Academic Transfer Pathway

Wharton County Junior College

Wharton County Junior College & SHSU

Biological Sciences

Online Articulation

Cooperative program leading to the Associate of Science Degree and the
Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts Degree in Biology at Sam Houston State University.

Your college and Sam Houston State University proudly present a cooperative program leading to the Associate of Science degree and Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, Bachelor Arts in Biology, Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science, or Bachelor of Science with a Forensics Emphasis at SHSU. Students are encouraged to seek advice from Academic Advisors to ensure maximum transferability of course work between institutions.

Sam Houston State University:

The Department of Biological Sciences is dedicated to the pursuit and dissemination of knowledge and scientific discovery in the life sciences through innovative teaching and research. The Department strives to instill the philosophy of lifelong scholarship, producing scientifically literate members of society who have the knowledge to contribute and compete in a rapidly changing world. The Department’s objectives are to train professional biologists and natural scientists, to prepare teachers of biological science, and to provide the background for effective careers in the life sciences, environmental science, medicine, nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, biomedical technology, and forensic science.

The Department of Biological Sciences at Sam Houston State University has nationally recognized faculty, physical and support facilities, library holdings, modern curriculum, and applied and basic research programs. Students completing the Bachelor of Science degree are prepared for careers in industry, academia, government, forensic science, admission to professional schools, and advanced degree programs. To see the research interests of faculty in Biology visit http://www.shsu.edu/~bio_www/faculty.html. To see profiles of previous students in Biology, visit http://www.shsu.edu/~bio_www/studentprofiles.html. To see funding and other opportunities open to Biology students visit http://www.shsu.edu/~bio_www/opportunities.html.

Participants of 2+2 programs at community colleges are especially welcome and encouraged to complete the Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree at Sam Houston State University. Additional information may be found at http://www.shsu.edu/~bio_www.

The following table lists courses required to attain the Bachelor of Science in Biology:

College	SHSU	Credit	Common Course
CHEM 1411 CHEM 1412	CHEM 1311/1111 CHEM 1312/1112	3/1 3/1	CHEM 1311/1111 CHEM 1312/1112
MATH 2413 / 2414	MATH 2413 & 2414 or statistics (MATH3370 or STAT3379 or BIOL4374).	4/4	MATH 2413 / 2414
CHEM 2423	CHEM 2323/2123	3/1	CHEM 2323/2123
COSC 1301	CSTE 1330	3	COSC 1301 or 1401
BIOL 1411/1413 or BIOL 1406/1407	BIOL 1311/1111 BIOL 1313/1113	3/1	BIOL 1311/1111, BIOL 1313/1113

Most institutions offer a General Biology I and General Biology II series as freshman course. At SHSU the general biology sequence is broken into three courses, Botany (BIO 161/111), Zoology (BIO 162/112), and Introductory Cell Biology (BIO 244). Incoming transfer students who have taken a General Biology I and II series will obtain credit for Botany and Zoology, and so must begin at SHSU with the Introductory Cell Biology course, which is offered every semester, including summer I.

The following table lists courses required to attain the Bachelor of Arts in Biology:

College	SHSU	Credit	Common Course
CHEM 1411 CHEM 1412	CHEM 1311/1111 CHEM 1312/1112	3/1 3/1	CHEM 1311/1111 CHEM 1312/1112
	MATH 1316 & MATH 1342	4/4
COSC 1301	CSTE 1330	3	COSC 1301 or 1401
BIOL 1411/1413 or BIOL 1406/1407	BIOL 1311/1111 BIOL 1313/1113	3/1	BIOL 1311/1111, BIOL 1313/1113

The Bachelor of Arts with a major in Biology requires students to meet the foreign language requirements (4 courses in the same language).

Forensic Science and Biology

Transfer students seeking the Bachelor of Science with a Biology major and with a Forensics emphasis should consider a minor in Chemistry and/or Criminal Justice. The required first two years of core courses for the Forensics emphasis in all academic areas (e.g., math, science, English, history, etceteras) are the same as the above listed courses for the major in Biology major. The emphasis in Forensics is accomplished by selecting from appropriate upper division courses (junior and senior level).

For the past several years, there have been scholarships available for both graduate and undergraduate students majoring in Biology, Geography & Geology, Mathematics & Statistics. Roughly 35 scholarships are administered each year through the PEERS Program (Peers Enhancing their Education through Research and Scholarship), federally-funded through the National Science Foundation. Up to $6,000 is available each year to students in these majors that maintain a GPA of at least 3.0 and demonstrate financial need.

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SHSU Core Curriculum

Transfer courses specific to the university major you have selected appear in the section above. Transfer students are encouraged to maximize transfer courses required for their major as described above in addition to core courses at the transfer institution. Most university majors were meant to be taken over a 4 year period. Completion of freshman and sophomore level courses in the major with appropriate core courses helps transfer students to graduate in the minimum amount of time at minimum cost. The university core appears below for the convenience of those who have not yet selected a major. If you cannot select a specific major, at least try to select the area (e.g., science, criminal justice, business, education, nursing, etc.) in which you are most likely to eventually graduate and select transfer core courses that will support your selection of academic endeavor.

