B.S. and M.S. in Chemistry SF Scholars Roadmap

The San Francisco State Scholars program provides undergraduate students with an accelerated pathway to a graduate degree. Students in this program pursue a bachelor’s and master’s degree simultaneously. This program allows students to earn graduate credit while in their junior and/or senior year, reducing the number of semesters required for completion of a master’s degree.

This roadmap is a suggested plan of study and does not replace meeting with an advisor. Please note that students may need to adjust the actual sequence of courses based on course availability. Please consult an advisor in your major program for further guidance.

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Fall SemesterUnits
CHEM 115 General Chemistry I (Major Lower-Division) 4
ENG 114 Writing the First Year: Finding Your Voice (A2) 1 3
MATH 226 Calculus I (Major Lower-Division, B4)) 2 4
GE Area A 3 3
 Units14
Spring Semester
CHEM 215 General Chemistry II (Major Lower-Division) 4
MATH 227 Calculus II (Major Lower-Division) 4
GE Area A 3
GE Area E 3
 Units14
Second Year
Fall Semester
CHEM 233
CHEM 234
Organic Chemistry I
and Organic Chemistry I Laboratory (Major Lower-Division)
5
CHEM 321
CHEM 322
Quantitative Chemical Analysis
and Quantitative Chemical Analysis Laboratory (Major Upper-Division)
5
Select One (Major Lower-Division, B1, B3): 4
General Physics I
and General Physics I Laboratory
General Physics with Calculus I
and General Physics with Calculus I Laboratory
 Units14
Spring Semester
CHEM 335
CHEM 336
Organic Chemistry II
and Organic Chemistry II Laboratory (Major Upper-Division)
5
Select One (Major Lower-Division): 4
General Physics II
and General Physics II Laboratory
General Physics with Calculus II
and General Physics with Calculus II Laboratory
GE Area B: Life Science (B2) 3
GE Area C 3
 Units15
Third Year
Summer Semester
GE Area D 3
SF State Studies or University Elective 3
 Units6
Fall Semester
CHEM 251 Mathematics and Physics for Chemistry (Major Lower-Division) 3
CHEM 325 Inorganic Chemistry (Major Upper-Division) 3
CHEM 351 Physical Chemistry I: Thermodynamics and Kinetics (Major Upper-Division) 3
GE Area C 3
GE Area D 3
 Units15
Spring Semester
CHEM 353 Physical Chemistry II: Quantum Chemistry and Spectroscopy (Major Upper-Division) 3
CHEM 390GW Contemporary Chemistry and Biochemistry Research - GWAR (Major Upper-Division) 3
CHEM 426 Advanced Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) 4 2
GE Area C 3
GE Area F ± 3
 Units14
Fourth Year
Summer Semester
GE Area UD-C: Upper-Division Arts and/or Humanities 3
GE Area UD-D: Upper-Division Social Sciences 3
 Units6
Fall Semester
CHEM 340 Biochemistry I (Major Upper-Division) 3
CHEM 451 Experimental Physical Chemistry Laboratory (Major Upper-Division) 4 2
Upper-Division Major Elective (9 Units) - Take One 5 3
Graduate Related Study - Take One 6 3
GE Area UD-B: Upper-Division Physical and/or Life Sciences 3
SF State Studies or University Elective 2
 Units16
Spring Semester
CHEM 879 Research Methods I (Graduate Core) 3
Upper-Division Major Elective (9 Units) – Take Two 5 6
Graduate Related Study - Take One 6 3
U.S. and California Government 3
 Units15
Fifth Year
Fall Semester
CHEM 897 Research (Graduate Research) 3
Graduate Related Study - Take Two 6 6
 Units9
Spring Semester
CHEM 880 Research Methods II (Graduate Core) 3
CHEM 897 Research (Graduate Research) 6
Select One (Culminating Experience): 3
Research Project
Master's Thesis
 Units12
 Total Units150
1

ENG 114 can only be taken if you complete Directed Self-Placement (DSP) and select ENG 114; if you choose ENG 104/ENG 105 through DSP you will satisfy A2 upon successful completion of ENG 105 in the second semester; multilingual students may be advised into alternative English courses.

2

To determine the best B4 course option, students should complete the online advising activity at mathadvising.sfsu.edu. Questions? Contact Gator Smart Start.

3

To avoid taking additional units, it is recommended that you meet the SF State Studies (AERM, GP, ES, SJ) requirements within your GE or major.

4

Students may substitute CHEM 343 for CHEM 426 or CHEM 451 upon prior approval of advisor. If CHEM 343 is used as a substitute, it can not also be used as an elective.

5

Major Electives

A minimum of 9 units of electives must be selected from the following list of courses. Courses from community colleges cannot be substituted for the courses on the list below. Graduate-level courses in chemistry or appropriate courses in biology, physics, geosciences, and computer science may be substituted upon prior approval of an advisor. Students should keep in mind that non-Chemistry courses may require additional prerequisites that are not met in the Chemistry degree or permission of the instructor.
CHEM 341 Biochemistry II (3 units)
CHEM 343 Biochemistry I Laboratory (3 units)
CHEM 370 Computer Applications in Chemistry and Biochemistry (3 units)
CHEM 420 Environmental Analysis (3 units)
CHEM 422 Instrumental Analysis (4 units)
CHEM 433 Advanced Organic Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 443 Biophysical Chemistry Laboratory (4 units)
CHEM 645GW Research Trends in Chemistry and Biochemistry - GWAR (3 units)
CHEM 667/BIOL 667 Optical Engineering for the Biological Sciences (3 units)
CHEM 680 Chemical Oceanography (3 units)
CHEM 685 Projects in the Teaching of Chemistry and Biochemistry (1 unit)
CHEM 686 Experiences in Teaching Chemistry and Biochemistry (1 unit)*
CHEM 699 Independent Study** (3 units)

Select a maximum of one:
CSC 306 An Interdisciplinary Approach to Computer Programming (3 units)
CSC 408 Machine Learning and Data Science for Personalized Medicine (3 units)
CSC 509 Data Science and Machine Learning for Medical Image Analysis (3 units)

6

Related Study

Graduate courses in biochemistry, chemistry, physics, mathematics, or biology on advisement of graduate major advisor. Upper-division courses may be used with permission of a graduate major advisor.

Analytical/Environmental/Methods (AEM)
CHEM 741 Electron Microscopy (4 units)
CHEM 800 Special Topics in Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 821 Mass Spectrometry - Principles and Practice (3 units)

Biochemistry (BIO)
CHEM 800 Special Topics in Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 841 Enzymology (3 units)
CHEM 851 Biochemical Spectroscopy (3 units)

Organic/Medicinal (OM)
CHEM 800 Special Topics in Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 832 Organic Synthesis (3 units)
CHEM 834 Organic Spectroscopic Methods (3 units)
CHEM 842 Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry (3 units)

Physical/Inorganic/Computational (PIC)
CHEM 800 Special Topics in Chemistry (3 units)
CHEM 851 Biochemical Spectroscopy (3 units)

CHEM 870 Computational Methods in Chemistry (3 units)

*

May be repeated and up to 2 units used towards Elective requirement.

**

By petition only. Units must be taken in the same semester to be used as an upper division elective.

±

Given catalog rights, fall 2023 transfer students do not need to complete an Area F course.