Offered at: San Luis Obispo Campus
The Animal Science Department offers degree programs in both Animal and Dairy Science. Students learn principles of animal biology, husbandry, behavior, nutrition, and reproduction with molecular biology and other life sciences in a variety of species. These principles apply to farm animals, wildlife, laboratory animals, and companion animal species. The curriculum is flexible, allowing each student to plan an individual curriculum aligned with their interests and career goals. This is a comprehensive hands-on program offering “learn by doing” opportunities to gain experience with a variety of animal species.
The program aims to train students to be problem-solvers, effective communicators, and leaders as they advance in their professional careers. Our graduates will understand their professional and ethical responsibilities as animal scientists. By embracing diversity, equity, and inclusivity our students will be able to adapt to changing societal attitudes and perceptions as they relate to human-animal interactions.
The Animal Science Department is supported by a variety of animal and production facilities for hands-on learning. There are opportunities for students to participate in faculty research using these facilities, as well as over 6,000 acres of grazing lands, conservation areas and habitats for native plants and animals.
In addition, the department offers a wide assortment of co-curricular activities including student clubs, competitive scholarly, livestock and horse judging teams and intercollegiate dressage and equestrian teams. Students participate in organizing and conducting service meetings, seminars and field days sponsored by the department.
Program Learning Objectives
- Demonstrate technical competence within the disciplines of Dairy Science (Dairy Husbandry and Dairy Products Technology), with particular emphasis on the science, industry, and practice.
- Model communication and leadership skills in team settings to foster the accomplishment of common goals.
- Apply critical thinking skills to successfully solve problems in the dairy sciences.
- Articulate the challenges and opportunities of the dairy industry and the broader context of society.
- Perform the responsibilities of a dairy scientist ethically and professionally, while embracing diversity, equity, and inclusivity, and sustainability.
Degree Requirements and Curriculum
In addition to the program requirements listed on this page, students must also satisfy requirements outlined in more detail in the Minimum Requirements for Graduation section of this catalog, including:
- 40 units of upper-division courses
- 2.0 GPA
- Graduation Writing Requirement (GWR)
- U.S. Cultural Pluralism (USCP)
Note: No Major, Support, or Concentration courses may be selected as credit/no credit. Only one General Education course may be selected as credit/no credit. In addition, no more than 12 units of cooperative or internship courses can count towards your degree requirements.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| MAJOR COURSES | ||
| ASCI 1100 | Introduction to the Animal Sciences | 1 |
| ASCI 1101 | Principles of Animal Physiology | 3 |
| ASCI 2220 | Animal Nutrition and Feeding | 3 |
| ASCI 3302 | Animal Genetics | 3 |
| ASCI 3340 | Animal Welfare and Ethics | 3 |
| ASCI 3355 | Ruminant Nutrition | 3 |
| ASCI 3363 | Professional Development in the Animal Sciences | 1 |
| DSCI 2202 | Dairy Promotion and Marketing | 3 |
| DSCI 2229 | General Dairy Manufacturing (5B & 5C) 1 | 4 |
| DSCI 2230 | General Dairy Husbandry | 3 |
| DSCI 3321 | Lactation Physiology | 3 |
| DSCI 3330 | Dairy Cattle Reproductive Management and Artificial Insemination | 3 |
| DSCI 3344 | Dairy Microbiology | 3 |
| DSCI 4422 | Breeding and Genetics of Dairy Cattle | 3 |
| DSCI 4432 | Advanced Dairy Herd Management | 4 |
| Senior Project | ||
| ASCI 4477 | Senior Project - Research Experience in Animal Science | 2 |
| or ASCI 4479 | Senior Project - Current Issues in Animal Science | |
| Upper-Division Designated Electives | ||
| Select from the following: | 6 | |
| Physical and Chemical Properties of Dairy Products | ||
| Quality Assurance and Control of Dairy Products | ||
| Dairy Nutrition | ||
| Dairy Farm Consultation | ||
| Approved Electives | ||
| Select from the following: 2 | 18 | |
