Dec 10, 2025

2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Chemistry, B.S.

Department of Chemistry
615-904-8114
Scott Handy, program coordinator
Scott.Handy@mtsu.edu

The Chemistry program includes traditional areas-analytical, biochemistry, organic, inorganic, and physical-as well as computational, polymer, medicinal, and environmental chemistry.

NOTE: A grade of C or better is required on all transfer credits accepted as part of a major or minor in the Department of Chemistry. Students must have a grade point average of at least 2.00 on courses counting toward a major or minor in any of the department’s programs.

NOTE2: Students who wish to get jobs as chemists are strongly encouraged to take additional upper-division courses (especially CHEM 4230 /CHEM 4231 ), follow the plan for the ACS major, or take more advanced chemistry courses upon graduation.

Academic Map

Following is a printable, suggested four-year schedule of courses:

Chemistry, B.S., Academic Map

Degree Requirements

True Blue Core (TBC)	41 hours
Major Requirements	39-45 hours*
Supporting Courses	16-20 hours*
Electives	14-35 hours
TOTAL	120 hours

*This program requires courses that can also fulfill requirements of the True Blue Core curriculum. If program requirements are also used to fulfill True Blue Core requirements, the number of elective hours will increase.

True Blue Core (41 hours)

True Blue Core (TBC) requirements (shown in curricular listings below) include courses in the Foundational Skills areas of Written Communication (WC), Information Literacy (Info Lit), Non-Written Communication (NWC), and Quantitative Literacy (Quant Lit). Knowledge Domains include Human Society and Social Relationships (HSSR), Scientific Literacy (Sci Lit), Creativity and Cultural Expression (CCE), and History and Civic Learning (HCL), which include Discovery and Explorations categories. Students must choose at least one course from each Discovery category.

The following courses required by the major meet True Blue Core requirements:

MATH 1910 (Quant Lit) (See Note 1)
CHEM 1110 /CHEM 1111 (Sci Lit) (See Note 2)
PHYS 2010 /PHYS 2011 or PHYS 2110 /PHYS 2111 (Sci Lit)

Major Requirements (39-45 hours)

CHEM 1110 - General Chemistry I 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 1111 - General Chemistry I Lab 0 credit hours (may be counted in the True Blue Core)
CHEM 1120 - General Chemistry II 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 1121 - General Chemistry II Lab 0 credit hours
CHEM 2230 - Quantitative Analysis 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 2231 - Quantitative Analysis Lab 2 credit hours
CHEM 3010 - Organic Chemistry I 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 3011 - Organic Chemistry I Lab 1 credit hour
CHEM 3020 - Organic Chemistry II 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 3021 - Organic Chemistry II Lab 1 credit hour
CHEM 4330 - Physical Chemistry Fundamentals I 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4331 - Physical Chemistry Fundamentals I Lab 0 credit hours
OR
CHEM 4350 - Physical Chemistry I 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4351 - Physical Chemistry I Lab 0 credit hours
AND
CHEM 4360 - In-depth Physical Chemistry 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4361 - Physical Chemistry II Lab 0 credit hours
CHEM 4400 - Inorganic Chemistry I 3 credit hours
CHEM 3530 - Principles of Biochemistry 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 3531 - Principles of Biochemistry Lab 0 credit hours
OR
CHEM 4500 - Biochemistry I 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 4510 - Biochemistry II 3 credit hours

Upper-Division Chemistry Electives (7 hours)

NOTE: MTeach minor students may use CHEM 3890, CHEM 4740, and YOED 4050 to fulfill the 7 hours of upper-division electives.

