Animal Science Major
Requirements
Degree Type: B.S.
Minimum Credits Required: 120
University Degree Requirements
For complete details on these and other university degree requirements, refer to the Degree and Graduation Requirements section in the University Catalog.
- Minimum of 120 semester credits (some programs may exceed this minimum).
- Complete the University General Education requirements.
- Minimum institutional GPA of 2.00 based on work taken at NDSU.
- Minimum of 30 credits in resident at NDSU.
- Minimum of 36 upper level credits (courses numbered 300 or higher).
- Students with transfer credit must meet the NDSU 30 credits in residence (#4). Of these 30 credits in residence, a minimum of 15 credits must be in courses numbered 300 or above, and 15 credits must be in the student's declared major curricula.
University General Education Requirements
A list of university approved general education courses along with the administrative policies governing the requirement and the categories is available here.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Category C: Communication | 12 | |
| Category R: Quantitative Reasoning | 3 | |
| Category S: Science and Technology | 10 | |
| Category A: Humanities and Fine Arts | 6 | |
| Category B: Social and Behavioral Sciences | 6 | |
| Category W: Wellness | 2 | |
| Category D: Cultural Diversity | ||
| Category G: Global Perspectives | ||
| Category L: Digital Literacy | ||
| Total Credits | 39 | |
Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Core Courses for Animal Science | ||
| ANSC 101 | Student Success Techniques - Animal and Equine Science | 1 |
| or ANSC 102 | Student Success Techniques - Animal Sciences with Pre-Veterinary Medicine Emphasis | |
| or VETS 101 | Student Success Techniques: Veterinary Technology | |
| ANSC 114 | Introduction to Animal Sciences | 3 |
| ANSC 115 | Introduction to Livestock Health Management and Welfare | 3 |
| ANSC 130 | Foundations of Livestock and Product Evaluation | 2 |
| or ANSC 235 | Equine Evaluation | |
| ANSC 218 | Anatomy and Physiology of Domestic Animals | 3 |
| ANSC 220 | Livestock Production | 3 |
| ANSC 223 | Introduction to Animal Nutrition | 3 |
| ANSC 240 | Meat Animal Evaluation and Marketing | 3 |
| ANSC 300 | Domestic Animal Behavior and Management | 3 |
| ANSC 324 | Applied Animal Nutrition | 3 |
| ANSC 357 | Animal Genetics | 3 |
| ANSC 463 & 463L | Physiology of Reproduction and Physiology of Reproduction Laboratory | 4 |
| ANSC 379 | Global Seminar | 2 |
| or ANSC 393 | Undergraduate Research | |
| or ANSC 396 | Field Experience | |
| ANSC 478 | Research and Issues in Animal Agriculture | 3 |
| ANSC 480 | Equine Industry and Production Systems | 3 |
| or ANSC 482 | Sheep Industry and Production Systems | |
| or ANSC 484 | Swine Production/Pork Industry Systems | |
| or ANSC 486 | Beef Industry and Production Systems | |
| or ANSC 488 | Dairy Industry and Production Systems | |
| BIOC 260 | Elements of Biochemistry | 4 |
| BIOL 150 & 150L | General Biology I and General Biology I Laboratory | 4 |
| BIOL 151 & 151L | General Biology II and General Biology II Laboratory | 4 |
| ECON 201 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| MATH 103 | College Algebra | 3 |
| or MATH 105 | Trigonometry | |
| or MATH 107 | Precalculus | |
| or MATH 146 | Applied Calculus I | |
| STAT 330 | Introductory Statistics | 3 |
| Program Option | ||
| Students must select one program option of interest to complete the major. The standard option for this major is the Animal Production, Management and Husbandry. Students who wish to declare an option other than Option One must officially declare that option with the Office of Registration and Records. | 27-32 | |
| Total Credits | 90-95 | |
Option 1: Animal Production, Management, & Husbandry Option (Standard)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AGEC 242 | Introduction to Agricultural Management | 3 |
| AGEC 244 | Agricultural Marketing | 3 |
| MICR 202 & 202L | Introductory Microbiology and Introductory Microbiology Lab | 3 |
| CHEM 117 & 117L | Chemical Concepts and Applications and Chem Concepts and Applications Lab | 4 |
| ANSC 340 | Principles of Meat Science | 3 |
| ANSC 370 | Fundamentals/Animal Disease | 3 |
| ANSC 380 | Livestock Sales and Marketing | 2 |
| Select one of the following (must be different from major requirements): | 3 | |
| Equine Industry and Production Systems | ||
| Sheep Industry and Production Systems | ||
| Swine Production/Pork Industry Systems | ||
| Beef Industry and Production Systems | ||
| Dairy Industry and Production Systems | ||
| Animal Production, Management, and Husbandry Elective (choose from any level ANSC, NRM, RNG, PLSC, or SOIL) | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 30 | |
Option 2: Biomedical Science Option1
Students interested in veterinary school should consider this option. The option meets most veterinary school prerequisites. Consultation with an adviser is recommended.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANSC 370 | Fundamentals/Animal Disease | 3 |
| ANSC 444 | Livestock Muscle Physiology | 3 |
| CHEM 121 & 121L | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 122 & 122L | General Chemistry II and General Chemistry II Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 240 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| or CHEM 341 | Organic Chemistry I | |
| MICR 350 & 350L | General Microbiology and General Microbiology Lab | 5 |
| Select one lecture/lab from the following: 2 | 4 | |
| Fundamentals of Physics and Fundamentals of Physics Laboratory | ||
| College Physics I and College Physics I Laboratory | ||
| PLSC 315 | Genetics | 3 |
| Biomedical Science Elective (choose from 300+ level ANSC, BIOC, BIOL, CHEM, MICR, or VETS) | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 32 | |
Option 3: Animal Agribusiness Option
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ACCT 102 | Fundamentals of Accounting | 3 |
| AGEC 242 | Introduction to Agricultural Management | 3 |
| AGEC 244 | Agricultural Marketing | 3 |
| or AGEC 246 | Introduction to Agricultural Finance | |
| AGEC 342 | Farm and Agribusiness Management II | 3 |
| AGEC 420 | Integrated Farm and Ranch Management | 3 |
| CHEM 117 & 117L | Chemical Concepts and Applications and Chem Concepts and Applications Lab | 4 |
| ANSC 380 | Livestock Sales and Marketing | 2 |
| Animal Agribusiness Electives (choose from any level ANSC, AGEC, ECON, NRM, RNG, PLSC or SOIL) | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 27 | |
- 1
Accelerated Undergraduate Animal Science Biomedical Sciences option to Master of Public Health Degree
- Students enrolled in the Biomedical Sciences option may participate in an accelerated undergraduate to graduate program (B.S. Animal Science degree to Master of Public Health degree).
- Students will complete and submit a required Accelerated Degree Program Declaration form identifying no more than 15 credits of graduate coursework to be counted towards their B.S. degree.
- A minimum 3.00 cumulative GPA must be maintained by students in the accelerated degree program.
- 2
Veterinary Schools generally require CHEM 341 and PHYS 211 and their respective lab, at a minimum. Be sure to consult an academic advisor based on veterinary schools you plan to apply to for additional pre-requisites needed.
Degree Requirements and Notes
- Students must earn a minimum 2.00 cumulative GPA for courses that satisfy major requirements
- Transfer grades must be ‘C’ or higher to count toward major requirements