Select any ASCI or DSCI courses | ||
| Agricultural Economics | ||
| Agribusiness Financial Accounting | ||
| Food Marketing | ||
| Agricultural Personnel Management | ||
| Applications of Agricultural Leadership | ||
| Agricultural Machinery Safety | ||
| Financial Accounting for Nonbusiness Majors | ||
| Fundamentals of Chemical Reactivity | ||
| Organic Chemistry: Fundamentals and Applications | ||
| Organic Chemistry I | ||
| Organic Chemistry II | ||
| Biochemistry: Fundamentals and Applications | ||
| Biochemistry | ||
| Business and Professional Communication | ||
| Introduction to Food Science and Sustainability | ||
| Food Processing and Engineering I | ||
| Food Quality Assurance and Prerequisite Programs | ||
| Food Safety and Sanitation | ||
| Sensory Evaluation of Food | ||
| Elements of Food Processing | ||
| Elements of Food Safety | ||
| News Reporting and Writing | ||
| Public Health Microbiology | ||
| Food Microbiology | ||
| Introduction to Forest Ecosystem Management | ||
| College Physics I | ||
| College Physics II | ||
| California Row Crop Production | ||
| Statistics II | ||
| Any courses used in the following minors: | ||
Agribusiness | ||
Agricultural Communication | ||
Agricultural Education | ||
Agricultural Leadership | ||
Biotechnology | ||
Crop Science | ||
Environmental Soil Science | ||
Equine Science | ||
Food Science | ||
Meat Science and Processing | ||
Poultry Management | ||
Rangeland Resources | ||
Spanish | ||
Water Science | ||
| SUPPORT COURSES | ||
| BIO 1151 | Life: Molecules and Cells | 4 |
| CHEM 1120 | Fundamentals of Chemical Structure and Properties (5A) 1 | 4 |
| MATH 1006 | College Algebra (2) 1 | 3 |
| STAT 1110 | Applied Statistical Concepts and Methods | 3 |
| GENERAL EDUCATION (GE) | ||
| (See GE program requirements below) | 33 | |
| FREE ELECTIVES | ||
| Free Electives 3, 4 | 4 | |
| Total Units | 120 | |
- 1
Required in Major or Support; also satisfies General Education (GE) requirement.
- 2
If a course is taken to meet a Major or Support requirement, it cannot be double-counted as an Approved Elective.
- 3
If a General Education (GE) course is used to satisfy a Major or Support requirement, additional units of Free Electives may be needed to complete the total units required for the degree.
General Education (GE) Requirements
- 43 units required, 10 of which are specified in Major and/or Support.
- If any of the remaining 33 Units is used to satisfy a Major or Support requirement, additional units of Free Electives may be needed to complete the total units required for the degree.
- See the complete GE course listing.
- A grade of C- or better is required in one course in each of the following GE Areas: 1A (English Composition), 1B (Critical Thinking), 1C (Oral Communication), and 2 (Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning).
| Lower-Division General Education | ||
| Area 1 | English Communication and Critical Thinking | |
| 1A | Written Communication | 3 |
| 1B | Critical Thinking | 3 |
| 1C | Oral Communication | 3 |
| Area 2 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning | |
| 2 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning (3 units in Support) 1 | 0 |
| Area 3 | Arts and Humanities | |
| 3A | Arts | 3 |
| 3B | Humanities: Literature, Philosophy, Languages other than English | 3 |
| Area 4 | Social and Behavioral Sciences (Area 4 courses must come from at least two different course prefixes.) | |
| 4A | American Institutions (Title 5, Section 40404 Requirement) | 3 |
| 4B | Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3 |
| Area 5 | Physical and Life Sciences | |
| 5A | Physical Sciences (3 units in Support) 1 | 0 |
| 5B | Life Sciences (3 units in Major) 1 | 0 |
| 5C | Laboratory (may be embedded in a 5A or 5B course) (1 units in Major) 1 | 0 |
| Area 6 | Ethnic Studies | |
| 6 | Ethnic Studies | 3 |
| Upper-Division General Education | ||
| Upper-Division 2/5 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning or Physical and Life Sciences | 3 |
| Upper-Division 3 | Arts and Humanities | 3 |
| Upper-Division 4 | Social and Behavioral Sciences (Area 4 courses must come from at least two different course prefixes.) | 3 |
| Total Units | 33 | |
- 1
- Required in Major or Support; also satisfies General Education (GE) requirement.