Mar 28, 2024  
2021-2022 University Catalog 
    
2021-2022 University Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Science Education - Biology Concentration, BS


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About the Program

A College of Science degree in Science Education prepares future science teachers for certification at the middle and high school level. Students customize their focus by selecting a major area of study in biology, chemistry, physics, or earth and space science within an interdisciplinary science framework. The Science Education degree ensures students are thoroughly educated in their content discipline and modern theories of learning and education. Graduates are in high demand as STEM education and careers continue to grow in demand.

Science Education Major Change (CODO) Requirements  

Degree Requirements


124 Credits Required

Curriculum and Degree Requirements for College of Science


A College of Science degree is conferred when a student successfully completes all requirements in their degree program.  Students will complete coursework or approved experiential learning activities to meet the following three degree components:

  1. Major
  2. Science Core Curriculum
  3. Electives

Students may use any of the following options to meet College of Science degree requirements:

  • Purdue Coursework
  • AP, IB, and CLEP credit.  The use of AP and IB coursework varies between College of Science degree plans.
  • Transfer Credit. Students should consult the Admissions Transfer Credit Resource page for all available transfer options.

College of Science degree programs vary widely in their approval and use of the proceeding options and thus students are strongly encouraged to work closely with their academic advisors and to regularly consult their MyPurduePlan to view the use of each option in their degree plan. 

Most College of Science degree programs contain elective credits students may use to pursue courses that relate to their interests or which support their major area of study. The elective area of a degree plan may also be used to complete minors, second majors and certificates such as the Entrepreneurial Certificate. With the exception of courses on the No Count List, any Purdue course may be used to meet the elective area of a student’s degree plan.

College of Science Core Requirements

All Students starting Purdue University Fall semester, 2007 or later are required to pursue the 2007 Science Core curriculum.

The College of Science Core Curriculum requires the completion of approved coursework and/or experiential learning opportunities in the following academic areas:

Earning Core Curricular Requirements through Experience

Students may meet selected core curriculum requirements through approved experiential learning opportunities. Interested students should contact their academic advisor for more information on this option and incorporating experiential learning into their four-year program of study. For more information on earning requirements through experience, please click here.

Departmental/Program Major Courses


Overall GPA for Biology Concentration courses with the Departmental/Program Major Courses must be 2.50 or greater. This includes all courses under the Science Education Core plus all courses in the Biology Concentration.

Required Science Education Core Courses (24-30 credits)


Overall GPA for Biology Concentration courses with the Departmental/Program Major Courses must be ≥  2.50.  This includes all courses under the Science Education Core plus all courses in the Biology Concentration.

Required Chemistry Course (4-5 credits)


Biology students must take CHM 12901; Chemistry, Earth/Space, and Physics students choose CHM 11500 or CHM 12500.

Required Computing Option (3-4 credits)


Choose one available for your concentration.

Required Calculus Courses (6-10 credits)


Choose one sequence available for your concentration. (satisfies Quantitative Reasoning for core)

Required Physics Courses (8 credits)


Choose one sequence available for your concentration. (satisfies Science for core)

Required Statistics Course (3 credits)


Choose one available for your concentration.

Biology Concentration (37 credits)


Overall GPA for Biology Concentration courses with the Departmental/Program Major Courses must be ≥  2.50.  This includes all courses under the Science Education Core plus all courses in the Biology Concentration.

Organic Chemistry (8 credits)


Biology Selectives (10 credits)


Elect ten (10) hours of upper division biology courses

  • One Intermediate Biology Selective
  • At least one Group A Selective
  • At least one Group B Selective
  • Satisfy the Base Laboratory requirement
  • At least one 50000-level course from Group A Selectives or Group B Selectives.
  • Overlap (Intermediate Selective, A, B, 500, Lab) is allowed, but 10 credits must still be earned.
  • Research (49400 or 49900 - maximum of 2 credits), BIOL 36701 Principles of Development Lab, and BIOL 44100 Senior Seminar in Genetics, will count toward the 10 credit requirement, but will not satisfy the Group A, Group B, or laboratory requirement.
Group A Selective

Lab Requirement

Each student will select an option from the Required Course list. Students must also satisfy Objectives A and B below, which can be met by courses, research, or a combination of the two.

  • BIOL research (49400 or 49900) can be used to satisfy Objectives A and/or B below. The Research Mentor must approve research to meet one or both objectives. Consult with your academic advisor for the forms used to obtain Research Mentor approval for each objective.
  • A minimum of four credits of BIOL 49400 or 49900 must be earned in addition to research director approval. 
  • Students who complete a Biology Honors Thesis automatically meet Objectives A and B.
Objective A - Research planning, literature review, writing

All students must meet Objective A with research, or take one of the following courses.

Objective B - Analysis, simulation, and presentation

All students must meet Objective B with research, or take one of the following courses.

Educational Program Course Requirements (43-44 credits)


All Professional Education courses taken must be at a C- or better with a GPA greater than or equal to 3.0.

