University Admissions - College of Arts and Sciences
Admission to the University is based on the University’s Undergraduate Admission Requirements that may be found by clicking on the following urls:
For Admission information specific to the College of Arts and Sciences, see the information at College of Arts and Sciences .
Progression Requirements - College of Arts and Sciences (CAS)
All students in the below listed programs must successfully complete the below science and math coursework without earning three (3) D and/or F grades. Students unable to successfully complete these courses within these prescribed parameters will be required to select a different major and will not be permitted to take any additional courses offered by the below Departments/Divisions. In addition, registration for all courses offered by these departments will be dependent on students meeting the prescribed parameters regardless of their major. Grade Forgiveness will NOT apply to the mandated requirement of changing majors.
Included Departments/Divisions:
- Effective Fall 2022: Department of Physics* and all other Departments/Divisions continued from Fall 2018.
- Effective Fall 2018: Division of Health Professions Advising; Department of Chemistry; Department of Molecular Biosciences; and Department of Integrative Biology.
Furthermore, any student who requests a change of major to one offered in the above identified departments will be required to meet these prescribed parameters as well as those criteria outlined in the Degree Progression Policy 10-505. Students who are able to complete a major in one of the above Departments/Divisions by earning fewer credit hours than required to complete any other major offered at USF may petition to request an exception to the CAS Sciences D/F Policy and should contact the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Advising Office (sdfx@usf.edu) for instructions.
*Students who are redirected from one of the above Departments/Divisions as a result of the CAS Sciences D/F Policy may pursue the following degrees offered by the Department of Physics: B.S. Physical Sciences and B.A. Physical Sciences.
Included courses:
Graduation Requirements - College of Arts and Sciences
Satisfactory completion of the following requirements:
- Students must complete all State and University level graduation requirements.
- Maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 in USF coursework. Note: Some Departments/program/major require a higher GPA. Students should refer to Department/program/major specific catalog requirements.
- The College may approve an exception when a student has successfully earned the minimum grade required for all courses applied in the major but does not have a major GPA of 2.0.
- Physical Education coursework is limited to two (2) semester hours.
- ROTC courses that are primarily physical training and field experiences will not be applied to College of Arts and Sciences degree programs. All other military Science coursework will apply, in particular, coursework utilized toward completing an established ROTC minor will be applied to the total hours toward degree.
- When earning a second degree, double major or concurrent degree, the Major Core and Major Elective/Concentration areas of the degree audit must not overlap for both degrees. All other areas of the degree audit may have overlapping credit hours applied.
- Maximum of 20 hours of S/U option. S/U contracts must be negotiated in writing within the first three (3) weeks of the term. None of the 20 credits may be taken in the student’s major unless S/U is the only grading option. Coursework fulfilling the General Education Core Curriculum Requirements and the State Communication Requirement (formerly known as Gordon Rule Writing) and State Computation Requirement (formerly known as Gordon Rule Math) may not be taken S/U.
- The Audit option is available only during the first 5 days of classes.
- Complete all major course requirements.
- College of Arts and Sciences students are expected to complete a minimum of 50% of their major and/or minor coursework in residence at USF. Some College of Arts and Sciences Departments/programs/majors have established additional major course hours to be taken in residency at USF. See the major or program section of the catalog for these credit-hour requirements.
Required Courses: (89 credit hours)
State Mandated Common Course Prerequisites - Medical Laboratory Sciences B.S. (37 credit hours)
Following Florida BOG Regulation 8.010, state mandated common course prerequisites are lower-division courses that are required for progression into the upper division of a particular baccalaureate degree program.
Transfer students should complete the State Mandated Common Course Prerequisites at the lower level prior to entering the university. If these courses are not taken at a Florida College System institution, they must be completed before the degree is granted. Successful completion of the common prerequisites alone does not guarantee a student admission into the degree program.
Unless stated otherwise, a grade of C- is the minimum acceptable grade in prerequisite courses.
- BSC X010C OR BSC X011C OR (BSC X010 AND BSC X010L) OR (BSC X011 AND BSC X011L) - 4 credit hours
- BSC X093C OR BSC X085C OR ZOO X733C OR (BSC X093 AND BSC X093L) OR (BSC X085 AND BSC X085L) OR (ZOO X733 AND ZOO X733L) OR (ZOO X731 AND ZOO X731L) - 4 credit hours
- BSC X094C OR BSC X086C OR PCB X703C OR (BSC X094 AND BSC X094L) OR (BSC X086 AND BSC X086L) OR (PCB X703 AND PCB X703L) OR (PCB X134 AND PCB X134L) - 4 credit hours
- CHM X045C OR (CHM X045 AND CHM X045L) - 4 credit hours
- CHM X046C OR (CHM X046 AND CHM X046L) - 4 credit hours
- CHM X210C OR (CHM X210 AND CHM X210L) - 5 credit hours
- CHM X211C OR (CHM X211 AND CHM X211L) - 5 credit hours
- MCB X013C OR MCB X020C OR MCB X010C OR (MCB X020 AND MCB X020L) OR (MCB X023 AND MCB X023L) OR (MCB X010 AND MCB X010L) - 4 credit hours
- STA X014 OR STA X023 OR STA X024 OR STA X321 - 3 credit hours
State Mathematics Pathway – Medical Laboratory Sciences B.S. (6 Credit Hours)*
The Medical Laboratory Sciences B.S. uses the Statistical Reasoning Mathematics Pathway with the following requirements:
Medical Laboratory Sciences Supporting Required Courses: 2 courses; 4 credit hours
Students choose one of two supporting course sequence options, based on the completed common course prerequisites. The two course sequence options are as follows.
The minimum acceptable grade in each Supporting Required Course is a grade of C-.
Note: The course sequence that will count toward the Supporting Required Courses requirement is based on which course (Cellular Processes or Biodiversity) the student took to meet the state mandated common prerequisite requirement. If the Cellular Processes sequence was taken to fulfill the state mandated common prerequisite requirement, the Biodiversity sequence will meet the Supporting Required Courses requirement. The opposite is true if the Biodiversity requirement was used to meet the state mandated common course requirement.
The following courses are supporting courses for this major. They are required for the major. The degree will not be awarded if these courses have not been taken by the end of the student’s final semester.
- Cellular Processes: 2 courses; 4 credit hours
2. Biodiversity: 2 courses; 4 credit hours
Major Core Courses: 8 courses; 19 credit hours
Clinical Training Courses: 8 courses; 30 hours
Upon successful completion of this curriculum and acceptance by one of the affiliated hospitals, the student will complete twelve (12) continuous months of training at that hospital. Hospital programs begin in July or early August each year and some hospitals also have programs beginning in January. During this clinical training, the student will continue to be registered as a full-time student at the University and will receive a total of 30 credit hours of coursework in the following courses, which will be taught at the hospital.
Additional Information - Medical Laboratory Sciences B.S.
GPA Requirements
Major GPA (All USF courses which are applied to major requirements): 2.0
General Education GPA (All USF courses which are applied to General Education requirements): 2.0
USF GPA: 2.0
Overall GPA 2.0
Grading Requirements
A grade of C- (1.67) or better to meet major course requirements unless specified elsewhere. Will vary by area. All courses in any chemistry major must be taken with letter grade (A, B, C, D, F, I), except those courses which are graded S/U only.
Note: Some USF courses have higher grade criteria to meet prerequisite knowledge necessary for progression into higher level courses.
Residency Requirements - College of Arts and Sciences
Department and College of Arts and Sciences Major Academic Residency Requirement - 50% of major must be completed at USF.
USF Academic Residency Requirement - 30 of the last 60 hours earned must be from USF.
Other Program Information
All courses required for admission to the clinical program must be completed prior to beginning the clinical year. These requirements include:
- A minimum of 90 semester hours (excluding physical education).
- All university Enhanced General Education requirements.
- State Communication Requirement (formerly known as Gordon Rule Writing) and State Computation Requirement (formerly known as Gordon Rule Math).
- All sciences and mathematics requirements, including common prerequisites and those specific to USF.
Note: Clinical Internship programs may have higher grade criteria to meet prerequisite knowledge necessary for admission.
Transfer Credit: It is strongly recommended that students transferring from community/state colleges to the University of South Florida complete whole sequences of chemistry courses, such as general and organic chemistry, before they transfer. Even though courses may carry the same common course number, topics covered may vary significantly from school to school.
Research Opportunities - College of Arts and Sciences
Undergraduate students in any degree program are able to participate in undergraduate research. Several options exist to show mentored undergraduate research activity on a student’s official transcript. Those who wish to enroll in an undergraduate research course should consult with their academic advisor to understand how the credit will apply towards the degree requirements. If no credit is needed, students may be eligible to enroll in the 0-credit IDS 4914 course. This course will not impact degree credits or GPA but will show on an official transcript and document the experience. The Office of High Impact Practices and Undergraduate Research is able to assist with further inquiries.
Advising Information - College of Arts and Sciences
Undergraduate Advising Information
The College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) Advising Team provides students with support to create timely graduation plans that will integrate both their academic and professional goals. Each of our undergraduate programs has dedicated professional advisors with specialized knowledge and understanding of the major requirements, course offerings, undergraduate research, and career opportunities in their field. Additionally, we have dedicated pre-health and prelaw advisors to help students prepare for admission to professional graduate programs.
CAS Academic Advisor Contact information can be found here: CAS Advisors
To schedule an advising appointment: Advising Appointments
Plans of Study - Medical Laboratory Sciences B.S.
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