It depends on your school and even on the particular professors you happen to get while in school. But generally the answer is yes, you’ll have to do a lot of writing as a biology major.

Lab reports in college are typically expected to be succinct, but informative and well researched. I tell my students that EVERY word counts and that there should be **no** words in the paper that don’t have to be there. Bio profs will also grade the quality of your writing to some degree (e.g., we’ll mark off points for poor grammar, etc.).

You know, in my opinion, you should devote as much time as you possibly can to that English Comp class. In life, people will judge you by how well you write. Your professors certainly do so with assignments, and the same will be true when you have a job (reports, proposals, etc.). Even applying for a decent job requires that you be able to write well.

So go see your comp instructor and ask for his or her help if you need to because being able to communicate in writing is really critical to your future, no matter what you end-up doing for a living. Good luck!

You do have to write up lab reports and I have had to write up actual papers for higher level classes. It’s really not that bad for me. The papers cannot contain one word or phrase that doesn’t have to be there. Details are important but it’s not like writing a story where you embellish things. You should write enough so that someone reading your paper could do your experiment exactly. When you’re in general chemistry, for example, usually all you have to write is a lab report that answers questions that you’re asked. The higher level classes require more writing. It’s not like an English class, but you do have to write. I even write for my math classes. You can’t really escape writing so work on it now. It will always help you in the long run.