2022-2023 Course Catalog
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
Credits Required for Graduation: 128
General Information about Checksheet
Course offerings are subject to change and the availability of sufficient resources. Students should confirm course offerings in advance with their department.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Degree Core Requirements | ||
| ESM 2104 | Statics | 3 |
| ISE 2014 | Engineering Economy | 2 |
| BSE 3144 | Engineering Analysis for Biological Systems using Numerical Methods | 2 |
| ESM 2304 | Dynamics | 3 |
| BSE 3154 | Thermodynamics of Biological Systems | 3 |
| ESM 3024 | Introduction to Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
| BSE 3504 | Transport Processes in Biological Systems | 3 |
| BIOL 2604 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| BSE 4125 | Comprehensive Design Project | 2 |
| Subtotal | 24 | |
| Major Requirements | ||
| CHEM 1036 | General Chemistry | 3 |
| BSE 2004 | Introduction to Biological Systems Engineering | 3 |
| BIOL 1105 | Principles of Biology | 3 |
| MATH 2204 | Introduction to Multivariable Calculus | 3 |
| MATH 2114 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 3 |
| BIOL 1106 | Principles of Biology | 3 |
| PHYS 2306 | Foundations of Physics | 4 |
| STAT 3704 | Statistics for Engineering Applications | 2 |
| BSE 4126 | Comprehensive Design Project | 3 |
| Subtotal | 27 | |
| Elective Courses | ||
| Select 2 BSE Fundamental Courses or Technical Electives | 6 | |
| Select 2 BSE Electives | 6 | |
| Select 1 BSE Fundamental Course | 3 | |
| Select 1 CHEM Elective | 3 | |
| Select 3 Engineering Topics Electives | 9 | |
| Select 1 Technical Elective | 3 | |
| Subtotal | 30 | |
| Pathways to General Education | ||
| Pathways Concept 1 - Discourse | ||
| ENGL 1105 | First-Year Writing (1F) | 3 |
| ENGL 1106 | First-Year Writing (1F) | 3 |
| ISE 3034 | Technical Communication for Engineers (1A) | 3 |
| Pathways Concept 2 - Critical Thinking in the Humanities | ||
| Select six hours in Pathway 2 | 6 | |
| Pathways Concept 3 - Reasoning in the Social Sciences | ||
| Select six hours in Pathway 3 | 6 | |
| Pathways Concept 4 - Reasoning in the Natural Sciences | ||
| CHEM 1035 & CHEM 1045 | General Chemistry and General Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| PHYS 2305 | Foundations of Physics | 4 |
| Pathways Concept 5 - Quantitative and Computational Thinking | ||
| MATH 1225 | Calculus of a Single Variable (5F ; C-) | 4 |
| MATH 1226 | Calculus of a Single Variable (5F ; C-) | 4 |
| MATH 2214 | Introduction to Differential Equations (5A) | 3 |
| Pathways Concept 6 - Critique and Practice in Design and the Arts | ||
| Select three Arts credits in Pathway 6a | 3 | |
| ENGE 1215 & ENGE 1216 | Foundations of Engineering and Foundations of Engineering (6D ; C-) | 4 |
| Pathways Concept 7 - Critical Analysis of Identity and Equity in the United States | ||
| Pathway 7 should be double-counted with either Pathways 2, 3, or 6a to avoid taking additional credit hours | ||
| Subtotal | 47 | |
| Total Credits | 128 | |
Consult the pathways courses table: https://www.pathways.prov.vt.edu/about/table.html. Pathways courses need to be completed prior to graduation
BSE majors choose a focused 6 hour fundamental elective sequence, 6 hours of BSE electives, 3 hours of chemistry electives, 9 hours of engineering topics electives, and 6 hours of technical electives. Students choose from the courses listed under each respective requirement, noting that some courses are not available to all students because some courses have prerequisites and some are restricted to majors in the offering department. Courses with substantial duplication (as determined by the BSE Undergraduate Curriculum Committee) of courses previously taken will not qualify for credit. Independent study (BSE 4974 Independent Study) and undergraduate research (BSE 4994 Undergraduate Research) courses cannot be used as electives.
