Bachelor of Science in Chemistry Roadmap
120 Total Units Required
Minimum Number of Units in the Major: 72
This roadmap is a suggested plan of study and does not replace meeting with an advisor. Please note that students may need to adjust the actual sequence of courses based on course availability. Please consult an advisor in your major program for further guidance.
| First Semester | Units | |
|---|---|---|
| CHEM 115 | General Chemistry I: Essential Concepts of Chemistry (Major Lower-Division) | 5 |
| ENG 114 | Writing the First Year: Finding Your Voice (A2) 1 | 3 |
| MATH 226 | Calculus I (Major Lower-Division, B4) 2 | 4 |
| GE Area A 3 | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| CHEM 215 & CHEM 216 |
General Chemistry II: Quantitative Applications of Chemistry Concepts and General Chemistry II Laboratory: Quantitative Applications of Chemistry Concepts (Major Lower-Division) |
5 |
| MATH 227 | Calculus II (Major Lower-Division) | 4 |
| GE Area A | 3 | |
| GE Area E | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Third Semester | ||
| CHEM 233 & CHEM 234 |
Organic Chemistry I and Organic Chemistry I Laboratory (Major Lower-Division) 4 |
5 |
| CHEM 321 & CHEM 322 |
Quantitative Chemical Analysis and Quantitative Chemical Analysis Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) |
5 |
| Select One (Major Lower-Division, B1, B3): | 4 | |
| General Physics I and General Physics I Laboratory |
||
| General Physics with Calculus I and General Physics with Calculus I Laboratory |
||
| Units | 14 | |
| Fourth Semester | ||
| CHEM 335 & CHEM 336 |
Organic Chemistry II and Organic Chemistry II Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) 5 |
5 |
| Select One (Major Lower-Division): | 4 | |
| General Physics II and General Physics II Laboratory |
||
| General Physics with Calculus II and General Physics with Calculus II Laboratory |
||
| GE Area B: Life Science (B2) | 3 | |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Fifth Semester | ||
| CHEM 251 | Mathematics and Physics for Chemistry (Major Lower-Division) | 3 |
| CHEM 325 | Inorganic Chemistry (Major Upper-Division) | 3 |
| CHEM 351 | Physical Chemistry I: Thermodynamics and Kinetics (Major Upper-Division) | 3 |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| GE Area D | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Sixth Semester | ||
| CHEM 353 | Physical Chemistry II: Quantum Chemistry and Spectroscopy (Major Upper-Division) | 3 |
| CHEM 390GW | Contemporary Chemistry and Biochemistry Research - GWAR (Major Upper-Division) | 3 |
| CHEM 426 | Advanced Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) 6 | 2 |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| GE Area F ± | 3 | |
| Units | 14 | |
| Seventh Semester | ||
| CHEM 340 | Biochemistry I (Major Upper-Division) | 3 |
| CHEM 451 | Experimental Physical Chemistry Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) 6 | 2 |
| Upper-Division Major Elective (9 Units) - Take One 7 | 3-4 | |
| GE Area D | 3 | |
| GE Area UD-B: Upper-Division Physical and/or Life Sciences | 3 | |
| GE Area UD-C: Upper-Division Arts and/or Humanities | 3 | |
| Units | 17-18 | |
| Eighth Semester | ||
| Upper-Division Major Elective (9 Units) – Take Two 7 | 6-8 | |
| GE Area UD-D: Upper-Division Social Sciences | 3 | |
| U.S. and California Government | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective | 3 | |
| Units | 15-17 | |
| Total Units | 120-123 | |
- 1
ENG 114 can only be taken if you complete Directed Self-Placement (DSP) and select ENG 114; if you choose ENG 104/ENG 105 through DSP you will satisfy A2 upon successful completion of ENG 105 in the second semester; multilingual students may be advised into alternative English courses.
- 2
To determine the best B4 course option, students should complete the online advising activity at mathadvising.sfsu.edu. Questions? Contact Gator Smart Start.
- 3
To avoid taking additional units, it is recommended that you meet the SF State Studies (AERM, GP, ES, SJ) requirements within your GE or major.
- 4
Area B1 (Physical Science) is satisfied upon completion of CHEM 233.
Area B3 (Laboratory Science) is satisfied upon completion of CHEM 234.
- 5
- 6
Students may substitute CHEM 343 for CHEM 426 or CHEM 451 upon prior approval of advisor. If CHEM 343 is used as a substitute, it can not also be used as an elective.
- 7
Major Electives
A minimum of 9 units of electives must be selected from the following list of courses. Courses from community colleges cannot be substituted for the courses on the list below. Graduate-level courses in chemistry or appropriate courses in biology, physics, geosciences, and computer science may be substituted upon prior approval of an advisor. Students should keep in mind that non-Chemistry courses may require additional prerequisites that are not met in the Chemistry degree or permission of the instructor.
CHEM 341 Biochemistry II (3 units)
CHEM 343 Biochemistry I Laboratory (3 units)
CHEM 370 Computer Applications in Chemistry and Biochemistry (3 units)
CHEM 420 Environmental Analysis (3 units)
CHEM 422 Instrumental Analysis (4 units)
CHEM 433 Advanced Organic Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 443 Biophysical Chemistry Laboratory (4 units)
CHEM 645GW Research Trends in Chemistry and Biochemistry - GWAR (3 units)
CHEM 667/BIOL 667 Optical Engineering for the Biological Sciences (3 units)
CHEM 680 Chemical Oceanography (3 units)
CHEM 699 Independent Study* (3 units)Select a maximum of one:
CSC 306 An Interdisciplinary Approach to Computer Programming (3 units)
CSC 508 Machine Learning and Data Science for Personalized Medicine (3 units)
CSC 509 Data Science and Machine Learning for Medical Image Analysis (3 units)- *
By petition only. To be used as an upper division elective in Chemistry, a minimum of 3-units must be taken in a single semester.
- ±
Given catalog rights, fall 2023 transfer students do not need to complete an Area F course.