Science
Award: Associate of Science Degree
Major: Science
Additional Program Information: https://www.brcc.edu/academics/programs/science/
The A.S. degree program in Science is designed to prepare students to transfer to four-year institutions and pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in an area of natural or physical sciences, or mathematics. This degree is intended for students who wish to continue their studies in the fields of Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Mathematics, or Physics, and may also be appropriate for students seeking to complete requirements for Pre-medical, Pre-veterinary, or Pre-dentistry curricula. Students who wish to transfer in the areas of Computer Science or Engineering should consult the related specializations under the AS-Science in these fields. The list of recommended transfer majors that fall under this award is not exclusive, and students should carefully consider the requirements to their intended four-year institution to determine if the AS-Science provides the most appropriate plan of study.
Nearly all four-year colleges and universities in Virginia, as well as some private institutions in the state, now abide by the Virginia State Policy on Transfer. The policy states that students who complete the Blue Ridge Community College A.S. degree in Science will have met all lower division general education requirements at participating institutions. The policy does not guarantee admission to these institutions nor does it imply that each individual community college course will transfer. A copy of the Virginia State Policy on Transfer and additional information on articulation agreements with Virginia four-year colleges and universities is available in the Transfer Advising Center.
The suggested curriculum and list of courses that follows includes the highest level college-transfer courses available at BRCC and is designed to allow students to transfer to their senior institution with the highest standing possible in their intended major. Considering the number of institutions and majors that can be chosen, it is not feasible to offer a curriculum that satisfies the needs of all. The degree sequencing shown below assumes an initial placement into MTH 263. Students who do not have credit for MTH 161/MTH 162 or MTH 167 should work with an advisor to determine the prerequisite coursework needed given their mathematics background.
For choices within Required General Education and Approved Elective Courses, it is strongly recommended that all students contact the institution(s) to which they wish to transfer and verify which courses will be best for their specific major and specialization. Students should request a community college transfer guide directly from the college or university in which they plan to enroll or consult that institution’s website. The Academic Advising link on the BRCC website has very useful academic advising guides for the most popular transfer majors. Students may consult this guide to assist them in planning which courses to enroll in if they plan to transfer to a specific major.
Curriculum
First Semester | Credit Hours | |
---|---|---|
ENG 111 | College Composition I | 3 |
SDV 101 or SDV 100 | Orientation (For STEM Transfer Students) or College Success Skills | 1 |
MTH 263 | Calculus I | 4 |
Science with Laboratory Elective | 4 | |
History Elective 1 | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 15 | |
Second Semester | ||
ENG 112 | College Composition II | 3 |
Social and Behavioral Science Elective 1 | 3 | |
Select one of the following: | 4 | |
Calculus II | ||
Statistics I (and Mathematics Elective) 2 | ||
Science with Laboratory Elective | 4 | |
Credit Hours | 14 | |
Third Semester | ||
Approved AS Science Electives 3 | 12 | |
CST 100 or CST 110 | Principles of Public Speaking or Introduction to Human Communication | 3 |
Credit Hours | 15 | |
Fourth Semester | ||
Approved AS Science Electives 3 | 8 | |
Literature/Humanities/Arts Elective 4 | 6 | |
History or Social Science and Behavioral Science Elective 1 | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 17 | |
Total Credit Hours | 61 |
- 1
Minimum of nine credits required in History and Social and Behavioral Science electives, of which three credits must be History, three credits must be a Social or Behavioral Science, and three credits can be either. Students completing the AS-Science Engineering Specialization complete 3 credits of History, 3 credits of Social and Behavioral Science, and are not required to take an additional 3 credits of either.
- 2
Students taking 3 credit MTH 245 must also take an additional one credit in Mathematics electives listed under Approved AS Science Elective Courses.
- 3
The remaining 20 credits of Mathematics and Natural Science electives may be chosen from the Approved Elective Courses for the AS Degree in Science of the current catalog. Requirements of four-year institutions may vary. Students should consult an academic advisor or their faculty advisor to select electives and certain required courses that will satisfy baccalaureate major requirements. A student who wishes to teach science or mathematics at the high school level typically completes a four-year degree in a science or mathematics major and enrolls in additional education courses. Students within the AS who intend to teach may wish to use EDU 200 as one of their electives in addition to or instead of a major elective in their field, depending on the recommendations of their intended four-year program.
- 4
Each of the 2 courses must be from different categories.
Code | Title | Credit Hours |
---|---|---|
BIO 101 | General Biology I | 4 |
BIO 102 | General Biology II | 4 |
BIO 141 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | 4 |
BIO 142 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | 4 |
BIO 205 | General Microbiology | 4 |
CHM 111 | General Chemistry I | 4 |
CHM 112 | General Chemistry II | 4 |
CSC 110 | Principles of Computer Science | 3 |
CSC 221 | Introduction to Problem Solving and Programming | 3 |
EDU 200 | Introduction to Teaching as a Profession | 3 |
EGR 121 | Foundations of Engineering | 2 |
EGR 122 | Engineering Design | 3 |
EGR 206 | Engineering Economics | 3 |
GOL 105 | Physical Geology | 4 |
GOL 110 | Earth Science | 4 |
MTH 161 | Precalculus I a | 3 |
MTH 162 | Precalculus II a | 3 |
MTH 167 | Precalculus with Trigonometry a | 5 |
MTH 245 | Statistics I | 3 |
MTH 263 | Calculus I | 4 |
MTH 264 | Calculus II | 4 |
MTH 265 | Calculus III | 4 |
MTH 266 | Linear Algebra | 3 |
MTH 267 | Differential Equations | 3 |
MTH 288 | Discrete Mathematics | 3 |
PHY 201 | General College Physics I | 4 |
PHY 202 | General College Physics II | 4 |
PHY 241 | University Physics I | 4 |
PHY 242 | University Physics II | 4 |