2025-2026 Academic Catalog

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Bachelor of Science in Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Fish Conservation Major with Marine Fisheries Conservation Option

Program Curriculum

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

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
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)
FIW 4714	Fisheries Management (Fisheries Majors)
Subtotal		20-21
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
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/GEOS 4354	Introduction to Remote Sensing
GEOS 3034	Oceanography	3
Subtotal		19
Option Required Courses
FIW/FREC 4324	Genetics of Natural and Managed Populations	3
FIW 4624	Marine Ecology	3
STAT 3616	Biological Statistics	3
Select approved marine science courses at a collaborating institution (minimum of 10 credits)		10
Subtotal		19
Free Electives (Students may need to complete less credit hours in this category depending on choices in categories above)
Select free electives to total 120 credits		2
Subtotal		2
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
or FREC 3524	Environmental Interpretation
Pathways Concept 2 - Critical Thinking in the Humanities
Select three credits in Pathway 2		3
Select one of the following:		3
FREC/LAR/NR 2554	Leadership for Global Sustainability
PHIL 1304	Morality and Justice
PHIL 2304	Global Ethics
Pathways Concept 3 - Reasoning in the Social Sciences
Select one of the following:		6
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 & MATH 1026	Elementary Calculus and Elementary Calculus (5F)
MATH 1225 & MATH 1226	Calculus of a Single Variable and Calculus of a Single Variable (5F)
STAT 3615	Biological Statistics (5A)	3
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

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 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.

Graduation Requirements

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, FIW 3964, or FIW 4974 should use the P/F option; FIW 2994, FIW 4994 and XXXX 3954 may be taken P/F or A/F.

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.
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

A sequence of two (2) foreign language courses is required for graduation unless two (2) high school units of the same foreign language or six (6) transfer credit hours of foreign language have been earned. These credits do not count toward graduation.