As a final note, transfer students completing "residence requirements" at state supported Texas colleges are typically eligible to receive the associate degree by a process known as "reverse transfer" after having accumulated 60 (to 62) or more combined college transfer and SHSU hours. Reverse transfer allows students to count SHSU courses to the bachelor degree as well as apply the hours to the associate degree. The residency requirement for most colleges is 15 to 16 hours with a few colleges requiring 24 hours. SHSU enthusiastically supports associate degrees via reverse transfer with all state supported colleges.

The Core Curriculum at Sam Houston State University (to be used by all incoming students as of fall 2014) contains 42 semester credit hours, encompassing nine component areas. Each component area has a minimum credit hour requirement and a selection of specific courses that may be used to satisfy the requirement. The chart below details Sam Houston State University courses and their Texas Common Course Number (TCCN) equivalents for college transfer students which comprise SHSU’s core curriculum.

Many SHSU disciplines including the sciences, business, and education require specific courses from the SHSU core as degree specific graduation requirements. To minimize cost and time to complete degree requirements always select SHSU/transfer core courses specified as degree requirements in your intended major. If you have not decided on a major select core courses supporting you intended area of academic concentration.

In general, Bachelor of Arts degrees have a foreign language requirement. Most Bachelor of Science degrees require additional mathematics and lab science requirements. Refer to the university catalog under which you plan to file for graduation for your specific degree requirements.

**** If you do not see a Texas Common Course Number (TCCN) mapping a specific core course to your transfer institution, please go to https://samweb.shsu.edu/regr27wp/ and select your institution from the dropdown menu. The result will list all currently mapped transfer courses from your institution to SHSU courses.

Component Area I: Communications - 6 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)
ENGL 1301Composition I	ENGL 1301
ENGL 1302 Composition II	ENGL 1302

Component Area II: Mathematics - 3 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

MATH 1314	MATH 2312
MATH 1316 Plain Trigonometry	MATH 1316
MATH 1324 Mathematics for Managerial Decision Making	MATH 1324
MATH 1332 College Mathematics	MATH 1332
MATH 1384 Introduction to the Foundations of Mathematics	MATH 1350
MATH 1410 Elementary Functions
MATH 1420 Calculus	MATH 2413
PHIL 2352 Introduction to Contemporary Logic (Students with a documented learning disability and departmental approval may substitute PHIL 2352 to meet the math requirement)

Component Area III: Life and Physical Science- 8 Hours Required

SHSU requires 4 hour science courses consisting of 3 hours lecture with a 1 hour lab component. Transfer institutions may indicate this combination with a 4 hour course number such as BIOL 1408 or as separate lecture and labs such as BIOL 1308/1108. The two course numbering systems are equivalent. Common 3 hour lecture and separate lab course numbers are shown for equivalent or acceptable transfer credit. If you do not see a Texas Common Course NUmber (TCCN) mapping a specific core course to your transfer institution, please go to https://samweb.shsu.edu/regr27wp/ and select your institution from the dropdown menu. The result will list all currently mapped transfer courses specific to your institution to SHSU courses.

SHSU 4 Digit Course Number

TCCN (if applicable)

BIOL 1401 Environmental Science	BIOL 2306/2106 or BIOL 2406
BIOL 1408 Contemporary Biology	BIOL 1308/1108
BIOL 1411 General Botany	BIOL 1311/1111
BIOL 1413 General Zoology	BIOL 1313/1113
BIOL 1436 Foundations of Science
BIOL 2401 Human Anatomy	BIOL 2401
CHEM 1406 Inorganic and Environmental Chemistry	CHEM 1406, CHEM 1305/1105, CHEM 1306/1106
CHEM 1407 Introductory Organic snd Biochemistry	CHEM 1407, CHEM 1307/1107
CHEM 1411 General Chemistry I	CHEM 1411, CHEM 1311/1111
CHEM 1412 General Chemistry II	CHEM 1412, CHEM 1312/1112
GEOG 1401 Weather and Climate	GEOG 1301/1101
GEOL 1403 Physical Geology	GEOL 1303/1103
GEOL 1404 Historical Geology	GEOL 1304/1104
GEOL 1405 Geological Hazards and Resources
GEOL 1436 Foundations of Science
ISCI 1436 Foundations of Science
PHYS 1403 Stars and Galaxies
PHYS 1404 Solar Systems Astronomy

Component Area IV: Language, Philosophy, and Culture- 3 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

