Astronomy & Astrophysics Concentration
McCausland College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Physics & Astronomy
Bulletin Year: 2026-2027

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Semester One (17 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 141	Calculus 13 (CC-ARP)	4	C		C or better in Math 112/115/116 or through placement exam
	CHEM 111 & CHEM 111L	General Chemistry I (PR)	4	C		C or higher in MATH 111 or higher (or by placement into MATH 115 or higher)
		Carolina Core Requirement4 (CC)	3
	UNIV 101	The Student in the University or Carolina Core Requirement4 (PR/CC)	3

Semester Two (15 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
!	MATH 142	Calculus II (CC-ARP)	4	C		C or better in MATH 141
	ASTR 101 or SCHC 115	Intro. to Astronomy or HNRS: Descriptive Astronomy (MR)	4	C
!	PHYS 211 & PHYS 111L	Essentials of Physics I (CC-SCI)	4	C		C or better in MATH 141

Semester Three (16 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
!	MATH 241	Vector Calculus (PR)	3	C		C or better in MATH 142
!	PHYS 212 & PHYS 212L	Essentials of Physics II (CC-SCI)	4	C		C or better in PHYS 211 & MATH 142
	CSCE 106	Sci. Applications Programming (CR)	3	C		Prereq or Coreq: C or better in MATH 111 or higher or by placement score into MATH 115 or higher)
	ASTR 201	Intro. to Astr. II: The Dark Universe (MR)	3	C		ASTR 101 or SCHC 115
		Foreign language5 or other Carolina Core Req.4 (CC-GFL)	3

Semester Four (15 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
!	MATH 242 or MATH 520	Elementary Differential Equations or Ordinary Differential Equations (PR)	3	C		C or better in MATH 142 (MATH 242); C or better in MATH 344 or 544 (MATH 520)
!	PHYS 307	Intro. to Modern Physics (offered spring only) (MR)	3	C		C or better in PHYS 212 & MATH 241
	STAT 509 or STAT 515	Statistics for Engineers or Statistical Methods I (CR)	3	C		MATH 142 or equiv. (STAT 509); C or better in MATH 112, 115, 122 or 141, or in both STAT 110 or higher & MATH 111 or  through placement exam (STAT 515)
	ASTR 301	Galactic Astrophysics (MR)	3	C		C or better in ASTR 201 & PHYS 212
		Foreign language5 or other Carolina Core Req.4 (CC-GFL)	3

Semester Five (15 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	MATH 300 or MATH 344 or MATH course	Transition to Adv. Mathematics or Applied Linear Algebra or MATH course (500-level or above) (PR)	3	C		C or better in MATH 142 (MATH 300 and 344)
	PHYS 306	Principles of Physics III (offered fall only) (PR)	3	C		C or better in PHYS 212 & MATH 142; Prereq or Co-req: MATH 241
	PHYS 501	Quantum Physics I (offered fall only) (MR)	3	C		C or better in PHYS 307 & MATH 242 or 520
	ASTR 302	Extragalactic Astronomy (MR)	3	C		C or better in ASTR 101 or SCHC 115; C or better in ASTR 201
		Foreign language5 or Carolina Core Req.4 (CC/CR)	3

Semester Six (16 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	PHYS 310	Intermediate Exper. Physics (MR)	4	C		C or better in PHYS 212 & STAT 509 or 515
	PHYS 506	Thermal Physics & Statistical Mechanics (offered spring only) (MR)	3	C		C or better in PHYS 306, 307, MATH 241 and MATH 242 or 520
	ASTR 320	Intro. to Radio Astronomy (MR)	3	C		C or better in ASTR 201, MATH 115 or equiv., & in PHYS 202 or 212
	ASTR 340	Intro. to Relativistic Astrophysics (MR)	3	C		C or better in ASTR 201, MATH 115, & in PHYS 202 or 212
		History6 (CR)	3

Semester Seven (14-17 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	ASTR 510	Observational Astronomy (MR)	3	C		C or better in CSCE 106 & ASTR 101 or 201
	PHYS 503	Mechanics (offered fall only) (MR)	4	C		C or better in PHYS 211 & MATH 242 or 520
	MATH 300 or MATH 344 or MATH course	Transition to Adv. Mathematics or Applied Linear Algebra or MATH course (500-level or above) (PR)	3	C		C or better in MATH 142 (MATH 300 and 344)
		Astronomy & Astrophysics Concentration Elective7 (MR/CC-INT)	1-4	C
		Carolina Core Requirement4 (CC)	3

Semester Eight (16 Credit Hours)

Critical	Course Code	Subject and Title	Credit Hours	Min. Grade1	Major GPA2	Prerequisites
	ASTR 499	Undergraduate Research (MR)	3	C
	ASTR 546	Intro. to Astrophysics (MR)	3	C		C or better in PHYS 307
	PHYS 504	Electromagnetic Theory (offered spring only) (MR)	4	C		C or better in PHYS 503
		Humanities or Fine Arts (CR)	3
		Social Science (CR)	3

Graduation Requirements Summary

Minimum Total Hours	Minimum Major Requirements Hours	College and Program Requirements Hours	Carolina Core Hours	Minimum Institutional GPA
120	50	34-40	34-40	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 141 will be required to successfully complete MATH 112, 115, or 116 before taking MATH 141.
4. The Carolina Core provides the common core of knowledge, skill and academic experience for all Carolina undergraduate students.
5. Students in the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences are required to demonstrate proficiency in one foreign language equivalent to the 122 course through course credit or the corresponding foreign language placement score.
6. The McCausland College of Arts and Sciences requires one U.S. History and one non-U.S. History course, both of which must be chosen from the approved Carolina Core GHS courses. Whichever is not fulfilled through the Carolina Core GHS requirement must be fulfilled through this college requirement.
7. Astronomy & Astrophysics Concentration Elective (4 hours): ASTR 103, 499, 534, 599; PHYS 311, 502, 541, 542.
8. No courses of a remedial, developmental, skill-acquiring, or vocational nature may apply as credit toward degrees in the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences. The McCausland College of Arts and Sciences allows the use of the Pass-Fail option on elective courses. Further clarification on inapplicable courses can be obtained from the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences.

Program Notes

• ENGL 101 and ENGL 102 must be completed in the student’s first 60 semester hours of work in order for these courses to be credited toward graduation. Other courses designated as critical are prerequisites for subsequent courses, and a delay in completion of these courses may affect time to graduation.
• 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