Arnold School of Public Health
Department of Exercise Science
Bulletin Year: 2026-2027

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Semester One (15-16 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	ENGL 101	Critical Reading and Composition (CC-CMW)	3	C
	MATH 122 or MATH 141	Calculus for Bus. Admin. & Soc. Sci. or Calculus I3 (CC-ARP)	3	C		C or better in MATH 111/111I/115 (MATH 122); C or better in MATH 112/115/116 (MATH 141); or through placement exam
	PSYC 101	Introduction to Psychology (CC-GSS)	3	C
	BIOL 101 & 101L	Biological Principles I (CC-SCI)	4	C
	UNIV 101	The Student in the University (CR)	3	C

Semester Two (17 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	ENGL 102	Rhetoric and Composition (CC-CMW, CC-INF)	3	C		C or better in ENGL 101
	BIOL 102 & 102L	Biological Principles II (CC-SCI)	4	C
	CHEM 111 & 111L	General Chemistry I (PR)	4	C		C or higher in MATH 111 or higher (or by placement into MATH 115 or higher)
	SOCY 101	Introductory Sociology (CR)	3	C
		Carolina Core Requirement4 (CC)	3

Semester Three (14-15 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	EXSC 191	Physical Activity and Health (CR)	3	C
	EXSC 223 & 223L	Anatomy & Physiology I (MR)	4	C		ENGL 102, BIOL 102/L, CHEM 111/L, MATH 122 or 141
	PHYS 201 & 201L	General Physics I (PR)	4	C		C or better in MATH 111/111i/112/115/116/122/141 or higher
		Foreign language5 or other Carolina Core Requirement4 (CC-GFL)	3-4

Semester Four (17 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	EXSC 224 & 224L	Anatomy & Physiology II (MR)	4	C		C or better in EXSC 223 & 223L
	STAT 201 or STAT 205	Elementary Statistics or Elem. Stats. for the Bio. & Life Sci. (CC-ARP)	3	C		C or better in MATH 111 higher or in STAT 110 or 112 or through placement exam (STAT 201); C or better in MATH 111 or higher or through placement exam  (STAT 205)
	CHEM 112 & 112L or PHYS 202 & 202L	General Chemistry II or General Physics II (PR)	4	C		C or higher in MATH 111 or higher MATH (or by placement score into MATH 115 or higher); C or higher in CHEM 111L or CHEM 141L (CHEM 112/L); C or better in PHYS 201 (PHYS 202/L)
		Cognate Course6 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Foreign language5 or other Carolina Core Req.4 (CC-GFL)	3

Semester Five (16 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	EXSC 351	Acquisition of Motor Skills (MR)	3	C		C or better in EXSC 224/L
	EXSC 330 & 330L	Exercise Physiology (MR)	4	C		C or better in EXSC 224/L
		Cognate Course6 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Cognate Course6 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Carolina Core Requirement4 or Elective7 (CC/PR)	3

Semester Six (15 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	PUBH 302	Introduction to Public Health (CR)	3	C
	EXSC 335 or EPID 410	Biomechanics of Human Movement or Principles of Epidemiology (MR)	3	C		C or better in EXSC 224/L, PHYS 201/L (EXSC 335); PSYC 101 (EPID 410)
		EXSC Cognate Course8 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Cognate Course6 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Carolina Core Requirement4 or Elective7 (CC/PR)	3

Semester Seven (13 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	EXSC 401	Practicum Preparation (MR)	1	C		C or better in EXSC 330
	EPID 410	Principles of Epidemiology (CR)	3	C		Prereq or Coreq: STAT 201 or 205
		EXSC Cognate Course8 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		Carolina Core Requirement4 or Elective7 (CC/PR)	3
		Carolina Core Requirement4 or Elective7 (CC/PR)	3

Semester Eight (12 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	EXSC 444	Exercise Science Practicum (MR, CC-INT)	6	C		EXSC 401
		EXSC Cognate Course8 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.
		EXSC Cognate Course8 (300-level or above) (PR)	3	C		See course listing in Bulletin.

Graduation Requirements Summary

Minimum Total Hours	Minimum Major Requirements Hours	College & Program Requirements Hours	Carolina Core Hours	Minimum Institutional GPA
120	25	51-63	32-44	2.000

1. Regardless of individual course grades, students must maintain a minimum 2.000 cumulative GPA.
2. Some colleges require a minimum GPA for major courses. Courses indicated in this column are included in the major GPA for this program of study.
3. Students who do not place into MATH 122 or 141 must complete the required prerequisite before proceeding with MATH 122 or 141.
4. The Carolina Core provides the common core of knowledge, skill and academic experience for all Carolina undergraduate students.
5. Students in the Arnold School of Public Health are required to demonstrate proficiency in one foreign language equivalent to the 110 course through course credit or the corresponding foreign language placement score.
6. Each student must complete a cognate of 12 credit hours. The cognate is intended to support the course work in the major. Depending on student interests, cognate courses may be selected from one or several units. Courses applied toward Carolina Core requirements, EXSC major courses, or EXSC cognate courses cannot be counted toward the cognate. All cognate courses must be approved by the student’s academic advisor.
7. Students in Public Health must complete a minimum of 120 credit hours. Depending on specific course choices, students must complete an appropriate number of elective courses.
8. Each student must complete an EXSC cognate of 12 credit hours. The cognate is intended to support the course work in the major and enhance the student’s area of interest. EXSC major requirement courses may not count towards the cognate. All EXSC cognate courses must be approved by the student’s academic advisor.

Program Notes

• Students majoring in Exercise Science may pursue minors offered by other units. In completing a minor, students may apply advisor-approved courses to both the minor and cognate, or elective requirements. Courses applied as college requirements may also be used in the minor.
• All undergraduate students must take a 3-credit course or its equivalent with a passing grade that covers the founding documents.  This course may fulfill any requirement in the program of study. Courses that meet this requirement are listed in the academic bulletin. 
• The last 30 credit hours toward your degree must be earned in residence at the University of South Carolina-Columbia.

Code Definitions

University Requirements: Bachelor’s degree-seeking students must meet Carolina Core (general education) requirements.

Code	Definition
CC	Carolina Core
CC-AIU	Carolina Core – Aesthetic and Interpretive Understanding
CC-ARP	Carolina Core – Analytical Reasoning and Problem-Solving
CC-CMS	Carolina Core – Effective, Engaged, and Persuasive Communication: Spoken Component
CC-CMW	Carolina Core – Effective, Engaged, and Persuasive Communication: Written Component
CC-GFL	Carolina Core – Global Citizenship and Multicultural Understanding: Foreign Language
CC-GHS	Carolina Core – Historical Thinking
CC-GSS	Carolina Core – Social Sciences
CC-INF	Carolina Core – Information Literacy
CC-INT	Carolina Core – Integrative Course
CC-SCI	Carolina Core – Scientific Literacy
CC-VSR	Carolina Core – Values, Ethics, and Social Responsibility
CR	College Requirement
MR	Major Requirement
PR	Program Requirement