ARAB 2311	ARAB 2311
ARAB 2312	ARAB 2312
ENGL 2332 World Literature I: Before 17th Century
ENGL 2333 World Literature II: 17th Century and Afterwards
FOLG 2311 Intermediate Foreign Language I	ARAB 2311/2312, FREN 2311/2312, GERM 2311/2312, SGNL 2311/2312, SPAN 2311/2312
FOLG 2312 Intermediate Foreign Language II	ARAB 2312, FREN 2312, GERM 2312, SGNL 2312, SPAN 2312
FREN 2311 Intermediate French I	FREN 2311
FREN 2312 Intermediate French II	FREN 2312
GEOG 2355 World Regional Geography: Europe, Asia, and Australia	GEOG 1303
GEOG 2356 World Regional Geography: Latin America, Africa, and South Asia	GEOG 1303
GERM 2311 Intermediate German I	GERM 2311
GERM 2312 Intermediate German II	GERM 2312
HIST 2311 World History from the Dawn of Civilization through the Middle Ages	HIST 2311
HIST 2312 World History from the Renaissance to the Age of Imperialism	HIST 2312
MCOM 1330 Analysis of Electronic Culture
MUSI 1379 Survey of World Music Cultures
PHIL 2306 Contemporary Moral Issues	PHIL 2306
PHIL 2361 Introduction to Philosophy	PHIL 1301
SGNL 2311 Intermediate American Sign Language I	SGNL 2311
SGNL 2312 Intermediate American Sign Language II	SGNL 2312
SOCI 2319 Introduction to Ethnic Studies	SOCI 2319
SPAN 2311 Intermediate Spanish I	SPAN 2311
SPAN 2312 Intermediate Spanish II	SPAN 2312

Component Area V: Creative Arts- 3 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

AGRI 2399	ARTS 1301
ARTS 1301	ARTS 1301
ARTS 1302 Exploring Contemporary Art
ARTS 1303 Survey I: Pre-Renaissance Art History	ARTS 1303
FACS 1360 Basic Principles of Design
FAMC 2301 Creative Arts Seminar
MUSI 1301 Introduction to the Study of Music	MUSI 1301
MUSI 1306 Music Appreciation	MUSI 1306
MUSI 2348 Survey of World Music Cultures	MUSI 1308
MUSI 2364 History of Rock, Jazz and Popular Music	MUSI 1310

Component Area VI: U.S. History- 6 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

HIST 1301 American History to 1876	HIST 1301
HIST 1302 American History from 1876	HIST 1302

Component Area VII: Political Science/Government- 6 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

POLS 2305 American Government
POLS 2306 Texas Government

Component Area VIII: Social and Behavioral Sciences- 3 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

AGRI 2360	SOCI 1301
BESL 2301 Multicultural Influences on Learning
COMS 2386 Interpersonal Communication	SPCH 1318
CRIJ 2361 Introduction to the Criminal Justice System
ECON 2300 Introduction to Economics	ECON 1301
ECON 2301 Principles of Macroeconomics	ECON 2301
ECON 2302 Principles of Microeconomics	ECON 2302
GEOG 1321 People, Place and Environment: An Introduction to Geography	GEOG 1300
HLTH 2383 Multicultural Health Issues
PHIL 2303 Critical Thinking	PHIL 2303
PSYC 1301 Introduction to Psychology	PSYC 2301
SOCI 1301 Principles of Sociology	SOCI 1301
SOCI 1306 Social Problems	SOCI 1306

Component Area IX: Component Area Option- 4 Hours Required
SHSU 4 Digit Course Number	TCCN (if applicable)

One additional course in component area 4 OR:
BUAD 2321 Design and Presentation of Business Projects
COMS 1361 Public Speaking
COMS 2382 Communication for Business and Professionals
MCOM 1371 Audio Production and Performance
1 Hour Required:
ECON 1100 Economics of Social Problems
KINE 2115 Lifetime Health and Wellness	PHED 1164
NGLI 1101 Research in the Digital Age
The 4th credit hour of MATH 1410
The 4th credit hour of MATH 1420	MATH 2413

Most degrees require a minimum of 120 hours with 42 advanced hours (3000-level and 4000-level courses). Some degrees require additional hours. All students are required to complete at least six writing-enhanced courses accumulating a minimum of 18 semester hours towards degree completion. Six of the hours must come from the student’s major field of study. SHSU students who have accumulated more than 60 hours may be blocked from enrolling in upper division courses until they have completed their math, English composition, and 4 to 8 hours of lab science.

In general, the Bachelor of Arts degree requires 8 hours of lab science and the Bachelor of Science degree requires 16 hours of lab science. Many majors require specific math and science courses from the core to apply for graduation. Applicants for the Bachelor of Arts degree should consult their major department web page or catalogue for foreign language requirements. Many colleges including Business and Education have additional prerequisites for registration in upper-level (junior/senior) classes including GPA restrictions and completion of lower-level (freshman/sophomore) course work.
Prior to enrolling in core classes, students are encouraged to review specific degree requirements for their major. Selection of major-specified core courses reduces the total number of hours required for graduation.

In general it is not to the advantage of transfer students to simply take courses that transfer. The most desirable goal is typically to only select courses from the core and major lower-level (first two university years) which not only transfer but satisfy degree requirements for graduation in the major to which you aspire.

Students are encouraged to select the university catalog offering them the most advantages with respect to degree completion. The respective university and/or college catalog selected for graduation determines final degree requirements.

Sam Houston State University
A Member of The Texas State University System

Keywords: [biology and environmental science]