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Nov 21, 2024
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2024-2025 University Catalog
Chemistry, B.A. in Applied Arts and Sciences
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 Return to: Curricula by Department
(Major Code: 19051) (Academic Plan Code: 772607BAAS)
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry offers two programs designed to prepare students to teach high school chemistry and/or middle school integrated science. The pathway described below requires that students who want to teach first earn the Chemistry, B.A. in Applied Arts and Sciences (BA-SS) bachelor’s degree and then complete an additional, one-year, post-baccalaureate program to earn their preliminary single subject teaching credential in science: chemistry. See the School of Teacher Education website. The BA-SS major was redesigned in 2022 so that the fieldwork and most of the other special courses are included in the last two years, making it desirable for students who develop an interest in teaching as late as their junior year.
Students may also want to consider the Chemistry, Emphasis in Integrated Teacher Education (ITEP-SS) (described in a separate entry). The ITEP-SS combines the bachelor’s degree and teaching credential into a four year integrated teacher education program, making it desirable for those students who know they want to teach prior to enrolling at SDSU or very early in their college career.
While the state of California since 2022 has allowed any individual with a degree titled “Chemistry” to apply for admission to a credential program, students completing the above BA-SS or the Chemistry, Emphasis in ITEP-SS will satisfy all the requirements included in the subject matter preparation program approved by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing in Dec. 2018. These two majors include not only the background in chemistry and physics but also in the life sciences and the earth sciences needed to teach California’s Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) effectively. Teacher Education 462, Science Teaching Fieldwork in Community Settings, is a junior-level, core course for both of these majors. This course is also taken by students in other majors to determine if they may ultimately want to become a teacher.
All candidates for a degree in applied arts and sciences must complete the graduation requirements listed in the section of this catalog on “Graduation Requirements .”
A minor is not required for this major.
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Preparation for the Major
(42 units)
General Education
Chemistry, B.A. in Applied Arts and Sciences majors automatically satisfy the Natural Sciences and Quantitative Reasoning foundations GE areas by completion of preparation for the major. They also automatically satisfy the Natural Sciences and Humanities explorations GE areas by completion of the major.
Course Sequence Plan
Prior to registering, students are encouraged to confirm that each required junior and senior level course is offered during the semester shown on the online schedule with no timing overlaps between courses. The special courses are offered by several different departments, so coordinating times is challenging. Some chemistry and special courses are available only in fall semester, only in spring semester, and/or overlap in time. If students plan to complete SDSU’s credential program, they also should include credential prerequisite courses in their plan.
Students should check footnotes to make sure they have completed necessary prerequisites and know whether or not they need to contact the instructor in order to register. Given the complexity of this major, they are encouraged to discuss their plans with the department adviser, especially if they have to deviate from SDSU’s online course sequence plan.
Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement
Completing one of the approved upper division writing courses (W) with a grade of C (2.0) or better. See “Graduation Requirements ” section for a complete listing of requirements.
Major
A minimum of 33 upper division units to include:
One of the Following Pairs
Subject Matter Competency
Since July 2021, students applying to the SDSU credential program have been able to satisfy subject matter competency simply by completing a degree titled “chemistry.”
Between 2018 and July 2021, students had to demonstrate subject matter competency by completing an official Undergraduate Subject Matter waiver program or passing the CSET exam. For Chemistry, they had to complete the courses listed below and submit the signed “Adviser’s Recommendation (waiver) Form” as part of their application to SDSU’s credential program. While this method for demonstrating subject matter competency is likely to be phased out in the future (see note 2 below), BA-SS and ITEP-SS students should be pleased that both majors include the breadth (General Science) and depth (Chemistry) required for the waiver program approved by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing in 2018, namely
(a) Chemistry 200, 201, 232, 232L, 251 and Physics 195, 195L, 196, and 196L plus Biology 203^ (completed with at most one course with a C- or lower) and
(b) Chemistry 410A, 410B, 417, 432, 432L plus Astronomy 310^, Geological Sciences 412^, Philosophy 332 [Sustainability 332]^, and Teacher Education 462^ (completed with at most one course with a C- or lower).
The special life science, earth/space science, and fieldwork courses^ provide the breadth need to teach chemistry in the context of the other sciences and/or teach middle school integrated science effectively.
Note 1: If Chemistry BS students take TE 462 as a major elective during their junior year and decide they are interested in teaching, they are encouraged to talk to the department adviser regarding changing to the BA-SS or regarding incorporating these special courses into their BS degree.
Note 2: In August 2022, the School of Teacher Education’s website showed that applicants could satisfy subject matter competency either by completing a degree titled “chemistry” or by submitting the adviser’s form described above. Applicants should check which method is preferred at the time they apply to SDSU’s credential program.
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