R. GREGORY DUNAWAY, Dean
Rick L. Travis, Associate Dean
Tracy Britt and Barbara Stewart, Academic Coordinators
Email: tbritt@deanas.msstate.edu
, bstewart@deanas.msstate.edu
Office: 208 Allen Hall; Telephone: (662) 325-2646
Mailing Address: Box AS, Mississippi State, MS 39762
The College of Arts & Sciences provides the fundamental training needed by all persons who wish to become college graduates. Students in all undergraduate schools and colleges in the University take more than half their courses during the first two years in the College of Arts & Sciences. In addition, the College provides pre-professional curricula for students who take their professional training elsewhere. Thus, pre-medical, pre-dental, pre-pharmacy, pre-law, pre-ministerial, pre-optometry, medical records administration, pre-nursing, and physical therapy training are available within the College of Arts & Sciences. Medical and dental students completing required courses are eligible for consideration of a B.S. degree from Mississippi State after one year in the professional school.
Majors are offered in the following: anthropology, biological sciences, chemistry, communication, criminology, economics, English, foreign languages, general liberal arts, general science, geoscience, history, interdisciplinary studies, international business, mathematics, medical technology, microbiology, music, physics, political science, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and social work.
Students who are undecided about a specific curriculum should select the Undeclared category. Advisors are available to assist these students in developing their educational and career goals. A student is permitted to delay a decision as to a field of concentration for one year.
Minors are available in the following: aerospace studies, African American studies, anthropology, biological sciences, chemistry, communication, English, foreign languages, geography, geology, geoscience, history, linguistics, mathematics, philosophy, physics, political science, psychology, religion, sociology and statistics.
In addition to these majors and minors, courses are offered in Air Force ROTC, archaeology, Army ROTC, corrections, gerontology, and gender studies. Information concerning these offerings can be found in this section of the catalog.
The educational mission of the College of Arts & Sciences is two-fold: to provide students with a liberal education which will facilitate intellectual development and stimulate a life-long pursuit of knowledge, and to give students an in-depth education in at least one specialized area necessary to prepare them for a career or for advanced study.
The College offers curricula in the fine arts, the humanities, the sciences and the social sciences. These curricula are designed to introduce students to the basic methods of inquiry in diverse disciplines, to develop their analytical abilities, to improve their skills in writing and speaking, and to broaden their perspectives on humanity and culture in the natural and technological worlds. Additionally, they provide intensive preparation in one or more academic disciplines.
A liberal education attained in this context should ensure that graduates of the College have gained an understanding and appreciation of human culture. They should have examined the social, historical, political, philosophical and economic dimensions of the human condition and mankind’s perception of the world as it is expressed through the fine arts, language, and literature. They should have learned the use of quantitative and scientific methods and should have participated in the universal quest to comprehend natural phenomena and to utilize this knowledge beneficially and ethically.
The student is assigned an advisor as soon as he or she enters the College of Arts & Sciences and should maintain contact with that advisor throughout the university affiliation. The advisor will assist the student in developing a course of study and will serve as a resource person to deal with academic problems and student needs.
The College of Arts & Sciences offers three degrees: the Bachelor of Arts, the Bachelor of Social Work, and the Bachelor of Science. All B.A., B.S., and B.S.W. students take a common set of requirements consisting of 25-29 semester credit hours in basic skills, 9-10 semester credit hours in natural sciences, 6 semester credit hours each in humanities and social sciences, and 3 semester credit hours in fine arts, computer literacy, and a junior/senior level writing course. The B.A. and B.S.W. curriculum requires 12 additional semester credit hours each in humanities and social sciences. The requirements for all three degrees as well as the curricula for specific areas of study are described below. Details for B.S.W. degree requirements are listed under Social Work.
In order to qualify for a second bachelor’s degree at Mississippi State University, the candidate must meet the following requirements:
The major department from which the second degree is sought shall determine completion of requirements.
The College of Arts & Sciences has identified graduation requirements which must be satisfied by all students pursuing degrees conferred by the College. Furthermore, these requirements (listed immediately below) must be satisfied from a list of courses approved by the College. These approved courses are taken from a longer list of courses satisfying general education requirements which can be found in the front pages of this Bulletin. However, majors in the College of Arts & Sciences must be aware that there are numerous courses on the General Education list which are not on the College approved list. Copies of the College courses approved list are available both from the Dean’s Office and from advisors.
A Bachelor of Arts degree is offered in the following areas: anthropology, chemistry, communication, criminology, economics, English, foreign languages, general liberal arts, history, mathematics, music, philosophy, political science, psychology, and sociology. The Bachelor of Social Work is offered in Social Work and follows the same basic regulations as the B.A. degree except that courses must be taken in proper sequence and a minimum of 124 hours is required.