There are 2 fundamental sequences to choose from (6-hours total):
For Watershed Science and Environmental Health: BSE 3324 Small Watershed Hydrology and BSE 3334 Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment and Control.
For Biotechnology, Food Engineering, and Health Professions: BSE 3524 Unit Operations in Biological Systems Engineering & BSE 3534 Bioprocess Engineering.
Please see https://eng.vt.edu/em
Students must have had 2 years of a foreign language in high school or one year at the college level (6 credit hours) of the same language. College-level credits used to meet this requirement do not count towards the degree.
University Policy 91 outlines university-wide minimum criteria to determine if students are making satisfactory progress towards the completion of their degrees. The BSE Department fully supports this policy. Specific expectations for satisfactory progress for BSE majors are as follows:
Pre-requisites for each course are listed after the course title. The (letter grade) notation, such as (C-), indicates the minimum grade students must earn in the pre-requisite course.
Courses with substantial duplication of courses taken previously will not qualify for credit. Independent study (DEPT NAME 4974) and undergraduate research (DEPT NAME 4994) courses cannot be used as electives.
Choose from the courses listed under each respective requirement, noting that some courses are not available to all students because some courses have prerequisites and some are restricted to majors in the offering department.
(6 credit hours required)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BSE 2304 | Landscape Measurements and Modeling | 3 |
| BSE 4224 | Field Methods in Hydrology | 3 |
| BSE 4304 | Introduction to Watershed Modeling | 3 |
| BSE 4324 | Applied Fluvial Geomorphology | 3 |
| BSE 4344 | Geographic Information Systems for Engineers | 3 |
| BSE 4524 | Biological Process Plant Design | 3 |
| BSE 4534 | Bioprocess Engineering Lab | 1 |
| BSE/CHE 4544 | Protein Separation Engineering | 3 |
| BSE 4564 | Metabolic Engineering | 3 |
| BSE 4604 | Food Process Engineering | 3 |
(3 credit hours required)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BCHM 2024 | Concepts of Biochemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 2114 | Analytical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 2124 | Analytical Chemistry Laboratory Techniques and Practice | 1 |
| CHEM 2514 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 2535 & CHEM 2536 | Organic Chemistry and Organic Chemistry | 6 |
| CHEM 2565 & CHEM 2566 | Principles of Organic Chemistry and Principles of Organic Chemistry | 6 |
| CHEM 3615 | Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 4615 | Physical Chemistry for the Life Sciences | 3 |
| CSES/ENSC 4314 | 3 | |
| CSES/CHEM/ENSC 4734 | 3 | |
| GEOS 4634 | Environmental Geochemistry | 3 |
(9 credit hours required – students must request to be force-added to major-restricted courses)
All courses listed as Biological Systems Engineering electives, from top list, above
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BMES 2104 | Introduction to Biomedical Engineering | 3 |
| BMES 3124 | Introduction to Biomechanics | 3 |
| BMES 3134 | Introduction to Biomedical Imaging | 3 |
| BMES 3144 | Biomedical Devices | 3 |
| CEE 3104 | Introduction to Environmental Engineering | 3 |
| CEE 4104 | Water and Wastewater Treatment Design | 3 |
| CEE 4114 | Fundamentals of Public Health Engineering | 3 |
| CEE 4134 | Environmental Sustainability - A Systems Approach | 3 |
| CEE 4144 | Air Resources Engineering | 3 |
| CEE 4174 | Solid and Hazardous Waste Management | 3 |
| CEE 4314 | Groundwater Resources | 3 |
| CEE 4324 | Open Channel Flow | 3 |
| CEE 4334 | Hydraulic Structures | 3 |
| CEE 4344 | Water Resources Planning | 3 |
| ECE 3054 | Electrical Theory | 3 |
| ECE 4194 | Engineering Principles of Remote Sensing | 3 |
| ECE 4364 | Alternate Energy Systems | 3 |
| ENGR 3124 | Introduction to Green Engineering | 3 |
| ENGR 4134 | Environmental Life Cycle Assessment | 3 |
| ESM 2204 | Mechanics of Deformable Bodies | 3 |
| ESM/MSE 3054 | Mechanical Behavior of Materials | 3 |
