4 credits (an advanced level course). These courses are entirely distance taught without any physical meetings and have all received high application numbers. The dog course is actually BIG's most sought-after course with a total of almost 400 applicants, half of which have the course as their first choice.

Courses with broad prerequisites and a focus on sustainable development also have many applicants. For other courses, there are no notable changes.

The dog course is BIG's most sought after course. The picture shows a Finnish Lapponian Dog. Photo: Margareta Ohné.