The Health Sciences Emphasis allows students to complete the BS in Biology and the MS in Applied Exercise Science and Performance (AESP) in five years. To remain qualified for the Health Sciences Emphasis, students must meet requirements at certain points in their academic progression. By the end of the second academic year, the student must have earned 63 credits and completed ESS 185 Lifetime Wellness; BIOL 372 Human Anatomy and Physiology I (with laboratory) and BIOL 373 Human Anatomy and Physiology II (with laboratory); CHEM 331 Organic Chemistry I, CHEM 332 Organic Chemistry II, CHEM 334 Organic Chemistry Laboratory I, and CHEM 335 Organic Chemistry Laboratory II; all 100-level required science courses; and 15 credits of Liberal Arts General Education courses in Areas I and III. By the end of the third academic year, the student must have earned 95 credits and fulfill all the AESP application requirements listed below.
Upon earning 95 credits by the end of the third year, the student must have:
- Maintained a 3.0 cumulative GPA and a 3.25 GPA within the major.
- Earned a C or better in all major coursework.
- Completed all General Education requirements.
- Completed all but 6 credits of the undergraduate course requirements for the Health Sciences Emphasis. See MAJOR MAP at western.edu/biol.
- Completed the application for the 3+2 AESP program by satisfying the following:
- Written, submitted and discussed a Letter of Intent with the AESP program Director and his or her advisor. The Letter of Intent should include preliminary research interests and career goals. This letter will be kept on file with the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the application to the AESP program.
- Requested, and the School of Graduate Studies must have received, two letters of recommendation. At least one letter must be from a Western faculty member. Recommendation letters will be kept on file with the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the application to the AESP program.
- Submitted a current résumé. The resume will be kept on file with the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the application to the AESP program.
- Paid the $50 School of Graduate Studies application fee.
Upon satisfying all the requirements listed above, the School of Graduate Studies will consider the student a “AESP candidate with provisional acceptance.”
Upon earning 120 credits by the end of the fourth year, the student must have:
- Completed all undergraduate Health Sciences Emphasis coursework.
- Maintained a 3.0 cumulative GPA and a 3.25 GPA within the major.
- Completed 18 graduate level ESS credits, with at least a 3.0 GPA.
At this time, the School of Graduate Studies will consider the student a “AESP M.S. degree seeking student.”
The Health Sciences Emphasis requires a minimum of 83 credits, including the 26-credit Biology Nucleus, 8 additional credits in Biology, 31 credits of supporting courses, and 18 credits of AESP coursework.
All Biology majors require the 26-credit Biology Nucleus.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Biology Nucleus | ||
| BIOL 150 | Biological Principles (with laboratory) (GT-SC1) | 4 |
| BIOL 151 | Diversity and Patterns of Life (with laboratory) | 4 |
| BIOL 301 | General Ecology | 3 |
| BIOL 310 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 312 | Genetics (with recitation) | 4 |
| CHEM 111 | General Chemistry I (GT-SC2) | 3 |
| CHEM 112 | General Chemistry Laboratory I (GT-SC1) | 1 |
| CHEM 113 | General Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 114 | General Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 |
| Total Credits | 26 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Biology Courses: | ||
| BIOL 372 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I (with laboratory) | 4 |
| BIOL 373 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II (with laboratory) | 4 |
| Total Credits | 8 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum supporting courses: | ||
| CHEM 331 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 332 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 334 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory I | 1 |
| CHEM 335 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 |
| CHEM 471 | Biochemistry I | 3 |
| ESS 185 | Lifetime Wellness | 3 |
| ESS 330 | Exercise Physiology | 3 |
| ESS 331 | Exercise Physiology Lab | 1 |
| ESS 380 | Biomechanics | 3 |
| MATH 213 | Probability and Statistics (GT-MA1) | 3 |
| PSY 100 | General Psychology (GT-SS3) | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 4-8 | |
| Introductory Physics (with laboratory) (GT-SC1) | ||
| OR | ||
| Principles of Physics I (GT-SC2) and Laboratory Physics I (GT-SC1) | ||
AND | ||
| Principles of Physics II (GT-SC2) and Laboratory Physics II (GT-SC1) | ||
| Total Credits | 31-35 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Year four AESP courses: | ||
| ESS 600 | Advanced Statistics | 3 |
| ESS 601 | Quantitative Research Methods | 3 |
| ESS 605 | Exercise and Sport Science Testing and Instrumentation-Lab | 3 |
| ESS 606 | Exercise and Sport Science Testing and Instrumentation-Field | 3 |
| ESS 640 | Environmental Exercise Physiology I | 3 |
| ESS 675 | Clinical Exercise Programming-Lab | 3 |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Upon successful completion of the prescribed courses listed above, University defined General Education, and elective requirements totaling 120 credits (with 40 at the 300-level or higher), students are eligible for their B.S. conferral. Students electing to complete a MS in AESP must follow the balance of the AESP curriculum.
