Colleges and universities from coast to coast have similar degree requirements for graduating with a Bachelor of Science, or BS, degree. Three tiers of establishing graduation criteria include university, school, and department requirements. BS requirements are usually more stringent than their BA counterparts in terms of the number of math, science, and lab courses that students must pass. Residency conditions usually prevail at the school awarding the degree.
General University Requirements
Most universities have general requirements that all students must satisfy in order to graduate. These include courses such as English language, history, and government. Many colleges also require all students to complete a minimum number of writing courses or courses that have a significant writing component. A requirement for a minimum total number of credits is also established.
School and Program Requirements
In addition to general requirements, each school or college within the university has their own set of requirements that students need to meet in order to graduate. These include a prescribed set of courses required for the major. For instance, a BS in Geology usually requires a set of six to eight core geology courses plus a number of geology electives. Other science courses need to be completed such as general and organic chemistry, physics, biology, and calculus. A minor, or concentration, in one of those peripheral science areas is also part of the criteria.
Academic Residence Requirement
Regulations at most universities stipulate that students need to complete a substantial number of courses while in residence at their school. Furthermore, they want a fair number of these courses to be upper level in the student's major.
Grade-point Average
Most universities require that students achieve at least a 2.0 grade-point average in their upper division coursework in order to graduate. It's expected that students can demonstrate a certain level of quality work before their degree is awarded.
Electives
Most schools want to produce well-rounded students and allow for students to take several courses outside of their focused science classes. Electives can usually be taken in any department throughout the university.
Foreign Language Requirement
Science is not limited to English-speaking countries, and much science literature is written in other languages, particularly Russian, German, and French. But many universities also require two years of foreign language study because it broadens student's critical thinking and enlightens them about other cultures.
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