The liberal arts include certain basic academic disciplines that contribute to the development of intelligent, moral beings. Over the centuries various subjects have at one time or another been spoken of as “liberal arts,” but the objective of liberal-arts training has remained unchanged. Whether students major in liberal arts or whether they merely take a few basic courses in that field, the liberal arts will enable them to develop those fundamental habits of good citizenship and cultural awareness which are expected of all members of our society.
The curriculum in liberal arts at Mississippi State University is intended to provide:
A minimum of 120-124 credit hours is required in all B.A. programs, 31 of which must be upper-division (3000-level or higher) Arts & Sciences credits.
In most departmental majors, the curricular requirements are sufficiently flexible to allow a student in liberal arts to select his or her departmental major at any time during the freshman or sophomore year. Whenever a student has made a decision as to a departmental major, whether it be at the beginning of the freshman year or later, he or she will be assigned to a major advisor in that department. If a student has not decided upon a major field, he or she should register as an Undecided student and take courses in the common curriculum which will prepare him or her for a subsequent shift into a departmental major.
A Bachelor of Science degree is offered in the following areas: biological sciences, chemistry, general science, geoscience, mathematics, medical technology, microbiology, physics and psychology.
The Bachelor of Science degree is awarded:
Arts & Sciences majors are responsible both for knowing the graduation requirements associated with their degree program and for keeping track of their own progress toward graduation. Faculty advisors are available to offer students informed answers to their questions and, during registration, to review and approve their course schedules. In addition to the graduation requirements outlined above, students pursuing majors in the College of Arts & Sciences need to be aware of a number of special requirements having to do with graduation.
The English and foreign language requirements apply to all Arts & Sciences students. Since departments have the authority to require specific foreign languages for their majors, students must become familiar with the language required by their individual major. The foreign language requirement is ordinarily satisfied:
The B.A. degree requires a 3rd semester proficiency in a foreign language. Students may fulfill the requirement through placement tests administered by the Department of Foreign Languages or by passing nine hours of a foreign language. One year of a foreign language taken at the high school level allows a student to bypass one semester of foreign language. Students are encouraged to take the foreign language placement test before enrolling in a foreign language course.
The B.S. degree requires a 2nd semester proficiency in a foreign language. Students may fulfill the requirement through placement tests administered by the Department of Foreign Languages or by passing six hours of a foreign language. Students are encouraged to take the foreign language placement test before enrolling in a foreign language course.
Students For Whom English is a Second Language. Students for whom English is a second language must fulfill the English and foreign language requirements as stated in this bulletin. Most majors allow these students to use their native languages to fulfill the foreign language requirement. But students planning to use their native languages in order to satisfy the foreign language requirement are urged to check with their major department to determine if that language is acceptable to the department. As far as the College of Arts & Sciences is concerned, students may use their native language to satisfy the foreign language requirement provided that:
In English, a maximum of 12 semester hours total of English as a Second Language (ESL) and freshman composition courses (including the required EN 1103 and EN 1113 may be counted for graduation. Proper placement of international students from ESL courses into English composition courses is important to students’ academic success.
The College offers appropriate curricula for students who plan to enter schools of dentistry, law, medicine, theology, nursing, optometry, pharmacy, and physical therapy. These are described with the departmental entries in the following pages.
Please see the appropriate departmental entry or advisor for information on major programs which can incorporate courses for certification. It is especially important for students desiring certification to consult with their advisors before choosing options in required categories, like the natural sciences, or electives.
Students seeking secondary school teaching certification must complete phases II-IV of the Teacher Education program. (See “Admission Procedures in the College of Education”)
The Mississippi State Department of Education provides an alternate route to certification to individuals who hold a baccalaureate or higher degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education and have achieved a score at or above the 51st percentile, based on the 1983 norms, on each part of the core battery and the specialty area of the NTE. An individual who meets the two above requirements may, upon proper application, receive a provisional certificate for one year. The provisional certificate will allow the holder to seek a teaching job. Additional information is available from the Dean of Arts & Sciences, the Dean of Education, and the Mississippi State Department of Education.
In order to satisfy College graduation requirements, students seeking B.A., B.S., or B.S.W. degrees must take the number of courses indicated in each of the areas below. By satisfying these College requirements, students will also satisfy all analogous General Education requirements.
B.A. and B.S.W. students must complete 12 hours in Humanities and 12 hours in Social Sciences in addition to the two courses in the Humanities and Social Sciences required of all majors. Hence, a student must complete a total of 18 hours in the Humanities (EN, HI, PHI, REL), AND 18 hours in the Social Sciences (AN, GR, PS, PSY, SO).
These additional 24 hours are not limited to the courses listed below; they may be satisfied by others in EN, HI, PHI, and REL or in AN, EC, GR, PS, PSY, SO as long as they satisfy the distribution requirements for the major.
While all of the courses below satisfy college-wide requirements, individual departments may require that particular courses in each area be taken to satisfy requirements for their majors.
NOTE: Courses separated by “OR” cannot be taken in combination. Students will not receive credit in Arts & Sciences for two courses which are separated by “OR.”
Also, Honors classes satisfy requirements and students who qualify are encouraged to take the Honors sections.
| Basic Skills | ||
| English Composition | ||
| EN 1103 | English Composition I | 3 |
| or EN 1163 | Accelerated Composition I | |
| EN 1113 | English Composition II | 3 |
| or EN 1173 | Accelerated Composition II | |
| Oral Communication Requirement 1 | ||
| CO 1003 | Fundamentals of Public Speaking | 3 |
| CO 1013 | Introduction to Communication | 3 |
| Foreign Language | ||
| 3 sem. for B.A. | One Foreign Language (1113, 1123, 2133) | |
| 2 sem. for B.S. | One Foreign Language (1113, 1123) | |
| Fine Arts | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Architectural Appreciation | ||
| History of Architecture I | ||
| History of Architecture II | ||
| History of Architecture III | ||
| Art History I | ||
| Art History II | ||
| Art Appreciation | ||
| Introduction to the Theatre | ||
| Music History III | ||
| African American Music | ||
| History and Appreciation of Music | ||
| History and Appreciation of Dance | ||
| Humanities (EN, FL, HI, REL, PHI) | ||
| B.S. degree | Requires one EN and one HI from the core listing. | |
| B.A. and B.S.W. | Require one EN, one HI, and one PHI course plus 3 other humanities (not necessarily on the following list). These three courses should cover at least two areas.) | |
| EN 2203 | Introduction to Literature (Not applicable if Honors sections are taken) | 3 |
| EN 2213 | English Literature before 1800 | 3 |
| EN 2223 | English Literature After 1800 | 3 |
| EN 2243 | American Literature Before 1865 | 3 |
| EN 2253 | American Literature After 1865 | 3 |
| EN 2273 | World Literature Before 1600 | 3 |
| EN 2283 | World Literature After 1600 | 3 |
| FLF 4053 | 19th Century Studies: Baudelaire Seminar | 3 |
| FLF 4173 | Introduction to Francophone Cinema | 3 |
| FLF 4193 | 18th Century French Literature | 3 |
| FLF 4223 | French Novel Before 1945 | 3 |
| FLF 4233 | Modern French Poetry | 3 |
| FLF 4273 | The Human Condition | 3 |
| FLF 4323 | Studies in the 20th Century: Le Clezio Seminar | 3 |
| FLG 4143 | Verwandlungen | 3 |
| FLG 4303 | German Film | 3 |
| FLG 4353 | German Novella | 3 |
| FLG 4493 | Mysteries in Literature and Film | 3 |
| FLG 4503 | German Literature to 1750 | 3 |
| FLG 4523 | German Literature from 1750 to Present | 3 |
| FLS 4213 | Modern Spanish Women Writers | 3 |
| FLS 4243 | Modern Spanish Essay | 3 |
| FLS 4273 | Modern Spanish Drama | 3 |
| FLS 4293 | Cinema in the Context of Spanish Culture | 3 |
| FLS 4543 | Survey of Modern Spanish-American Literature | 3 |
| FLS 4573 | Contemporary Spanish-American Drama | 3 |
| FLS 4613 | Spanish-American Cinema | 3 |
| FLS 4853 | Survey of Spanish-American Poetry | 3 |
| HI 1063 | Early U.S. History | 3 |
| HI 1073 | Modern U.S. History | 3 |
| HI 1163 | World History Before 1500 | 3 |
| HI 1173 | World History Since 1500 | 3 |
| HI 1213 | Early Western World | 3 |
| HI 1223 | Modern Western World | 3 |
| HI 1313 | East Asian Civilizations to 1300 | 3 |
| HI 1323 | East Asian Civilizations since 1300 | 3 |
| B.A. and B.S.W. majors must take at least 1 PHI course. | ||
| PHI 1103 | Introduction to Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 1113 | Introduction to Logic | 3 |
| PHI 1123 | Introduction to Ethics | 3 |
| PHI 3023 | History of Western Philosophy I | 3 |
| PHI 3033 | History of Western Philosophy II | 3 |
| PHI 3013 | Business Ethics | 3 |
