| The Biology:Premedical Science concentration is designed for students preparing for medical or dental school and includes courses required or recommended by the professional schools but also maintains enough breadth in coursework to be considered a biology degree. Medical and dental schools require applicants to have completed a bachelors degree, but they do not specify a particular major. Although a pre-medical or pre-dental student may choose any major, most students choose biology or chemistry as these majors build in most of the professional school requirements and usually best prepare the student for the medical college admission test (MCAT) or dental admission test (DAT). |
| | Courses | Credit | Notes |
|---|
| General Education Requirements |
| | English Composition | ENG 101 and ENG 102 or 103 | 6 | Two semesters of English composition |
| | Communication Studies | COM 101 or 202 | 3 | Take either Public Speaking or Interpersonal Communications. |
| | Literature and Fine Arts | 2 literature courses plus one from: ART 101, 212, 401, 402, or 403; MUS 114 or 115; or THE 225 | 9 | Most students choose ENG 203/204 for literature. For fine arts, choose an art, music, or theater course from those listed. (See Bulletin for course descriptions) |
| | History | Choose any two from: HIS 101, 102, 201, or 202. | 6 | History of civilization (101/102) or United States history (201/202) |
| | Mathematics | (see next section) | | Satisfied by mathematics taken for Special Degree Requirements |
| | Perspectives on Society | PSY 101 plus two from:ANT 101, ECO 210 or 211, GEO 201 or 303, PHI 201, PSC 103 or 201, SOC 101 | 9 | General psychology plus two of the listed courses from the fields of anthropology, economics, geography, philosophy, or sociology. (See Bulletin for course descriptions) |
| | Personal Development | (see next section) | | Satisfied by foreign language taken for special degree requirements |
| | Writing Proficiency | ENG 300 or 301 or a passing score on the CAAP exam | 0-3 | Take the Writing Proficiency Exam (ENG 300) after taking both semesters of English composition and one semester of literature. If you don't pass, you must take ENG 301. This requirement may also be satisfied by a score of 3 or higher on the CAAP exam. |
| | | | 33-36 |
| Special Degree Requirements |
| | Foreign Language | SPA 101, 102 or FRE 101, 102 or GER 101, 102 | 6 | Two semesters of Spanish, French, or German. May be satisfied with 6 hours at the 200 level if two years of language were taken in high school. (Also satisfies general education personal development requirement) |
| | Mathematics | MAT 104/105 or MAT 106 plus MAT 205, 300, or PSY 200 | 6-11 | There are two requirements here: (1) college algebra and trigonometry, or precalculus; and (2) one semester of calculus or a statistics course. (NOTE: UMMC dental school REQUIRES statistics.) |
| | Chemistry | CHE 101, 102, 103, 104 | 8-10 | First and second semesters of general chemistry with laboratories |
| | | | 20-27 |
| Major Requirements |
| | Biology Core | BIO 100, 101, 300, 301, 328 | 20 | Principles of biology I and II, cell biology, ecology, and genetics. |
| | 200 or 300-level elective | BIO 217, 221, 312, 321, 336, 340, 330, 331, 343 | 3-4 | Choose one of the courses listed. |
| | 400-level electives | Choose any three BIO courses at the 400-level with the exception of BIO 470, 492, and 499 | 9-12 | Any three 400-level biology courses except internship, special topics, or readings in biology. Your advisor will help you choose courses specific to your interests and goals. |
| | BIO electives | Choose any two BIO courses except those designated as "not for biology major credit." | 6-8 | Any two biology courses except those designated for non-science majors. Your advisor will help you choose courses specific to your interests and goals. |
| | Advanced chemistry | CHE 319, 320, 321, 322, and 440 | 12-14 | Two semesters of organic chemistry plus biochemistry |
| | Physics | PHY 221/233 and 222/234 | 8 | Two semesters of physics for the life sciences with laboratories |
| | | | 58-66 |
| Recommended electives |
| | Advisor recommendations | Consult your advisor | | Work with your advisor to choose courses related to your interests, your career goals, and preparation for any professional or graduate schools you might be considering. You must take enough electives to bring your total credit to at least 124. See additional requirements below. |
| | | | |
| Enrollment in upper-level BIO courses (BIO 200 and above) requires that you have "Full Admission" status. You have full admission status if you have completed BIO 100, 101, and CHE 101, 102, 103, and 104 with no grades below C. Consult the Bulletin or the Division of Biological and Physical Sciences web site, or see your advisor for more information. |
| A baccalaureate degree from Delta State requires a minimum of 124 credit hours. Of that 124 hours, at least 62 must be taken at a senior college, at least 31 must be taken at DSU, and at least 40 must be 300- or 400-level courses. Courses taken at 2-year schools cannot be counted at the 300- or 400-level. 24 of the last 30 hours must be taken at DSU. |
| This program leads to a B.S. degree with a major in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. |
| Advanced (junior-, senior-level) science courses must be taken at a senior college. UMMC does not accept credit for online courses (telecourses) to satisfy any of the mathematics or science prerequisites. |
| Degree requirements are revised frequently. This list is a summary based on the current DSU Bulletin. Consult the Bulletin for complete details on all requirements for graduation. You should follow the requirements stated in the issue of the Bulletin that was current for the semester you first enrolled at DSU. You may elect to follow a more recent Bulletin issue if you wish. |
| IMPORTANT: Application to health professional schools is very competitive. Completion of the minimum requirements will not ensure admission. Admission decisions are based on policies established by the professional school's faculty and admission committee. Successful applicants typically have GPAs and other qualifications well in excess of stated minimums. Talk to your advisor for more information on what is realistically needed to have a good chance of getting into your desired professional school. |
