College of Arts and Sciences

The Arts and Sciences degrees currently available on the Gulf Coast are as follows:

Applied Technology
Biological Sciences
Biological Sciences (Licensure)
Biological Sciences (Environmental Biology)
Computer Science (Applied Computer Science)
Construction Engineering Technology
Criminal Justice
English
Entertainment Industry (Film)
Geography
Geography (Geographic Information Technology)
Geography (Sustainable Development)
History
Industrial Engineering Technology
Industrial Engineering Technology (Logistics)
Interdisciplinary Studies
Marine Biology
Marine Science
Marine Science (Hydrography)
Mathematics
Mathematics (Licensure)
Paralegal Studies
Political Science

The English licensure program qualifies students to teach at the 6-12 level. The Social Studies Licensure program qualifies students to teach at the 7-12 or secondary level.

Teacher licensure at the secondary level is offered in biological sciences (biological sciences licensure emphasis) and mathematics (mathematics licensure emphasis).

Undergraduate minors in Arts and Sciences currently available on the Gulf Coast are as follows:

Biological Sciences: requires a minimum of 18 hours in biological sciences, including at least seven hours numbered above 300 to be taken at The University of Southern Mississippi. BSC 103 , BSC 103L and BSC 107 , BSC 107L may not be included in the 18 hours. Either BSC 380 , BSC 380L or BSC 381 , BSC 381L may count towards the minor but not both. The minimum of seven hours at the 300 level or above must include at least one course with a laboratory component.
Chemistry: requires 20 hours of chemistry, with a grade of C or higher in each course. CHE 100 , CHE 104 , CHE 104L , CHE 110 , CHE 110L , CHE 251 , CHE 251L and CHE 409 will not count toward the 20 hours required for the minor.
Computer Science: requires CSC 101 , CSC 101L , CSC 102 , CS 307 and nine hours from among the following set of courses: CSC 203 , CSC 204 , CSC 300 , CSC 305 , CSC 306 , CSC 309 , CSC 317 , CSC 320 , CSC 408 , CSC 410 , CSC 411 , CSC 412 , CSC 413 , CSC 414 , CSC 414L , CSC 415 , CSC 420 , CSC 421 , CSC 422 , CSC 424 , CSC 425 , CSC 426 , CSC 435 , CSC 485 , CSC 486 , CSS 240 , CSS 331 , CSS 342 , CSS 343 , CSS 346 , CSS 360 , CSS 405 , CSS 415 , CSS 416 , CSS 417 , CSS 418 , CSS 431 , CSS 442 , CSS 444, CSS 446 .
Criminal Justice: requires a minimum of 18 hours in criminal justice, including CJ 200 but not including the field practicum (CJ 400 ).
English: An undergraduate minor in English requires a total of 18 hours at the 300 or 400 level.
Entertainment Industry (Film): The film emphasis is designed to prepare students for positions with large and small motion picture production companies, federal or state agency production units or for self-employment as independent producers, directors or production specialists. Students are required to take FLM 351 , FLM 370 , FLM 371 , FLM 470 , FLM 471 , FLM 472 , FLM 478 , FLM 479 and FLM 485 . A minimum grade of C is required in each course, as well as a major GPA of 2.5.
General Science: The multidisciplinary general science minor requires 27 hours from three or more appropriate fields (astronomy, biological sciences, chemistry, computer science, geology, marine science, mathematics, physics and polymer science) with at least eight hours from each field included; courses in the major or another minor are excluded. Students may visit Bobby Chain Technology room 103 to see a dean for assistance with this minor. A dean will act as the chair of the minor.
Geography: requires a minimum of 18 hours including GHY 101 , either GHY 104 /GHY 104L or GHY 105 /GHY 105L , and either GHY 210 /GHY 210L or GHY 217 /GHY 217L . The remaining hours can be chosen from any courses numbered 300 and above.
History: The student minoring in history must complete 21 hours in History, which must include HIS 101 and HIS 102 .
Industrial Engineering Technology: requires IET 405 , IET 409 , IET 410 and nine hours of Industrial Engineering Technology electives.
Marine Science: requires a minimum of 18 hours, with a grade of C or higher in each course, chosen from the approved list of courses. MAR 210 , MAR 300 , MAR 301 and at least one marine science laboratory (MAR 300L or MAR 301L ) are required for the marine science minor. The remaining 7 hours may be selected from any of the 300- to 400-level MAR course offerings. Please note that the prerequisites for MAR 300 / MAR 300L and MAR 301 / MAR 301L are BSC 110 /BSC 110L , BSC 111 /BSC 111L , CHE 106 /CHE 106L , CHE 107 /CHE 107L , and MAT 101 .
Mathematics: requires 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 adviser in that discipline.
Political Science: Students minoring in political science must complete PS 101 , PS 201 and 12 additional hours with at least one course from two of the four areas of political science.
Spanish: An undergraduate minor in Spanish requires a minimum total of 18 hours of study, with at least six hours at the 300/400 level. SPA 361 cannot be applied toward the minor. A grade of C or better is required in each course.
Women’s Studies: The minor in women’s studies requires 18 hours, including WGS 301 - Introduction to Women’s and Gender Studies . The remaining hours must be distributed among at least three disciplines. Please consult the Southern Miss Bulletin for a complete list of acceptable courses.

Please note: The University of Southern Mississippi does not offer a minor in paralegal studies at this time.

Foreign Language Requirements

Many Bachelor of Arts degrees offered by the College of Arts and Sciences require proficiency in a foreign language to be chosen from any one of the following: Spanish, French, German, Classical Greek, Italian, Japanese, Latin or Russian. Students typically must complete intermediate foreign language instruction through course level 202. Students with previous experience in foreign language may satisfy this requirement through advanced placement credits or CLEP testing in as few as three hours. Students are encouraged to begin their study of foreign language during the first semester of their freshman year.

Requirements for a Certificate in Geographic Information

The Certificate in Geographic Information is a professional curriculum that prepares students to employ geographic information effectively to solve problems in many fields. The certificate program is open to both resident degree candidates and practitioners who need to update and formalize their knowledge pertaining to use of geographic information and who comply with either traditional or nontraditional admission requirements of the university as specified elsewhere in this Bulletin. Students may complete the certificate program with or without being admitted to a specific degree program. Students must declare their intent to complete the certificate program before graduating from the University.

To earn the certificate, students are required to complete (1) a minimum of 16 credit hours from GHY 210 , GHY 217 , GHY 410 , GHY 411 , GHY 412 , GHY 417 , GHY 418 , GHY 467 , GHY 468 , GHY 469 (and their accompanying laboratory sections), and (2) a directed individual project for one credit hour of GHY 494 , all with grades of B or better. These courses may be taken by the students as part of a degree plan or as a suite of electives. Students may complete the certificate curriculum by taking the courses in any combination of either physical or virtual classrooms.

Degree Plans

School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences

School of Communication

School of Computing Sciences and Computer Engineering

School of Construction and Design

School of Criminal Justice, Forensic Science, and Security

School of Humanities

School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Professional Development

School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences

School of Ocean Science and Technology

School of Social Science and Global Studies

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