Virginia Commonwealth University VCU Scholars Compass VCU Bulletins VCU University Archives 2013 Virginia Commonwealth University Undergraduate Bulletin Virginia Commonwealth University Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/vcubulletins © Virginia Commonwealth University Downloaded from http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/vcubulletins/50 This Bulletin is brought to you for free and open access by the VCU University Archives at VCU Scholars Compass. It has been accepted for inclusion in VCU Bulletins by an authorized administrator of VCU Scholars Compass. For more information, please contact [email protected]. VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY 2013-14 Undergraduate Bulletin Table of Contents Virginia Commonwealth University .................................................................................3 Undergraduate study .........................................................................................................6 Admission to the university Tuition, fees and expenses Financial aid Undergraduate General Education Program Academic regulations and general degree requirements Effective bulletin University College ............................................................................................................38 College of Humanities and Sciences ..............................................................................54 L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs School of Mass Communications School of World Studies School of Allied Health Professions .............................................................................146 School of the Arts ...........................................................................................................158 School of Business .........................................................................................................197 School of Dentistry .........................................................................................................226 School of Education........................................................................................................231 School of Engineering ....................................................................................................242 School of Medicine .........................................................................................................256 School of Nursing ...........................................................................................................258 School of Pharmacy .......................................................................................................265 School of Social Work ....................................................................................................267 VCU Life Sciences ...........................................................................................................272 Graduate School .............................................................................................................280 Division of Community Engagement ...........................................................................282 Division of Student Affairs.............................................................................................286 Global Education Office .................................................................................................292 Office of Research ..........................................................................................................297 da Vinci Center for Innovation .......................................................................................299 The Honors College ........................................................................................................301 Index ................................................................................................................................304 This bulletin is archived in PDF format at www.vcu.edu/bulletins. 1 VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY 2013-14 About this bulletin Virginia Commonwealth University reserves the right to make changes in course of study, fees, rules and regulations governing the conduct of the work in all schools and programs, faculty and staff, and classification of students whenever university authorities deem it expedient or wise to do so. VCU is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master’s, doctoral and first-professional degrees. VCU is an equal opportunity, affirmative action university providing access to education and employment without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, veteran’s status, political affiliation or disability. For further information contact the Office of EEO/AA Services, 901 W. Franklin St., Richmond, VA 23284-3022, (804) 828-1347. Bulletins and course descriptions for the current and past years are archived at www.vcu.edu/bulletins as PDFs. The archived copy of each bulletin reflects all policies and procedures in effect at the beginning of the stated academic year and serves as the effective Bulletin for students enrolling that year. The online (html) Bulletins website is updated regularly to reflect changes that occur throughout the academic year. However, with the exception of academic rules, regulations and policies, the online Bulletin serves as a draft for the upcoming academic year. 2 VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY 2013-14 Undergraduate Bulletin Virginia Commonwealth University 3 Undergraduate Bulletin 2013-14 Located in the heart of Richmond, the capital of Virginia since 1779, Virginia Commonwealth University serves an integral role in the economic health of the Specialized program accreditation or certification city and the state, educating the current and future work force, reaching out to the Campus Police community, advancing research and enhancing patient care. Police Academy VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden-Sydney Certified by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services College, becoming the Medical College of Virginia in 1854. In 1968, the General Assembly merged MCV with the Richmond Professional Institute, founded in Division of Student Affairs and Enrollment Services 1917, to create Virginia Commonwealth University. University Counseling Services Today, VCU offers comprehensive undergraduate, master’s, doctoral and American Psychological Association professional programs and encompasses one of the largest academic health centers in the nation. With a record $260 million in sponsored research funding last fiscal Student Health Services year, VCU became one of only 28 public universities in the country with an Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations academic medical center to be designated as a research university with very high research activity as well as a Community Engaged Institution, both by the Hospital accreditation Carnegie Foundation. Its centers and institutes of excellence support the VCU Health System university’s research mission and involve faculty from multiple disciplines in the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations arts, public policy, biotechnology and health care discoveries. VCU enrolls more than 31,000 students in 223 degree and certificate programs in Mission statement the arts, sciences and humanities. Sixty-eight of the programs are unique in As the premier urban, public research university in Virginia, VCU’s mission is to Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU’s 13 schools and one advance knowledge and student success through its commitments to: college. VCU has a full-time instructional faculty of more than 2,000 who are nationally and internationally recognized for excellence in the arts, business, • An engaged, learner-centered environment that fosters inquiry, discovery and education, engineering, the humanities, the life sciences, social work and all the innovation in a global setting health care professions. With more than 19,000 employees, VCU and the VCU • Research that expands the boundaries of new knowledge and creative Health System also have a significant impact on Central Virginia’s economy. expression and promotes translational applications to improve human health Building on the foundation of VCU’s nationally ranked academic programs and • Interdisciplinary collaborations that bring new perspectives to complex academic medical center, research and scholarly productivity, and engagement problems and mobilize creative energies that advance innovation and solve with the communities it serves, the university’s strategic plan, Quest for global challenges Distinction, launches a new vision for VCU: to elevate its stature and become the nation’s top urban, public research university. This focused plan capitalizes on the • Health care that strives to preserve and restore health for all people, to seek outstanding assets of the VCU experience and truly distinguishes VCU as a major the cause and cure of diseases through groundbreaking research, and to research university committed to academic quality and student success at all educate those who serve humanity levels. • Diversity that provides a climate of inclusion, a dedication to addressing Quest for Distinction also embodies VCU’s commitment to human health through disparities wherever they exist, and an opportunity to explore and create in an the VCU Medical Center, which includes the university’s health sciences schools environment of trust and offers