| ESM/MSE 3064 | Mechanical Behavior of Materials Laboratory | 1 |
| ESM 4044/CEE 4610 | Mechanics of Composite Materials | 3 |
| ESM 4105 & ESM 4106 | Engineering Analysis of Physiologic Systems and Engineering Analysis of Physiologic Systems | 6 |
| ESM 4114/AOE 4514 | Nonlinear Dynamics and Chaos | 3 |
| ESM 4204 | Musculoskeletal Biomechanics | 3 |
| ISE 2204 | 3 | |
| ISE 2404 | Deterministic Operations Research I | 3 |
| ISE 4015 | Management Systems Theory, Applications, and Design | 3 |
| ISE 4654 | Principles of Industrial Hygiene | 3 |
| MSE 2034 | Elements of Materials Engineering | 3 |
| MSE 2054 | Fundamentals of Materials Science | 3 |
| MSE 3304 | Physical Metallurgy | 3 |
| MSE 4574 | Biomaterials | 3 |
| MSE 4584 | Biomimetic Materials | 3 |
| MSE 4604 | Composite Materials | 3 |
(6 credit hours required – students must request to be force-added to major-restricted courses):
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AAEC 3314 | Environmental Law | 3 |
| ALS 3404 | Ecological Agriculture: Theory and Practice | 3 |
| ALS/WATR 4614 | Watershed Assessment, Management, and Policy | 2 |
| BCHM 3114 | Biochemistry for Biotechnology and the Life Sciences | 3 |
| BCHM 4115 & BCHM 4116 | General Biochemistry and General Biochemistry | 7 |
| BIOL/CSES/ENSC 4164 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| BMES/BMVS 4064 | Introduction to Medical Physiology | 3 |
| BSE 4394 | Water Supply and Sanitation in Developing Countries | 3 |
| BSE/FREC/HORT/LAR/SPIA 4554 | Creating the Ecological City | 3 |
| CS 1044 | Introduction to Programming in C | 3 |
| CS 1054 | Introduction to Programming in Java | 3 |
| CS 1064 | Introduction to Programming in Python | 3 |
| CSES/ENSC 3114/GEOS 3614 | Soils | 3 |
| CSES/ENSC 3124/GEOS 3624 | Soils Laboratory | 1 |
| CSES/GEOG/GEOS 3304 | Geomorphology | 3 |
| CSES/ENSC 3614 | Soil Physical and Hydrological Properties | 3 |
| CSES/ENSC 3634 | 3 | |
| CSES/ENSC 3644 | 3 | |
| CSES/ENSC 4764 | 3 | |
| CSES/ENSC 4774 | 3 | |
| CSES/ENSC 4854 | Wetland Soils and Mitigation | 3 |
| ECE 2164 | Exploration of the Space Environment | 3 |
| ENGR/COS 2164 | Introduction to Scieneering | 1 |
| ENSC 3604 | Fundamentals of Environmental Science | 3 |
| ENSC 4414 | Monitoring and Analysis of the Environment | 2 |
| ESM/ME 4194 | Sustainable Energy Solutions for a Global Society | 3 |
| FIW/FREC 4324 | Genetics of Natural and Mangaged Populations | 3 |
| FIW 4614 | Fish Ecology | 3 |
| FIW 4624 | Marine Ecology | 3 |
| FREC 3604 | Climate Science | 3 |
| FREC 4374 | Forested Wetlands | 3 |
| FREC 4464/AAEC 4424/WATR 4464 | Water Resources Policy and Economics | 3 |
| FREC 4784 | Wetland Hydrology and Biogeochemistry | 3 |
| FST 2544 | Functional Foods for Health | 3 |
| FST 3024 | Principles of Sensory Evaluation | 3 |
| FST/HORT 3114 | Wines and Vines | 3 |
| FST 3124 | Brewing Science and Technology | 3 |
| FST 3514 | Food Analysis | 4 |
| FST/BIOL 3604 | Food Microbiology | 4 |
| FST 4104 | Applied Malting and Brewing Science | 3 |
| FST 4504 | Food Chemistry | 3 |
| GEOG 1514 | Introduction to Meteorology | 3 |
| GEOG 3104 | Environmental Problems, Population, and Development | 3 |
| GEOG/GEOS 4354 | Introduction to Remote Sensing | 3 |
| GEOS 2104 | Elements of Geology | 3 |
| GEOS 3014 | Environmental Geosciences | 3 |
| GEOS 3034 | Oceanography | 3 |
| GEOS 4804 | Groundwater Hydrology | 3 |
| ISE 4004 | Theory of Organization | 3 |
| ISE 4304 | Global Issues in Industrial Management | 3 |
| LAR 3044 | Land Analysis and Site Planning | 3 |
| MINE 2504 | Introduction to Mining Engineering | 3 |
| SBIO 2124 | Structure and Properties of Sustainable Biomaterials | 3 |
| SBIO 2504 | Circular Economy Analytics for Sustainable Systems | 3 |
| SBIO 3434 | Chemistry and Conversion of Sustainable Biomaterials | 3 |
| SBIO 3444 | Sustainable Biomaterials and Bioenergy | 3 |
| SYSB 3115 | Network Dynamics and Cell Physiology | 4 |
| UAP 3354 | Introduction to Environmental Policy and Planning | 3 |
| UAP 4344 | Law of Critical Environmental Areas | 3 |
| UAP 4374 | Land Use and Environment: Planning and Policy | 3 |
Prerequisites: Most courses have pre-/co-requisites; please consult the University Course Catalog or check with your advisor.
