2024-2025 Academic Catalog

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Bachelor of Science in Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Fish Conservation Major with Human Dimensions Option

Program Curriculum

Course List
Code	Title	Credits
Degree Core Requirements
BIOL 1115	Principles of Biology Laboratory	1
BIOL 1116	Principles of Biology Laboratory	1
BIOL 2704	Evolutionary Biology	3
FIW 2114	Principles of Fish and Wildlife Conservation	3
FIW 4414	Population Dynamics and Estimation	3
FIW 4464	Human Dimensions of Fisheries and Wildlife	3
Select one of the following:
NR 1234	First Year Experience In Natural Resources and Environment	2-3
or NR 2234	1st Semester Experience-Transfer Students in Natural Resources and Environment
Select one of the following:		4
FIW 4314	Conservation of Biological Diversity (Wildlife Majors)
or FIW 4714	Fisheries Management
Subtotal		20-21
Major Requirements
BIOL 2804	Ecology	3
FIW 3514	Fisheries Techniques	3
FIW 4424	Ichthyology	4
FIW 4614	Fish Ecology	3
Geographic Information Systems Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
FREC 4114	Information Technologies for Natural Resource Management
FREC 4214	Forest Photogrammetry and Spatial Data Processing
GEOG 2084	Principles of Geographic Information Systems
GEOG 4354	Introduction to Remote Sensing
GEOS 3034	Oceanography	3
Subtotal		19
Additional Degree Requirements
CHEM 1035	General Chemistry	3
CHEM 1036	General Chemistry	3
CHEM 1045	General Chemistry Laboratory	1
CHEM 1046	General Chemistry Laboratory	1
Experiential Learning Requirement
Select one of the following: (requires department approval)		1
FIW 2974	Independent Study
FIW 2994	Undergraduate Research
FIW 3964	Internship Through Directed Field Study
FIW 4974	Independent Study
FIW 4994	Undergraduate Research
XXXX 3954	Study Abroad
Legal Foundation Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
AAEC 3314	Environmental Law
FIW 2514	Fish and Wildlife Conservation Policy
FREC 4434	Natural Resource Policy
UAP 3354	Introduction to Environmental Policy and Planning
UAP 4344	Law of Critical Environmental Areas
Writing Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
ALCE 3624	Communicating Ag and Life Sciences in Writing
ENGL 3764	Technical Writing
ENGL 3774	Business Writing
Subtotal		15
Option Required Courses
Education, Outreach, & Interpretation Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
ALCE 3004	Educational Programs in Agricultural and Life Sciences
ALCE 4014	Introduction to Cooperative Extension
ALCE 4304	Community Education and Development
FREC 3524	Environmental Interpretation
FREC 3574	Environmental Education Service Learning
Stakeholder Engagement & Conflict Resolution Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
FIW 4454	Human-Wildlife Conflicts
PSVP 2044	Peace and Violence
RLCL 3204	Multicultural Communication
SOC 2034	Diversity and Community Engagement
SPIA 1024	Community Service Learning
SPIA 2554	Collaborative Policy-Making and Planning
STS 3104	Science and Technology in Modern Society
Ethics & Humanities Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
HIST 3144	American Environmental History
PSCI 3344	Global Environmental Issues: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
STS 3705	History of Science
UAP 4264	Environmental Ethics and Policy
WATR 2004	Water, Environment, and Society
Social Sciences Restricted Elective
Select one of the following:		3
FIW 2334	Urbanization and Biodiversity Conservation
GEOG 4414	Climate Change and Societal Impacts
AAEC 3324	Environment and Sustainable Development Economics
APS 3464	Appalachian Communities
GEOG 3104	Environmental Justice
HIST 2604	Introduction to Data in Social Context
SOC 2024	Sociology of Race and Ethnicity
SOC 3314	Social Movements
STS 2454	Science, Techology, and Environment
STS 3334	Energy and Society
Tourism, Recreation & Management
Select one of the following:		3
FIW 2234	Fish, Fishing, and Conservation
FREC 3544	Outdoor Recreation Planning and Management
HTM 2454	Global Travel & Tourism Management
HTM 4484	International Tourism
HTM 3484	Socio-Cultural Impacts of Tourism
Subtotal		15
Free Electives (Students may need to complete less credit hours in this category depending on choices in categories above)		6
Subtotal		6
Pathways to General Education
Pathways Concept 1 - Discourse
ENGL 1105	First-Year Writing (1F)	3
ENGL 1106	First-Year Writing (1F)	3
ALCE 3634	Communicating Ag and Life Sciences in Speaking (1A)	3
or COMM 2004	Public Speaking
Pathways Concept 2 - Critical Thinking in the Humanities
Select three credits in Pathway 2		3
Select one of the following:		3
FREC 2554	Leadership for Global Sustainability (Recommended for Human Dimensions option)
PHIL 1304	Morality and Justice
PHIL 2304	Global Ethics
Pathways Concept 3 - Reasoning in the Social Sciences
Select three credits in Pathway 3		3
Select one of the following:		3
AAEC 1005	Economics of the Food and Fiber System
or AAEC 1006	Economics of the Food and Fiber System
ECON 2005	Principles of Economics
or ECON 2006	Principles of Economics
Pathways Concept 4 - Reasoning in the Natural Sciences
BIOL 1105	Principles of Biology	3
BIOL 1106	Principles of Biology	3
Pathways Concept 5 - Quantitative and Computational Thinking
Select one of the following:		6
MATH 1025	Elementary Calculus (5F)
or MATH 1225	Calculus of a Single Variable
MATH 1026	Elementary Calculus (5F)
or MATH 1226	Calculus of a Single Variable
STAT 3604	Statistics for Social Science (5A)	3
or STAT 3615	Biological Statistics
Pathways Concept 6 - Critique and Practice in Design and the Arts
Select three credits in Pathway 6a		3
Select three credits in Pathway 6d		3
Pathways Concept 7 - Critical Analysis of Identity and Equity in the United States
Select three credits in Pathway 7		3
Subtotal		45
Total Credits		120-121

Satisfactory Progress

By the end of the semester in which they have attempted 60 hours (including transfer, advanced placement, advanced standing, and credit by examination), students must pass the courses listed in item number 1 of graduation requirements above (or their equivalents).
To remain in good standing, a student must achieve and maintain an overall and in-major cumulative GPA of at least 2.0. Courses used for the in-major GPA computation include all those designated as FIW, FREC, GEOG, NR, and SBIO. To graduate, a student must achieve an overall and in-major cumulative GPA of at least 2.0.

Graduation Requirements

Minimum hours for degree is 120. A minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 is required for all work applied to the major

Major Requirements:

To earn a B.S. degree in Fish Conservation, a student must pass the following courses, or their equivalents, with a grade of C - or better: BIOL 1105 Principles of Biology, BIOL 1106 Principles of Biology, BIOL 1115 Principles of Biology Laboratory, BIOL 1116 Principles of Biology Laboratory , and FIW 2114 Principles of Fish and Wildlife Conservation.
There are no hidden prerequisites on this check sheet; however, course requirements may change over time, and students should always check for prerequisites for classes they select.
Students should consult www.fishwild.vt.edu/experiential_learning.html for more details on how to fulfill the experiential learning requirement. Note that you will not receive credit for your experiential learning until all the documents related to the experience are completed and submitted, in addition to being registered for the experience. Students enrolling in FIW 2974 Independent Study, FIW 3964 Internship Through Directed Field Study, or FIW 4974 Independent Study should use the P/F option; FIW 2994 Undergraduate Research, FIW 4994 Undergraduate Research and XXXX 3954 may be taken P/F or A/F.
FIW 2514 Fish and Wildlife Conservation Policy is one option for the Legal Foundation Restricted Elective, under Additional Major Requirements, and it can also serve as an option for 3 credit hours under Pathways Concept 3 requirements.
In accordance with university guidelines, courses satisfying degree core requirements may not be double counted to satisfy other areas of a degree (e.g., Pathways).

Foreign Language Requirement

University Requirements—Foreign Language Policy Complete an 1105-1106 foreign language (e.g., FR, GR, SPAN) grouping or the equivalent.