BA in Chemistry
Degree Program Description
Chemistry is the study of matter and substances in order to understand, explain, and predict how substances change. The BA degree is designed for those students who desire a more general education than that provided by the BS degree, but nonetheless are seeking a degree in chemistry. Most chemistry majors continue their education in graduate school or professional school. Many of our graduates are now physicians or have teaching and research careers at universities and colleges. Other graduates are managers in industry and specialists in their fields. This degree also may be appropriate for students in pre-professional programs (pre-medicine, pre-dentistry, pre-pharmacy, and pre-law).
Major Program Requirements
Department Level Requirements must be completed in addition to University, general education, and College of Arts and Science requirements. Students must also meet the following major program requirements. All major requirements in the College of Arts and Science must be completed with grades of C- or higher unless otherwise indicated.
Students should consult with a chemistry advisor to schedule science and mathematics requirements in the appropriate order. Note that for a number of chemistry courses there is a prerequisite of a grade of C or better in a previous course. Please see the Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies for assignment of an advisor.
Note that students pursuing a BS degree with a major in Chemistry may opt to satisfy the foreign language requirement through alternative course work consisting of no fewer than 12 credits numbered 2000 or above.
| Major Core Requirements | ||
| CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | College Chemistry I and College Chemistry I Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 1410 & CHEM 1411 | College Chemistry II and College Chemistry II Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 2100 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 2110 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 2130 | Organic Laboratory I | 2 |
| CHEM 2140 | Organic Laboratory II | 2 |
| CHEM 2400 | Fundamentals of Inorganic Chemistry with Lab | 3 |
| CHEM 3200 | Quantitative Methods of Analysis with Lab | 4 |
| CHEM 3700W | Undergraduate Seminar in Chemistry - Writing Intensive | 3 |
| MATH 1500 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I | 5 |
| MATH 1700 | Calculus II | 5 |
| Total Credits | 38 | |
Degree Requirements
| CHEM 4310 | Physical Chemistry I | 3 |
| PHYSCS 1210 | College Physics I | 4 |
| or PHYSCS 2750 | University Physics I | |
| PHYSCS 1220 | College Physics II | 4 |
| or PHYSCS 2760 | University Physics II | |
| Collateral Courses | 12 | |
| Additional course work at the 2000-level or higher outside of chemistry. For example: biological sciences, mathematics, biochemistry or business | ||
| Total Credits | 23 | |
Semester Plan
Below is a sample plan of study, semester by semester. A student's actual plan may vary based on course choices where options are available.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| MATH 1500* | 5 | CHEM 1410 & CHEM 1411 | 4 |
| CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | 4 | MATH 1700 | 5 |
| American History/Government* | 3 | ENGLSH 1000 or 1000H | 3 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 2100 | 3 | CHEM 2110 | 3 |
| PHYSCS 1210 | 4 | CHEM 2130 | 2 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | PHYSCS 1220 | 4 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 3200 | 4 | CHEM 2140 | 2 |
| CHEM 2400 | 3 | CHEM 3700W | 3 |
| Collateral Area Course | 3 | Collateral Area Course | 3 |
| Second Language I | 4-5 | Second Language II | 4-5 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | ||
| 14-15 | 15-16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CHEM 4310 | 3 | Collateral Area Course | 3 |
| Collateral Area Course | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| Second Language III | 3-4 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| General Education/Elective* | 3 | General Education/Elective* | 3 |
| 15-16 | 15 | ||
| Total Credits: 120-123 | |||
- *
Courses satisfy certain University general education requirements.
Degree Audit
The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree.
MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.
Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.
Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.
For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.
Major and Career Exploration
The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.
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If you are considering a change of major or are exploring multiple majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573)884-9700 or through MU Connect Discovery Center service in you success network.
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If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring the major.
- If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values and talents, visit the MU Career Center. No Appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.
- If you would like information about MU majors and degree programs, visit:
- the Degrees, Majors (Degree Programs), Emphasis Areas, Minors and Certificates page in the catalog,
- the MU Majors website.
For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.