Unless otherwise designated, all courses are 3-credit hour courses.
Students must pass all required courses, with a minimum grade of C- in all BSE-prefix courses. Both the overall and in-major GPA must be at least 2.0, where in-major GPA is based on all BSE-prefix courses taken. Only free electives and courses only offered on a Pass/Fail basis may be taken Pass/Fail.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Credits | |
| CHEM 1035 | General Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 1045 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| ENGL 1105 | First-Year Writing | 3 |
| MATH 1225 | Calculus of a Single Variable (C-) | 4 |
| ENGE 1215 | Foundations of Engineering (C-) | 2 |
| Pathways 2 or 3 or 6A or 7 | 3 | |
| Credits | 16 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CHEM 1036 | General Chemistry | 3 |
| ENGL 1106 | First-Year Writing | 3 |
| MATH 1226 | Calculus of a Single Variable (C-) | 4 |
| PHYS 2305 | Foundations of Physics | 4 |
| ENGE 1216 | Foundations of Engineering (C-) | 2 |
| Credits | 16 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| BSE 2004 | Introduction to Biological Systems Engineering | 3 |
| BIOL 1105 | Principles of Biology | 3 |
| MATH 2204 | Introduction to Multivariable Calculus | 3 |
| MATH 2114 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 3 |
| ESM 2104 | Statics | 3 |
| ISE 2014 | Engineering Economy | 2 |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BSE 3144 | Engineering Analysis for Biological Systems using Numerical Methods | 2 |
| BIOL 1106 | Principles of Biology | 3 |
| ESM 2304 | Dynamics | 3 |
| MATH 2214 | Introduction to Differential Equations | 3 |
| PHYS 2306 | Foundations of Physics | 4 |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| BSE Fundamental Course or Technical Elective | 3 | |
| BSE 3154 | Thermodynamics of Biological Systems | 3 |
| ESM 3024 | Introduction to Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
| STAT 3704 | Statistics for Engineering Applications | 2 |
| CHEM Elective | 3 | |
| Pathways Core Concept 2, 3, 6a, or 7 | 3 | |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BSE Fundamental Course or Technical Elective | 3 | |
| BSE Fundamental Course | 3 | |
| BSE 3504 | Transport Processes in Biological Systems | 3 |
| BIOL 2604 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| ISE 3034 | Technical Communication for Engineers | 3 |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| BSE 4125 | Comprehensive Design Project | 2 |
| BSE Elective | 3 | |
| Engineering Topics Elective | 3 | |
| Engineering Topics Elective | 3 | |
| Pathways Core Concept 2, 3, 6a, or 7 | 3 | |
| Pathways Core Concept 2, 3, 6a, or 7 | 3 | |
| Credits | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BSE 4126 | Comprehensive Design Project | 3 |
| BSE Elective | 3 | |
| Engineering Topics Elective | 3 | |
| Technical Elective | 3 | |
| Pathways Core Concept 2, 3, 6a, or 7 | 3 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Total Credits | 128 | |
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