RITI DE / ASST. NEWS EDITOR

Some science majors are anxious about the marketable value of their degree, as they prepare for their future careers. Though USD encourages a liberal arts  curriculum to enable students  to develop a multifaceted perspective on life, many students and faculty within the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) are questioning the practicality of “Bachelor of Arts” (BA) degrees for natural sciences majors, such as biology, chemistry and physics, as opposed to “Bachelor of Sciences” (BS) degrees.  

Currently, CAS only provides the option for students to participate in either a BS pathway or a BA pathway in physics, biophysics and environmental and ocean sciences. 

Beginning next fall, chemistry and biochemistry majors will be given the option of a Bachelor of Science pathway. However, the faculty in the biology and behavioral neuroscience majors have not yet provided proposals to get the ball rolling for a BS in either of those disciplines. 

Associate Dean Kristin Moran of CAS elaborated on the emerging pathways that will allow some students to choose between earning a BS or BA. 

“This was a conversation that was primarily led by physics and environmental and ocean sciences, because there was some feeling that the courses that students were taking were lab heavy, so they aligned with a Bachelor of Science degree in a way that matched other peer institutions,” Moran said.

Moran expanded on how the two pathways came to be.  

“The CAS did not have the BS option until a few years ago, and so we had to vote as faculty to create the BS option, and then once we voted to create the BS option, faculty had to create the curriculum to go along with that, so that took a minute. And then finally we were able to implement the BS and BA options for students.”

The concern about credentials for many faculty lies in the idea that a BA potentially hinders future career prospects, due to the number of students from other schools who are competing… for the same jobs. 

“It really came down to the fact that students were graduating really well-prepared, but when they were applying for jobs, the faculty that made the proposals felt that they [students] were at a disadvantage, even though they were taking the same classes as someone who graduated from a different university with a BS,” Moran stated. “We wanted to align both with what employers were expecting and also what accurately described the work our students were doing.”

One student expressed her concern for the current system at a recent Associated Student Government (ASG) meeting. On Feb. 29, commuter senator and junior Aann Alkhori expressed that natural science majors are frustrated that they are receiving their degrees as a Bachelor of Arts  rather than a Bachelor of Science

Dr. Michael Lovette-Colyer, Vice President of Mission Integration, responded to this concern explaining that changes are being made to address this issue. 

“There is a committee of the Board [of Trustees] called the Academic Affairs Committee, and they’re addressing this very issue,” Lovette-Colyer noted. “We fully expect that they will approve the change to a Bachelor of Science in at least some of these disciplines… Progress is happening as we speak.”

Alkhori explained her reasoning behind bringing the issue to the floor. 

“As   a   student majoring in the natural sciences, we have a very rigorous work and degree load,” Alkhori said. “We are required to take many science-heavy courses that are the more advanced versions of similar courses offered. We have no problem completing the courses, but because they are much more rigorous and advanced, we believe that we should at least be able to graduate with a Bachelor of Science.”

Alkhori highlighted why the distinction between BA and BS matters.

“When we graduate, we may come across some issues,” Alkhori said. “For example, it can be very difficult to not get filtered out in a job application, because our application does not say ‘BS,’ although our degree is equivalent to such.” 

Alkhori also stated that the distinction between a BA and a BS degree should be reflected by the course load that’s required to obtain the degree. 

“I, along with many students majoring in the natural sciences, respect and appreciate that USD is a liberal arts institution,” Alkhori explained. “It would be a great idea if we could pick to pursue a BA, or a BS, or both as we already have simple and advanced versions of many classes. Perhaps students wanting to pursue a BA in the natural sciences may take more diverse classes with interdisciplinary subjects, rather than the main rigorous science courses.”

As a biology major and soon-to-be graduate, USD senior Carina Leveroni shared her thoughts on this issue. 

“I definitely support having a Bachelor of Science option, because it does prepare us a lot better to go into the field. BA is really useful, and I love taking all my core curriculum classes, but to go into a STEM career … a BS just gives you better support. When you’re applying to jobs, seeing that you have a BS gives you that leg up, so I definitely think it would be a positive thing to have.”

Leveroni explained her confusion about the lack of initiative    in the  biology department for the option of a BS pathway. 

“Within biology, there are a lot of technical lab skills you are developing, there are a lot of different science techniques that you are doing, and especially because we are in the Shiley Center for Science and Technology I feel like we would earn a Bachelor of Science degree as well,” Leveroni said.

“I can see in interviews that people are coming from bigger universities where they are getting a Bachelor of Science,” Leveroni said. “That initial readthrough might give those students a little bit of a leg up.”

BS pathways for chemistry and biochemistry will be offered starting next fall, but for biology and behavioral neuroscience, the timeline is unknown.

USD students in the natural sciences take a science-heavy course load, yet many majors graduate with a Bachelors of Arts. Photo courtesy of @usdcas/Instagram