School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences

Bernd Schroeder, Interim Director
118 College Drive, Box 5043
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
601.266.4934

Biswas, Booth, Broome, Bullock, Cannon, Chen, Ding, Donahue, Guo, Hanson, Harris, Hayhurst, Heinhorst, Howell, Huang, Kalluru, Kessl, Kohl, Lambers, Lamey, Lee, Masterson, Maung Maung, Miao, Mitcham, Moody, Naquin, Oh, Pandey, Perry, Peters, Pigza, Rangachari, Ross, Schroeder, Scott, Sirola, Sones, Stanford, Tian, Vera, Wallace, Wan, Winstead, Xie, Zhu

The school offers Bachelor of Science degrees in chemistry (with emphasis areas in chemistry, biochemistry, and secondary licensure), mathematics (with emphasis areas in mathematics and secondary licensure), and physics (with emphasis areas in physics and secondary licensure). Minors in all three disciplines are also available.

BS in Chemistry (ACS-Certified Chemistry)

The program in chemistry offers a BS degree that is an American Chemical Society (ACS)-certified emphasis in chemistry. This degree prepares students for careers in private industry or government and for admission to graduate programs in the chemical sciences or medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and other science-related professional programs.

Chemistry majors must satisfy the general education curriculum requirements of the University and the specific requirements for this emphasis area. Students completing this emphasis are certified by the Committee on Professional Training of the American Chemical Society and take a minimum of 49 semester hours of chemistry coursework. The mathematics and science courses must be taken with the prerequisites or corequisites listed in this Bulletin. Key features of the curriculum are a requirement for physics with calculus (PHY 201 /PHY 201L , PHY 202 /PHY 202L ), mathematics through differential equations (MAT 285 ), and several senior-level chemistry courses (CHE 411 /CHE 411L , CHE 431 , and CHE 496 ) with physical chemistry as a prerequisite. Students interested in using this emphasis as preparation for admission to a professional school should consult with a pre-professional advisor about taking additional life sciences courses.

Corresponding lecture and laboratory courses must be taken simultaneously. To continue in the course sequence, the student must have a grade of C or better in all prerequisite science and mathematics courses germane to their chosen emphasis area. The student will not be allowed to enroll in any science or mathematics course for which the grade of C or better in prerequisite coursework has not been obtained. To graduate, an average GPA of 2.0 or better must be achieved for the degree requirements listed in DEG 01 and 02 of the degree plan. The Licensure emphasis has additional GPA requirements as listed in the degree plan.

BS in Chemistry (Biochemistry)

The biochemistry emphasis in chemistry is an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) accredited emphasis in biochemistry. This degree prepares students for careers in private industry or government and for admission to graduate programs in the chemical sciences or medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and other science-related professional programs.

This emphasis requires completion of the general education curriculum of the University and the specific requirements for this emphasis area. Students completing this emphasis must complete a minimum of 64 semester hours of chemistry, including 11 hours of senior-level biochemistry (CHE 421 /CHE 421L , CHE 422 , CHE 424 ) and 20 hours of biological sciences courses. Students interested in using this emphasis as preparation for careers as chemists in industry or government or for entry into graduate school in biochemistry or chemistry are strongly encouraged to take a full year of physical chemistry (CHE 461 /CHE 461L and CHE 462 /CHE 462L ).

BS in Chemistry (Licensure)

An option within the chemistry program allows the student to obtain a Mississippi Department of Education secondary teaching license in chemistry, physical science and general science. The program requires completion of the University’s general education curriculum as well as a minimum of 39 hours of chemistry coursework. Coursework in biological sciences (BSC), geology (GLY) and physics (PHY) is also required, as are science education courses CIS 302 , SME 460 (Methods in Teaching Science — Secondary) and SME 489 /SME 490 (Student Teaching). Students pursuing a degree in chemistry with licensure must earn a grade of C or higher in all chemistry courses and in all required professional education courses.

In addition, required teacher education courses include the following 12 hours: CIS 302 , REF 469 , SPE 400 , CIS 313 . Students must consult an advisor in the school and the current Bulletin for prerequisites and proper sequencing of courses. Please see degree plan for more details.

Students who complete this program are eligible for a license through an NCATE/NSTA-approved program.

Minor in Chemistry

A minor in chemistry requires completion of 20 hours of chemistry with a grade of C or higher in each course. The following classes cannot be counted towards the minor in chemistry: CHE 100 , CHE 104 /CHE 104L , CHE 110 /CHE 110L , CHE 251 /CHE 251L , and CHE 409 .

BS in Mathematics

The Bachelor of Science in mathematics is based on a flexible curriculum so that individual students may tailor their degree to fit specific educational and career objectives. The BS in mathematics provides a sound foundation for a broad latitude of careers in education, industry, business and government. Many of today’s challenging careers call for continuing education beyond the bachelor’s degree, and an undergraduate major in mathematics provides a versatile avenue for preparing for advanced studies in a number of fields, including mathematics, computer science, statistics, management science, actuarial science, mathematics education and engineering.

Students who have completed a college preparatory program in high school and have an ACT Mathematics subscore ≥ 26 should begin their university mathematics programs with calculus (MAT 167 ). Students without this background should elect appropriate mathematics courses in consultation with their academic advisors. Mathematics majors should take MAT 340 and MAT 326 concurrently with the calculus sequence because they serve as prerequisites to many advanced mathematics courses. No mathematics or computer science course in which a student receives a grade less than C will count toward the major.

Mathematics majors may not enroll in the courses MAT 102 , MAT 114 , MAT 210 , MAT 308 , MAT 310 , MAT 315 , or MAT 410 , which are designed to serve the special interests of students in other departments and colleges. Non-licensure mathematics majors may not enroll in MAT 301 , MAT 309 , or MAT 315 . Students must include PHY 201 /PHY 201L in their degree and cannot use the fundamentals of science courses to fulfill their science requirements. The mathematics faculty recommends that all majors include PHY 202 /PHY 202L in their programs and that they obtain two-year proficiency in one of the following languages: French, German, Italian or Russian.

The mathematics major who intends to pursue a career in actuarial science should include MAT 320 , MAT 418 , MAT 419 , MAT 420 , MAT 426 , MAT 460 , MAT 461 and MAT 482 in his or her program. In addition, this student should elect to take REI 325 and REI 326 , as well as a course in macroeconomics and a course in management.

BS in Mathematics (Licensure)

The Bachelor of Science in mathematics with a licensure emphasis prepares students to teach mathematics upon completion of all degree and licensure requirements.

Students who have completed a college preparatory program in high school and have an ACT Math subscore ≥ 26 should begin their university mathematics programs with calculus (MAT 167 ). Students without this background should elect appropriate mathematics courses in consultation with their academic advisors. Mathematics majors should take MAT 340 and MAT 326 concurrently with the calculus sequence because they serve as prerequisites to many advanced mathematics courses. No mathematics or computer science course in which a student receives a grade less than C will count toward the major.

Students must include PHY 201 /PHY 201L in their degree and cannot use the fundamentals of science courses to fulfill their science requirements. The mathematics faculty recommends that all majors include PHY 202 /PHY 202L in their programs and that they obtain two-year proficiency in one of the following languages: French, German, Italian or Russian.

The student who desires to pursue the Secondary Teacher Education program in mathematics must request formal admission to the Teacher Education program through the Dean’s Office, College of Education and Human Sciences. Admission requirements are subject to modification; for current information, students should contact the educator licensure advisor, 116 Owings-McQuagge Hall; 601.266.5522.

A student pursuing a degree in mathematics with licensure must earn a grade of C or higher in all required professional education courses. The required education courses include the following 31 hours: PSY 374 , REF 469 , SPE 400 , CIS 302 , CIS 313 , MAT 457 /MAT 457L , MAT 489 and MAT 490 .

The State Department of Education also provides an alternate route to licensure for graduates of an accredited college or university. To earn an add-on secondary mathematics endorsement, the following 21 hour program of study has been approved by the State Department of Education. A grade of C or better is required in each course. Calculus (Choose 6 credit hours from MAT 167 , MAT 168 , MAT 169 ), Advanced Level Algebra ( MAT 326 ), Statistics (MAT 115 ), Geometry (MAT 370 ) Trigonometry (MAT 103 ), Discrete Mathematics (MAT 340 ). For details and specific procedures, contact: The Office of Educator Licensure, State Department of Education, Post Office Box 771, Jackson, Mississippi 39205, 601.359.3483.

Minor in Mathematics

Students pursuing a minor in mathematics must complete a minimum of 18 hours of mathematics courses to include at least six hours taken at The University of Southern Mississippi. Only those courses that count toward the major in mathematics can count in the minor in mathematics, with the exception of MAT 430 and MAT 431 , which do count in the minor but not in the major. MAT 167 does not count toward the minor. Students seeking a minor in mathematics are encouraged to consult a faculty advisor in the mathematics program.

BS in Physics

A Bachelor of Science in physics is excellent preparation for careers that require analytical or quantitative work. The physics major at The University of Southern Mississippi is designed to prepare students for advanced study in physics (master’s and doctorate) or to obtain technical positions in the industrial and governmental sectors. In addition, physics is a gateway into other areas such as astronomy, biophysics, chemistry, computational science, geophysics, engineering, medicine, oceanography, patent law and radiology.

Students entering into the physics major are assumed to have completed algebra, geometry and trigonometry in high school. Students with questions about their mathematics preparation should talk with an advisor in the physics program.

The 124-hour BS in physics includes required completion of the University’s general education curriculum as well as 68-81 hours in the major. Calculus is required for this degree. Please see the degree plan for more details on requirements.

BS in Physics (Licensure)

The BS in physics with a licensure emphasis prepares students to teach physics at the high school level. Students interested in physics teaching certification should seek advisement in the school to ensure that they are meeting all stipulations for the licensure program.

The 124-hour BS with licensure requires students to complete the general education curriculum of the University as well as the curriculum for the major (51-64 hours) and for teacher licensure (27-39 hours). Please see the degree plan for more details on requirements.

Minor in Physics

Students pursuing a minor in physics must complete 18 hours of physics courses. The following classes do not count towards the minor: PHY 103 ; PHY 328 ; PHY 392 ; PHY 435 ; PHY 451 ; PHY 455 ; PHY 460 ; PHY 462; PHY 485 ; PHY 499 .

Programs

Bachelor of Science

Non-degree

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