Undergraduate Catalog
Soil and Water Science
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Majors must complete core requirements that stress the fundamentals of science. Specializations include soil, water, and land use (with accent on natural resources and the environment); environmental soil and water management (with accent on agricultural and other applied aspects of soil and water science); physical sciences (with accent on chemistry, physics and mathematics); and biological sciences (with accent on microbiology, botany and/or other biological sciences).
| Soil and Water Science |
To remain ‘on track’ for this major, a student must meet the following critical tracking criteria. The critical tracking courses appear in bold.
Semester 1:
- 2.0 UF GPA required for semesters 1-5
- Complete 2 of 6 critical courses – excluding labs CHM2045, CHM2045L, CHM2046, CHM2046L, MAC2311, BSC2010, BSC2010L, BSC2011, BSC2011L, PHY2004, PHY2004L
Semester 2:
- Complete 2 additional courses of the 6 courses – excluding labs
Semester 3:
- Complete 1 additional course of the 6 courses – excluding labs
Semester 4:
- Complete 1 additional course of 6 courses – excluding labs
Semester 5:
- Complete all 6 critical tracking courses – including associated labs
|
Semester 5 |
Credits |
|
SOS 3022 and 3022L Introduction to Soils in the Environment and Lab (GE-P) |
4 |
|
SOS 4715C Environmental Pedology |
4 |
|
CHM 3120 and 3120L Intro to Analytical Chemistry and Lab |
4 |
|
PHY 2005 and 2005L Applied Physics II and Lab (GE-P) |
4 |
|
__ |
|
|
Total |
16 |
|
Semester 6 |
Credits |
|
SOS 4213C Soils and Environmental Chemistry (GE-P) |
3 |
|
MCB 2000 Microbiology |
3 |
|
MCB 2000L Microbiology Lab |
1 |
|
AEE 3030C Effective Oral Communication OR equivalent |
3 |
|
Specialization Electives** |
5 |
|
__ |
|
|
Total |
15 |
|
Summer |
Credits |
|
SOS 4905 Individual Work OR SOS 4941 Full-time Practical Work Experience in Soil and Water Science |
3 |
|
Semester 7 |
Credits |
|
SOS 4602C Soil Physics (GE-P) |
3 |
|
Specialization Electives |
13 |
|
__ |
|
|
Total |
16 |
|
Semester 8 |
Credits |
|
Specialization Electives** |
10 |
**Specialization electives must include at least one of these four courses: ALS 3133 Agriculture and Environmental Quality (3 credits); SOS 4116 Environmental Nutrient Management (3 credits); SOS 4244 Wetlands (3 credits); SOS 4303C Soil Microbial Ecology (3 credits).
Electives are chosen with the student’s adviser. Specific areas of specialization are soil, water and land use; environmental soil and water management; physical sciences; and biological sciences. The student is encouraged to take electives from a range of course groupings that include biology, building construction, chemistry, earth science, environmental science, hydrology, mathematics, physics, policy, production systems, programming and statistics.
Areas of specialization in the soil and water science major are not restricted to the four areas above; other specializations may be developed.
Soil and Water Science Minor
This 15-hour minor must include SOS 3022 Introduction to Soils in the Environment and SOS 3022L Introduction to Soils in the Environment Lab. Additional courses in the minor must be approved in writing at least two semesters before graduation by the academic
adviser and the undergraduate coordinator in soil and water science.