Mar 28, 2024  
2018-2019 General Catalog 
    
2018-2019 General Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG–FOR INFORMATION ONLY]

Chemistry - Teacher Education Emphasis (B.S.)


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Program Summary

Chemistry, a central science, is an active discipline vital to human existence and essential to the understanding of biological, medical, industrial, economic, and environmental issues.

The Southern Utah University chemistry faculty (website) are committed to instilling an understanding of chemistry and its relevance through quality teaching, scholarly activities, and service. In a world that is becoming increasingly more technical and complex, providing chemical instruction with the depth, breadth, and rigor required to meet this need is of primary importance.

As chemistry faculty, we strive to provide students with quality, current, comprehensive courses of study which serve the following needs:

  1. Preparation of students who choose to pursue graduate degrees in chemistry.
  2. Preparation of students who choose to pursue degrees in the health sciences (medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, etc.).
  3. Preparation of students who choose to gain employment in a science related field with an undergraduate degree.
  4. Preparation of students who choose to become chemical educators.
  5. Education of students to think critically and independently.
  6. Helping students improve communicative, creative, analytic, and information-gathering skills.

To accomplish these goals, the chemistry faculty will provide the following:

  1. Honest evaluations of student abilities and potential.
  2. A climate of mutual trust and respect among faculty, staff, and students.
  3. The application and involvement of basic scientific principles and methodologies.
  4. Competitive opportunities for mentorship through undergraduate research, employment, and other engaged methods.

Program Information

  • All courses must be passed with a “C” (2.0) or better to be counted in the major.
  • All prerequisite courses must be passed with “C” (2.0) or better.
  • Chemistry - Teacher Education Emphasis students are required to complete a teaching minor in one of the physical sciences or mathematics. This will increase their marketability when they enter the teaching profession.
  • This major requires the student to complete the coursework for the Secondary Education Licensure . Consult the Department of Teacher Education and Family Development  for more information.
  • This degree does not include the requisite number of upper-division credit hours. Students completing this degree will fill the upper-division requirement with their minor requirements and/or their Secondary Education Licensure coursework.
  • All Chemistry majors must successfully complete an exit exam before graduation.
  • Credits greater than 10 years old will not be accepted in this major.
  • Some courses are taught every other year. Consult your advisor for scheduling help.

Admission to Chemistry Program

The objective of requiring admission to the chemistry program is to ensure preparedness for upper-division chemistry courses. A secondary purpose is to facilitate tracking and advising of students.

The requirements for obtaining admission to the chemistry programs are as follows:

  1. To be considered for admission to SUU’s chemistry program, students must have:
  2. No pre-chemistry students may enroll in courses with numbers greater than 2999 without formally declaring themselves chemistry majors.
    • The College of Science and Engineering Student Success Advisors will ensure that this requirement has been met.
    • Non-chemistry majors or minors may take upper-division chemistry courses only with permission of the instructors.

Program Prerequisites

The Department of Physical Science strongly recommends that students complete the following courses as part of their General Education  requirements, as they are prerequisites for required major courses. Students who do not complete these courses as part of General Education can potentially add additional credits and time to their degree.

* Note: Students who are not prepared for this math course may need additional math credits/preparation. Please consult your Student Success Advisor for more information.

General Education Requirement (31-36 Credits)


See General Education  for course options.

  • Core Course Requirements 12-13 Credits
  • Knowledge Area Requirements 19-23 Credits

Experiential Education University Requirement - EDGE Program (3 Credits)


NOTE: As of 7/12/2019, students pursuing this bachelor’s degree are no longer required to complete the EDGE courses for graduation.

See Experiential Education  for more information.

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Degree Requirement (12 Credits*)


  • Bachelor of Science Degree - Math or Science minimum requirement 12 Credits

* Note: Most or all of the B.S. requirements may be met by fulfilling the General Education  Core and Knowledge Areas. Because of this, these credits are typically not counted in the degree total at the bottom of page. Transfer students not majoring in a math or science field may need additional math/science courses to reach the minimum 12 credits. Consult your Student Success Advisor for details. 

Chemistry - Teacher Education Curriculum Summary (43 Credits)


Required Education Minor (20 Credits)


Students completing the Chemistry - Teacher Education Emphasis major must complete one of the following minors:

Free Electives (18-22 Credits)


Total elective credit is determined by General Education courses taken, degree type selected, additional credits earned, and any additional math or other prerequisite courses needed. For a bachelor’s degree, students must earn a minimum of 40 upper-division credits (courses numbered 3000-4999). Students may need to select additional upper-division courses not included in their major requirements in order to reach this minimum. Please consult your Student Success Advisor for details.

Total Credits, B.S. Degree: 120


Professional Education Requirements for Secondary Licensure (38-41 Credits)


To qualify for a teaching license, students must also complete the sequence of professional education courses listed by the Department of Teacher Education and Family Development . Please see the degree requirements for Secondary Education Licensure . Some classes required for the licensure cannot be taken until the teacher candidate has been admitted to the College of Education and Human Performance. Please consult your advisor or the Department of Teacher Education and Family Development for further instruction.

Total Credits, B.S. Degree with Licensure: 139-143


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