Crop and Weed Science Major
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 Courses for Crop & Weed Sciences | ||
| PLSC 189 | Skills for Academic Success | 1 |
| BIOL 150 & 150L | General Biology I and General Biology I Laboratory | 4 |
| BIOL 151 & 151L | General Biology II and General Biology II Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 121 & 121L | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 122 & 122L | General Chemistry II and General Chemistry II Laboratory | 4 |
| ECON 201 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| ENT 350 | General Entomology | 3 |
| PLSC 110 | World Food Crops | 3 |
| PLSC 215 | Weed Identification | 1 |
| PLSC 225 | Principles of Crop Production | 3 |
| PLSC 312 | Expanding the Boundaries of Learning with Service | 1 |
| PLSC 315 & 315L | Genetics and Genetics Laboratory | 4 |
| PLSC 380 | Principles of Plant Physiology | 3 |
| PLSC 420 | Integrated Forage and Cover Crops Production Management and Ecosystem Services 2 | 3 |
| PLSC 423 | Principles of Weed Science 2 | 3 |
| PLSC 455 | Cropping Systems:An Integrated Approach 2 | 3 |
| PLSC 491 | Seminar | 1 |
| PPTH 424 & 424L | Fundamental Plant Pathology and Fundamental Plant Pathology Laboratory 2 | 3 |
| SOIL 210 | Introduction to Soil Science | 3 |
| STAT 330 | Introductory Statistics | 3 |
| Options: Select one from the following four option areas: | ||
| The standard default option for the major is Agronomy. Student wishing to pursue a different option must officially declare that option with the Office of Registration and Records. | 16-23 | |
| Total Credits | 73-80 | |
Agronomy Option
For students interested in production agriculture.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Agronomy Requirements | ||
| BIOL 461 | Plant Ecology 2 | 3-4 |
| or BIOC 260 | Elements of Biochemistry | |
| or CHEM 240 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | |
| MATH 103 | College Algebra (or higher) | 3 |
| MICR 202 & 202L | Introductory Microbiology and Introductory Microbiology Lab | 3 |
| SOIL 422 | Soil Fertility and Fertilizers 2 | 3 |
| PLSC 300-400 | (No more than 2 credits of co-op allowed) 2 | 4 |
| Total Credits | 16-17 | |
Biotechnology Option
For students interested in the biotechnology industry or pursuing graduate study in crop biotechnology.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Biotechnology Requirements | ||
| BIOC 460 | Foundations of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I 2 | 3 |
| MATH 105 | Trigonometry | 3-4 |
| or MATH 146 | Applied Calculus I | |
| MICR 350 & 350L | General Microbiology and General Microbiology Lab | 5 |
| PLSC 453 | Advanced Weed Science 2 | 2-3 |
| or PLSC 431 | Intermediate Genetics | |
| PLSC 484 | Plant Tissue Culture and Biotechnology 2 | 3 |
| Total Credits | 16-18 | |
Crop Pathology Option
For students interested in protecting agronomic crops from diseases or preparation for Plant Pathology MS.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Crop Pathology Requirements | ||
| MATH 103 | College Algebra | 3 |
| MICR 350 & 350L | General Microbiology and General Microbiology Lab | 4 |
| PLSC 431 | Intermediate Genetics | 3 |
| PPTH 435 | Principles of Plant Disease Management | 1 |
| PPTH 436 | Fungicide: Basics, Resistance, and Emerging Trends | 1 |
| PPTH 460 | Fungal Biology | 3 |
| SOIL 422 | Soil Fertility and Fertilizers | 3 |
| Select two courses from below | 2-3 | |
| Practices of Plant Disease Management Research | ||
| Practical Nematology | ||
| Greenhouse Inoculation and Phenotyping of Crop Diseases | ||
| New Science and Technology in Crop Protection | ||
| Fundamentals of Molecular Techniques in Agriculture | ||
| Plant Disease Diagnostics and Quantification | ||
| Landscape Plant Pathology | ||
| Identification and Management of Non-Soybean Oil and Legume Crop Diseases | ||
| Identification and Management of Soybean and Corn Diseases | ||
| Identification and Management of Small Grain Diseases | ||
| Total Credits | 20-21 | |
Weed Science Option
For students interested in crop consulting, weed management, and plant protection careers or graduate school.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Weed Science Rquirements | ||
| CHEM 240 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 3-4 |
| or BIOC 260 | Elements of Biochemistry | |
| ENT 431 | Principles of Insect Pest Management 2 | 3 |
| MATH 103 | College Algebra (or higher level) | 3 |
| MICR 202 & 202L | Introductory Microbiology and Introductory Microbiology Lab | 3 |
| PLSC 433 | Weed Biology and Ecology 2 | 2 |
| PLSC 453 | Advanced Weed Science 2 | 2 |
| SOIL 422 | Soil Fertility and Fertilizers 2 | 3 |
| PPTH 462 | Identification and Management of Non-Soybean Oil and Legume Crop Diseases 2 | 1 |
| PPTH 463 | Identification and Management of Soybean and Corn Diseases 2 | 1 |
| PPTH 464 | Identification and Management of Small Grain Diseases 2 | 1 |
| Total Credits | 22-23 | |
Degree Requirements and Notes
- The major allows no more than 6 credits of cooperative education (co-op) to be counted toward degree requirements.
- 1
PLSC 189 is only required for first-time, first-year students. These are students who have not yet completed a college course as a college student. Student that are not first-time, first-year students that either transfer into the university or change their major are not required to take this requirement.
- 2
Students who are approved to complete the accelerated program in the Master of Science in Plant Sciences or Plant Pathology are eligible to complete the 600 level course with graduate supervisor approval. Students are allowed to take 15 graduate credits and apply the graduate credit to these undergraduate program requirements. Students are required to complete the Accelerated Degree Student Declaration form and make formal application to the NDSU Graduate School.