Getting Started (Majors Guide)

College: CNS

 (Revised Spring 2018)  

How to Explore/Get Started in Major

Suggested General Education Courses

Under the new guidelines students are still required to take two courses, one in U.S. Diversity and one in Global Diversity. Students entering in Fall 2018 are expected to take one of these diversity courses, either U.S. or Global, in their first year on campus.  For Fall 2018 Registration, look for courses with DU (formerly U) and DG (formerly G) to help students stay on track.  Any course labled DU will satisfy the requirement for a U.S. diversity course and any course labeled DG will satisfy the the requirement for Global diversity course. Course planning guidelines, including guidelines for students, are available at www.umass.edu/gened.

No specific recommendations. Note that College requirements include proficiency in a foreign language for the B.A.

Suggested Major & Pre-Requisite Courses

Required prerequisites, including recommended sequence:

for the B.S.:   for the B.A.:
MATH 131-132, MATH 233   MATH 131-132
PHYSICS 181-182 (or 151-152)   PHYSICS 151-152
ASTRON 191A (First-Year Seminar, 1 cr.)   ASTRON 191A (First-Year Seminar, 1 cr.)
ASTRON 228 (Spring only)   ASTRON 228 (Spring only)

How to Declare the Major

See the Chief Undergraduate Advisor to declare the major as soon as possible.

Students achieving less than a "B" in the Math or Physics sequences will have great difficulty.

Summary of Requirements for the Major

for the Astrophysics B.S. track:

  • PHYSICS 181, 182, 281, 282, 284/286, 287/289, 421, 422, 423, 424
  • MATH 131, 132, 233, 331 (or computational versions of these courses)
  • ASTRON 191A, 228, 301 (junior year writing), 335, 339 (or PHYSICS 440 for I.E.), 452, plus one additional 3+ credit astronomy course at the 300+ level

NOTE: This track is recommended for students who eventually want to pursue a Ph.D. after graduation.

for the Space Sciences B.S. track:

  • PHYSICS 151-152 or 181-182, 281, 284/286, 287/289, and one more 3+ credit course at the 400+ level
  • MATH 131, 132, 233 (or computational versions of these courses)
  • ASTRON 191A, 228, 301 (junior year writing), 335, 339 (I.E.); three additional 3+ credit astronomy courses at the 200 level or higher and one of these three courses must be at  the 300 level or higher (the 300+ level course can be in related fields such as Physics or Geoscience)
  • INDIVIDUALIZED CONCENTRATION: Students in this track must choose three additional courses (at least 3 credits each) in a related field agreed upon by their advisor.  Courses used to satisfy this concentration cannot be used to satisfy any of the requirements listed above.

NOTE: This track is recommended for students pursuing an astronomy-related professional career after graduation. Majors in this track must develop a plan to complete course requirements with their advisor.

for the Astronomy B.A. track:

  • PHYSICS 151, 152, 281, 284/286, 287/289
  • MATH 131, 132, 233
  • ASTRON 191A, 228, 301 (junior year writing), 335, 339 (I.E.); three additional 3+ credit astronomy courses and one of these three additional courses must be at the 300 level or higher (the 300+ level class can be closely related courses in other departments, such as Physics or Geoscience).

NOTE: This track is designed for careers in teaching, museum work, science writing, pre-med, etc. Students must develop a plan of study with their astronomy advisor to complete all credit requirements.

Is there a minor? If so what are the requirements?
Yes. ASTRON 228 and four additional courses at the 200+ level.

For further information, contact:
Professor Min S. Yun
522 Lederle GRT-B; 545-2215
myun@astro.umass.edu