Electives (14-35 hours)

Sufficient upper-division credit must be taken to equal 36 credit hours

Curriculum: Chemistry

Freshman Fall

CHEM 1110 - General Chemistry I 4 credit hours (Sci Lit) AND
CHEM 1111 - General Chemistry I Lab 0 credit hours (Sci Lit)
MATH 1730 - Pre-Calculus 4 credit hours (if needed, see NOTE 1; prerequisite to MATH 1910 )
Written Communication 3 credit hours
History and Civic Learning 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Freshman Spring

Information Literacy 3 credit hours
History and Civic Learning 3 credit hours
MATH 1910 - Calculus I 4 credit hours (Quant Lit)
CHEM 1120 - General Chemistry II 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 1121 - General Chemistry II Lab 0 credit hours

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Sophomore Fall

MATH 1920 - Calculus II 4 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours
CHEM 3010 - Organic Chemistry I 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 3011 - Organic Chemistry I Lab 1 credit hour
PHYS 2010 - Non-Calculus-Based Physics I 0 credit hours (Sci Lit) AND
PHYS 2011 - Physics Problems Laboratory I 4 credit hours (Sci Lit)
OR
PHYS 2110 - Calculus-Based Physics I 0 credit hours (Sci Lit) AND
PHYS 2111 - Calculus-Based Physics Laboratory I 4 credit hours (Sci Lit)

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Sophomore Spring

Creativity and Cultural Expression Literature 3 credit hours
CHEM 2230 - Quantitative Analysis 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 2231 - Quantitative Analysis Lab 2 credit hours
CHEM 3020 - Organic Chemistry II 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 3021 - Organic Chemistry II Lab 1 credit hour
PHYS 2020 - Non-Calculus-Based Physics II 0 credit hours AND
PHYS 2021 - Physics Problems Laboratory II 4 credit hours
OR
PHYS 2120 - Calculus-Based Physics II 0 credit hours AND
PHYS 2121 - Calculus-Based Physics Laboratory II 4 credit hours

Subtotal: 16 Hours

Junior Fall

Non-Written Communication 3 credit hours
Human Society and Social Relationships 3 credit hours
CHEM 4400 - Inorganic Chemistry I 3 credit hours
CHEM 4330 - Physical Chemistry Fundamentals I 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4331 - Physical Chemistry Fundamentals I Lab 0 credit hours
OR
CHEM 4350 - Physical Chemistry I 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4351 - Physical Chemistry I Lab 0 credit hours
AND
CHEM 4360 - In-depth Physical Chemistry 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 4361 - Physical Chemistry II Lab 0 credit hours
CHEM 3530 - Principles of Biochemistry 4 credit hours AND
CHEM 3531 - Principles of Biochemistry Lab 0 credit hours
OR
CHEM 4500 - Biochemistry I 3 credit hours AND
CHEM 4510 - Biochemistry II 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 17 Hours

Junior Spring

CHEM upper-division elective 3 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression 3 credit hours
Human Society and Social Relationships 3 credit hours
Electives 6 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Senior Fall

CHEM upper-division elective 2 credit hours
Elective 9 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Senior Spring

CHEM upper-division elective 2 credit hours
Chemistry lab elective 2 credit hours
Upper-division electives 8 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

NOTE:

Included in the electives will be the hours necessary for the completion of the required 36 upper-division hours for graduation requirements and the necessary hours to satisfy the 120-hour graduation requirement.

NOTE 1: A student who has a sufficiently high score on the ACT Mathematics test may begin with MATH 1910 . If the background in math is weak, MATH 1710 should be taken before MATH 1730 .

NOTE 2: A student who has had little or no high school chemistry or is not satisfied with his/her high school chemistry should first take CHEM 1010 /CHEM 1011 before taking CHEM 1110 /CHEM 1111 .

Chemistry, B.S.

Academic Map

Degree Requirements

True Blue Core (41 hours)

Major Requirements (39-45 hours)

Upper-Division Chemistry Electives (7 hours)

At least five hours from:

At least two hours from:

Supporting Courses (16-20 hours)

Electives (14-35 hours)

Curriculum: Chemistry

Freshman Fall

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Freshman Spring

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Sophomore Fall

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Sophomore Spring

Subtotal: 16 Hours

Junior Fall

Subtotal: 17 Hours

Junior Spring

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Senior Fall

Subtotal: 14 Hours

Senior Spring

Subtotal: 15 Hours

NOTE: