Astronomy Sample Schedules

The following sample schedules indicate the approximate order of courses to complete a degree in Astronomy for a student beginning the major in his or her first year. As many Union students elect to spend a term abroad, we present two versions of the schedule, one for a student taking a term abroad in the Fall of senior year and the other for a student who is on campus for all four years. We also present a schedule for a Physics major with an Astrophysics minor, which is the recommended course for students interested in graduate study in astronomy or astrophysics.

Sample Schedule without Term Abroad

Sample Schedule with Term Abroad

Notes: These schedules assume the maximum number of General Education courses, with no “double-counting” or transfers to meet requirements, The schedule with the term abroad assumes that classes taken on the term abroad count toward the “Linguistic and Cultural Competency” (LCC) or World Langues (WOL) requirement. Five Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) courses are required; astronomy courses that fulfill the WAC requirement are indicated. Often general education courses may fill more than one requirement; for example, a literature course might also count as a WAC.

More courses are listed than the major requires. Note that even under these conservative assumptions, it is possible to complete a strong Astronomy major with a number of free electives. These electives may easily be combined with General Education courses or other electives to allow a student to complete a second major or a minor.

The first-year schedule with the Term Abroad assumes that students enter the Astronomy major with some Advanced Placement credit in math, placing them in Math 113. The schedule without the Term Abroad assumes placement in Math 110. The Math department has several introductory tracks, depending on the level of preparation students have received in high school. Students who have not taken Advanced Placement tests usually take Math 110 and Math 112 instead of Math 113; students with exceptionally strong math backgrounds may skip Math 113, and start with Math 115. All of these variants are easily accommodated within the Astronomy curriculum.

One class is listed as “Science Elective” although students fulfilling the major requirement with two geology courses are not required to take additional outside science. We encourage students to take outside science classes as early as possible, as they may lead students to pursue double majors or interdisciplinary majors.

A “Math Elective” is included in the schedule We strongly recommend that students who may be interested in graduate study in astronomy take math courses beyond those required for the major.

Sample Schedule for Physics Major and Astrophysics Minor

Notes: This schedule assumes the maximum number of General Education courses, with no “double-counting” to meet requirements. Five Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) courses are required; physics and astronomy courses that fulfill the WAC requirement are indicated. Often general education courses may fill more than one requirement; for example, a literature course might also count as a WAC.

Note that even under these conservative assumptions, it is possible to complete a strong Astronomy major with a number of free electives. These electives may easily be combined with general education courses or other electives to allow a student to complete a second major or a minor.

The first-year schedule assumes that students enter the Astronomy major with some Advanced Placement credit in math, placing them in Math 113. The Math department has several introductory tracks, depending on the level of preparation students have received in high school. Students who have not taken Advanced Placement tests may be required to take Math 110 and Math 112 instead of Math 113; students with exceptionally strong math backgrounds may skip Math 113, and start with Math 115. All of these variants are easily accommodated within the Astronomy curriculum.

Two classes are listed as “Science Electives.” Physics majors are required to take two other science classes numbered 100 or above, at least one of which must be taken outside the department. We encourage students to take these classes as early as possible, as they may lead students to pursue double majors or interdisciplinary majors.

Two classes are listed as “Math Electives.” We strongly recommend that students who may be interested in graduate study in physics or astronomy take math courses beyond those required for the major. In particular, students would benefit from courses such as Math 127: Numerical Methods, Math 130: Ordinary Differential Equations, and Math 140: Applied Linear Algebra.