Apr 18, 2024  
2009-2010 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2009-2010 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Bioenergy Concentration, BS in Plant Sciences (Plant Sciences Major)


Requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Plant Sciences • Plant Sciences Major • Bioenergy Concentration


 
The bioenergy concentration is intended for students who are interested in pursuing careers in the quickly-expanding biofuels and bioenergy fields. The graduate will have the background and internship experience to enter directly into  the bioenergy workforce. The bioenergy industry primarily is concerned with converting plant feedstocks into liquid fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel. The great resurgence of industry and public support for research and development in this field will require a modern and multidisciplinary workforce. The student will have the opportunity to explore branch disciplines of bioenergy such as agronomy, biotechnology, business and economics, chemistry, engineering or  microbiology. In addition, the need for scholars and scientists with advanced degrees (MS and PhD) will also grow exponentially in bioenergy as billions of dollars of federal funds is channeled towards new bioenergy solutions. The  bachelor’s degree will also prepare students for entrance into graduate programs. A minimum grade point average of 2.25 is required for all plant sciences courses taken in the major.
   

First Year

Hours Credit

1AGNR 100  or FYRS 101  1
BIOL 111 *, BIOL 112 * 8
CHEM 120 * and CHEM 130 * 8
ENGL 101 *, ENGL 102 * 6
PLSC 250  3
2, 3Quantitative Reasoning Electives* 6
   

Second Year

 
AGNR 290  3
3Arts and Humanities Electives* 6
CMST 210 * or CMST 240 * 3
3Cultures and Civilizations Elective* 3
4Economics Elective* 3-4
ESS 210  4
3, 4Social Sciences Elective* 3
6Technical Electives 5-6
   

Third Year

 
AGEC 212  3
BCMB 321  4
3Cultures and Civilizations Elective* 3
5AGEE 440 * or ENGL 295 * or ENGL 360 * or JREM 201 * 3
PLSC 353 , PLSC 435  5
6Technical Electives 13
   

Third Year Summer

 
PLSC 492  3
   

Fourth Year

 
2Specialty Area 9-11
ESS 334  3
PLSC 331 , PLSC 465 , PLSC 475 , PLSC 497  9
6Technical Electives 3
Unrestricted Electives 4-6
   
 

Total 124

   
* Meets University General Education Requirement .
1 Required of freshmen only; requirement is waived for transfer students.
2 Choose one Specialty Area (see below). Select Quantitative Reasoning Electives General Education courses based on prerequisites for courses in the Specialty Area.
3 Choose from the University General Education list . Selection should be made in conference with academic advisor.
4 ECON 201  (4) Principles of Economics satisfies the University General Education-Social Science requirement and the major requirement for economics. If the student transfers ECON LD for 3 credits, it will satisfy the major requirement for economics but will not satisfy the General Education-Social Science requirement. In these cases, the student should take two courses from the approved General Education-Social Sciences list.
5 Meets the University General Education Requirement for Communicating through Writing (WC).
6 Any Biochemistry, Cellular, and Molecular Biology; any Biosystems Engineering; any Biosystems Engineering Technology; Chemistry; Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Management; Marketing; Microbiology; Physics; Spanish; Statistics; 200-level and above from Biology, Business Administration; 300-level and above from Agricultural Economics, Environmental and Soil Science, Forestry, Financial Management, Plant Sciences; ACCT 200 ; ENGL 360 *; FINC 300 ; JREM 450 , JREM 451 , JREM 456 ; MSE 101 , MSE 201 ; PBRL 270 ; RUSO 380 .

 

Specialty Areas

Specialty electives are grouped into specialty areas. Students must complete one specialty area, consisting of three courses (9-11 credit hours). Students wishing to expand on a specialty or complete more than one specialty area are welcome to do so, using Technical Electives for this purpose. A course may be counted in one specialty area only and may not be used to fulfill any other elective requirement. Check the course descriptions for any prerequisites required for these courses.

Agronomy

PLSC 457 ; and select 6 hours from Environmental and Soil Sciences 300-level and above.

Biosystems Engineering

BSE 231 ; BSET 326 , BSET 432 , BSET 434 , BSET 462 .

Biotechnology

BIOL 240 ; PLSC 454  or BCMB 404 ; BCMB 401  or MICR 210 .

Business

ACCT 200 ; AGEC 355 , AGEC 470 ; BUAD 201 , MARK 300 ; STAT 201 .

Chemistry

CHEM 230  or CHEM 310 ; CHEM 350 , CHEM 360 , CHEM 369 ; FDST 410 , FDST 419 .

Forestry and Wildlife

200-level and above from Forestry; 200-level and above from Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries.

Microbiology

MICR 210  and above; FDST 420 , FDST 429 .