For a full description of the required Graduate coursework, please see the appropriate MS program in the Western Graduate Catalog.
Capstone Course Requirement
The following courses in the Biology Major fulfill the capstone course requirement: ESS 601 Quantitative Research Methods.
Western Watershed General Education Requirements
Students must complete all Western Watershed General Education requirements to graduate.
Graduation Requirements
Undergraduate programs require a minimum of 120 semester credits for graduation. Of those 120 credits, 40 credits must be in upper-division courses (those marked 300 and above). Fifteen of these 40 upper-division credits must be earned in courses that are part of the standard or comprehensive major program being pursued.
Students are expected to review all graduation requirements, which can be found in the Western Undergraduate Catalog: Graduation Requirements.
Degree Plans are for planning purposes. They reflect a suggested plan to complete the degree in a projected timeframe per program of study.
"Western Watershed Course(s)” refers to a course from the Tributaries area of the Western Watershed program. These courses should be chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor.
Sample Plan
| Year One | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| BIOL 151 | Diversity and Patterns of Life (with laboratory) | 3-4 |
| WWGE 101/102/103/104 | Headwaters | 2 |
| CHEM 111 | General Chemistry I (GT-SC2) | 3 |
| CHEM 112 | General Chemistry Laboratory I (GT-SC1) | 1 |
| ENG 102 | Writing and Rhetoric I (GT-CO1) | 3 |
| MATH 140 | College Algebra (GT-MA1) | 3 |
| Credits | 15-16 | |
| Spring | ||
| BIOL 150 | Biological Principles (with laboratory) (GT-SC1) | 4 |
| CHEM 113 | General Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 114 | General Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 |
| PSY 100 | General Psychology (GT-SS3) ((Gen Ed)) | 3 |
| ENG 103 | Writing and Rhetoric II (GT-CO2) | 3 |
| ESS 185 | Lifetime Wellness | 3 |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Year Two | ||
| Fall | ||
| BIOL 372 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I (with laboratory) | 4 |
| CHEM 331 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 334 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory I | 1 |
| BIOL 310 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| Non-Specific Western Watershed Course(s) | 6 | |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Spring | ||
| BIOL 373 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II (with laboratory) | 4 |
| CHEM 332 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 335 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 |
| MATH 141 | Precalculus (GT-MA1) | 4 |
| Non-Specific Western Watershed Credits | 3 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Year Three | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHYS 140 | Introductory Physics (with laboratory) (GT-SC1) | 4 |
| ESS 330 | Exercise Physiology | 3 |
| ESS 331 | Exercise Physiology Lab | 1 |
| CHEM 471 | Biochemistry I | 3 |
| BIOL 301 | General Ecology | 3 |
| Western Watershed Course(s) | 3 | |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Spring | ||
| Elective 6 | ||
| BIOL 312 | Genetics (with recitation) | 4 |
| MATH 213 | Probability and Statistics (GT-MA1) | 3 |
| WWGE 301/302/303/304 | Delta | 1 |
| Credits | 8 | |
| Year Four | ||
| Fall | ||
| ESS 380 | Biomechanics | 3 |
| ESS 601 | Quantitative Research Methods | 3 |
| ESS 605 | Exercise and Sport Science Testing and Instrumentation-Lab | 3 |
| ESS 640 | Environmental Exercise Physiology I | 3 |
| Credits | 12 | |
| Spring | ||
| ESS 600 | Advanced Statistics | 3 |
| ESS 606 | Exercise and Sport Science Testing and Instrumentation-Field | 3 |
| ESS 675 | Clinical Exercise Programming-Lab | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| Year Five | ||
| Fall | ||
| ESS 641 | Environmental Exercise Physiology II | 3 |
| ESS 695 | Thesis | 1-9 |
| ESS 699 | Practicum/Internship | 1-6 |
| Credits | 5-18 | |
| Spring | ||
| ESS 612 | Exercise Biochemistry | 3 |
| ESS 695 | Thesis | 6 |
| Credits | 9 | |
| Total Credits | 127-141 | |
Western is committed to doing our part to provide each student a clear path to graduation. This four‐year degree plan is a sample map for fulfilling requirements in the major and General Education. The pathway that you take to your degree may differ somewhat from this illustration, depending on where you start and the detours and side trips you may take along the way. You are responsible for ensuring your overall, upper division, and major‐specific credits as well as GPA requirements are fulfilled for graduation.