The Higher Teacher-Training Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences was established in Plovdiv on 1st July 1961 with the Edict 264 of the Presidium of the National Assembly. This marked the beginning of the existence and functioning of the most important Higher Education institution in Plovdiv and Southern Bulgaria. The Institute was established for teacher-training in four disciplines – Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology.
Thus, in 1961, the future Faculty of Biology at the Plovdiv University started its history and development. The first departments in Biology were founded at the time: General Biology (1961), led by Prof. Zh. Lambrev; Botany (1962), headed by Prof. D. Vodenicharov; Geology (1962), headed by Prof. Z. Bonev (later it became part of General Biology); Zoology (1963), led by Prof. P. Angelov, and Anatomy and Human Physiology (1963), headed by Prof. B. Polnarev.
In 1974, the Department of Plant Physiology was established, headed by Assoc. Prof. Kimenov; Biochemistry and Microbiology, headed by Assoc. Prof. N. Yanev – in 1975, and in 1989 – Ecology and Nature Preservation, led by Professor G. Bachvarov. In 1990, a separate department of Methods of Biology Teaching, headed by Assoc. Prof. R. Angelova, was set up.
In 1972, the Higher Teacher-Training Institute was transformed into the Plovdiv University “Paisii Hilendarski”, comprising three faculties: Mathematics (1970), Physics, and Chemistry-Biology (1974). The first-degree programs of the Chemistry-Biological Faculty were in Biology and Chemistry.
The Faculty of Biology has existed as a separate entity since 1990, and its first dean was Prof. Dr. Dimitar Vodenicharov. From 1994 to 1999, Dean of the Faculty was Prof. DSc. Blagoi Gruev, from 1999 to 2007 – Assoc. Prof. Dr. Atanas Donev, from 2007 to 2015 – Prof. Dr. Rumen Mladenov, and since 2015 the faculty has been headed by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sonya Kostadinova Trifonova.
The training of students in the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology was initially implemented in three speciality programs – in Biology, Chemistry and in the so-called “Sixth Department” (Biology and Chemistry in a three-year course of study). Since the 1984/1985 academic year the faculty had two biological specialty programs – University Biology, Chemistry and Biology teacher training. In 1991, the degree program in Ecology and Environmental Protection was introduced.
After 2000, the programs in Molecular Biology (2001), Bioinformatics (2005), Medical Biology (2009), Ecology of biotech industries (2009), Biology and Physics (2010), and Biology and English were set up.
Over the years, highly qualified lecturers, researchers and specialists have worked at the Faculty of Biology.