| PHI 3153 | Aesthetics | 3 |
| REL 1103 | Introduction to Religion | 3 |
| REL 3213 | World Religions I | 3 |
| REL 3223 | World Religions II | 3 |
| Social and Behavioral Sciences | ||
| B.S. | Two courses in different disciplines. | |
| B.A. and B.S.W. | Courses spread over at least four disciplines, max of two in each discipline. Of the six, only two are required to be from this list. Only one of the CO and one of the EC courses listed may count. | |
| AN 1103 | Introduction to Anthropology | 3 |
| AN 1143 | Introduction to Cultural Anthropology | 3 |
| AN 1543 | Introduction to Archaeology | 3 |
| CO 1223 | Introduction to Communication Theory | 3 |
| CO 1403 | Introduction to the Mass Media | 3 |
| EC 2113 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| EC 2123 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| GR 1123 | Introduction to World Geography | 3 |
| GR 2013 | Cultural Geography | 3 |
| GR 3113 | Conservation of Natural Resources | 3 |
| GR 4123 | Urban Geography | 3 |
| GR 4203 | Geography of North America | 3 |
| PS 1113 | American Government | 3 |
| PS 1313 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
| PS 1513 | Comparative Government | 3 |
| PS 2713 | Introduction to Engineering and Public Policy | 3 |
| PSY 1013 | General Psychology | 3 |
| PSY 3073 | Psychology of Interpersonal Relations | 3 |
| SO 1003 | Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| SO 1103 | Contemporary Social Problems | 3 |
| SO 1203 | Marriage and Family | 3 |
| Computer Literacy | ||
| One 3 hour course required. Consult advisor. | 3 | |
| Mathematics & Statistics 2 | ||
| MA 1313 | College Algebra | 3 |
| MA 1323 | Trigonometry | 3 |
| MA 1613 | Calculus for Business and Life Sciences I | 3 |
| MA 1713 | Calculus I | 3 |
| MA 1723 | Calculus II | 3 |
| MA 2733 | Calculus III | 3 |
| MA 2743 | Calculus IV | 3 |
| MA 3113 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 3 |
| MA /ST 2113 | Introduction to Statistics | 3 |
| MA /ST 3123 | Introduction to Statistical Inference | 3 |
| Natural Sciences 3 | ||
| AN 1344 | Introduction to Biological Anthropology | 4 |
| BIO 1004 | Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIO 1023 | Plants and Humans | 3 |
| BIO 1123 | Animal Biology | 3 |
| BIO 1134 | Biology I | 4 |
| BIO 1144 | Biology II | 4 |
| BIO 2113 | Plant Biology | 3 |
| BIO 3103 | Genetics I | 3 |
| BIO 3304 | General Microbiology | 4 |
| CH 1043 | Survey of Chemistry I | 3 |
| or CH 1213 | Chemistry I | |
| CH 1053 | Survey of Chemistry II | 3 |
| or CH 1223 | Chemistry II | |
| CH 1051 | Experimental Chemistry | 1 |
| CH 1211 | Investigations in Chemistry I | 1 |
| CH 1221 | Investigations in Chemistry II | 1 |
| EPP 2213 | Introduction to Insects | 3 |
| GG 1111 | Earth Sciences I Laboratory | 1 |
| GG 1113 | Survey of Earth Sciences I | 3 |
| GG 1121 | Earth Sciences II Laboratory | 1 |
| GG 1123 | Survey of Earth Sciences II | 3 |
| GR 1114 | Elements of Physical Geography | 4 |
| PH 1011 | Physical Science Laboratory I | 1 |
| PH 1063 | Descriptive Astronomy | 3 |
| PH 1021 | Physical Science Laboratory 2 | 1 |
| PH 1013 | Physical Science Survey I | 3 |
| PH 1023 | Physical Science Survey 2 | 3 |
| PH 1113 | General Physics I | 3 |
| PH 2213 | Physics I | 3 |
| PH 1123 | General Physics II | 3 |
| PH 2223 | Physics II | 3 |
| PH 1133 | General Physics III | 3 |
| PH 2233 | Physics III | 3 |
| PSS 3301 | Soils Laboratory | 1 |
| PSS 3303 | Soils | 3 |
| Junior/Senior Writing | ||
| Consult advisor for selections. | 3 | |
| 1 | |
| 2 | Either two courses required or one MA course at the level of MA 1613 or higher (with the exception of MA 2113/ST 2113). |
| 3 | 3 courses required, 2 with labs. B.A. and B.S.W. Majors must take one lab course in the Life Sciences AN, BIO or EPP and one in the Physical Sciences CH, GG, GR, PH. |
Print this page.
The PDF will include all information unique to this page.
All pages in Undergraduate Academic Catalog.
All pages in Graduate Academic Catalog