Other Departmental /Program Course Requirements (9-21 credits)


COLLEGE OF SCIENCE CORE REQUIREMENTS


^ - Labeled as a Science Core Selection in the four year plan of study

* - Requirement may be met with a zero credit experiential learning option. See your advisor for more information.

Composition & Presentation


First-Year Composition

Met with EDCI 20500 . (satisfies Written Communication and Information Literacy for core)

Technical Writing And Presentation* (0-6 credits)

Choose one or two from this list ; COM 21700 is strongly recommended to satisfy Oral Communication for core.

Computing


Met with required major coursework.

Cultural Diversity (Language & Culture)^* (0-6 credits)


Choose courses from this list  to fulfill each Option below (select courses COULD satisfy Humanities for core).

  • Language & Culture Option I - Met with EDCI 28500  
  • Language & Culture Option II
  • Language & Culture Option III

General Education^ (6 credits)


Choose courses from this list  to fulfill each Option below (select courses COULD satisfy Behavioral/Social Science for core).

  • General Education Option I - met with EDPS 23500 
  • General Education Option II
  • General Education Option III

Great Issues In Science (3 credits)


Choose one from this list .

Laboratory Science


Met with required major coursework.

Mathematics


Met with required major coursework.

Multidisciplinary Experience


Met with EDCI 42100  in major.

Statistics


Met with required major coursework.

Team-Building and Collaboration


Met with EDCI 49800  in major.

Electives (0-11 credits)


University Requirements


University Core Requirements


For a complete listing of University Core Course Selectives, visit the Provost’s Website.
  • Human Cultures: Behavioral/Social Science (BSS)
  • Human Cultures: Humanities (HUM)
  • Information Literacy (IL)
  • Oral Communication (OC)
  • Quantitative Reasoning (QR)
  • Science #1 (SCI)
  • Science #2 (SCI)
  • Science, Technology, and Society (STS)
  • Written Communication (WC)

Civics Literacy Proficiency Requirement:


The Civics Literacy Proficiency activities are designed to develop civic knowledge of Purdue students in an effort to graduate a more informed citizenry.

Students will complete the Proficiency by passing a test of civic knowledge, and completing one of three paths:

  • Attending six approved civics-related events and completing an assessment for each; or
  • Completing 12 podcasts created by the Purdue Center for C-SPAN Scholarship and Engagement that use C-SPAN material and completing an assessment for each; or
  • Earning a passing grade for one of these approved courses (or transferring in approved AP or departmental credit in lieu of taking a course)

For more information visit the Civics Literacy Proficiency website.



Prerequisite Information:


For current pre-requisites for courses, click here.


Program Requirements


16-18 Credits


16-18 Credits


15 Credits


16 Credits


Fall 3rd Year


17-18 Credits


15-17 Credits


Fall 4th Year


17-19 Credits


12 Credits


Notes


Note:  This degree is intended to give students many options.  Students need to consult with a College of Science Academic Advisor regarding requirements.

2.0 average in BIOL courses required to graduate.

2.5 average in Biology concentration courses required to graduate

3.0 average in Professional Education courses  (No grade below a C-)

College of Science Pass/No Pass Option Policy


  • Only free electives and courses at the 50000-level general education requirement may be taken under the pass/not-pass option. 
  • The pass/not-pass grade mode may be entered for courses which are not required by a student’s major(s), minor(s) or science core curriculum.
  • Grade mode Passing is equivalent to at a minimum grade of C- had a letter grade been awarded.
  • Students may elect to use the pass/not-pass option for no more than 20% of the 124/120 credit requirement for graduation and for no more than two courses per academic year (Fall-Summer).
  • The pass/not-pass option cannot be elected for a course that has already been completed with a letter grade. University Regulation.
  • Students may take elective credit while abroad using the P/NP mode.  In the case of universities which only post P/NP, the University will apply a calculation process to determine a letter grade.
  • Department of Languages and Cultures P/NP policy and Language Placement results. Students must take advanced coursework for a letter grade to receive credit for lower-level language courses.

World Language Courses


World Language proficiency requirements vary by program. The following list is inclusive of all world languages PWL offers for credit; for acceptable languages and proficiency levels, see your advisor.

ASL-American Sign Language ARAB-Arabic CHNS-Chinese FR-French
GER-German GREK-Greek (Ancient) HEBR-Hebrew (Biblical) HEBR-Hebrew (modern)
ITAL-Italian JPNS-Japanese KOR-Korean LATN-Latin
PTGS-Portuguese RUSS-Russian SPAN-Spanish  

 

 
 
 

 

 

Critical Course


The ♦ course is considered critical.

In alignment with the Degree Map Guidance for Indiana’s Public Colleges and Universities, published by the Commission for Higher Education (pursuant to HEA 1348-2013), a Critical Course is identified as “one that a student must be able to pass to persist and succeed in a particular major.  Students who want to be nurses, for example, should know that they are expected to be proficient in courses like biology in order to be successful.  These would be identified by the institutions for each degree program”. 

Disclaimer


The student is ultimately responsible for knowing and completing all degree requirements.

The myPurduePlan powered by DegreeWorks is the knowledge source for specific requirements and completion.

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