I am going to graduate with a bachelor’s in art, but I’m only knowing now that I would also love to pursue science. I want to possibly get a master’s in science, but I know to do that, I need a bachelor’s degree to get in.
I would love to be able to do it at a UC, or does anyone know which colleges accept college graduates to get a second bachelor’s degree?
Or is there any other way I can get into a graduate program without having to do another four years of undergraduate education?
I would be inclined to ask graduate admissions at a couple of good universities in your area and see what they say about requirements for admissions to a master’s degree in science. It seems very likely that you will need to take some science prerequisite courses. However, you might not need a bachelor’s degree in science.
One option might be to take some science courses at a local community college or a local public university, and then apply for a master’s. However, I would first ask graduate admissions to see whether this is practical and what classes you will need. You might need to tell them what classes you have already taken and possibly how you did in them.
I do not think that it would take a full four years to get another bachelor’s degree. However, this will depend partly on what classes you have already taken. I do know someone who graduated with a bachelor’s degree, and then one year later graduated with a second bachelor’s degree. They had already completed most of the requirements for the second degree before they got the first, but the total requirements for both degrees definitely was not twice the course requirements for the first degree.
Does your current university have a good program in the sciences?
Also, my understanding is that you do not get a degree in “science”. You get a degree in biology, or chemistry, or animal science, or environmental sciences, or neuroscience, or some other specific science. Personally I have a “Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics”. There was not very much “science” needed for this particular degree, but there was quite a bit of “mathematics”. Do you know which specific science is of the most interest to you?
Excuse me I wasn’t clear, but no, I go to an art school so it has very minimal classes in science. I am about to enroll in some community college courses but I am unsure if it would suffice to get into a master’s program. However, I will reach out to graduate admissions and ask.
It will take me quite some time to “catch up” in learning or taking necessary prerequisite classes but I’m okay with that.
And yes, I meant that I want a degree in biology, and I’m interested in marine biology. Also, if I need to, would you know which category I would apply for a second bachelor’s degree? I know I’m not a first-time student, and not a transfer as well unless there are specific schools that have different categories for students with the same situation as me.
One thing you will need to consider is funding. There is precious little funding for second bachelors degrees. Can you pay for this yourself?
Agree. ^ I believe that if the OP is a resident, the student would pay the full fees charged to OOS students.
California subsidizes in-state/non-degreed undergrads. They don’t subsidize residents who want a second undergraduate degree.
Here is the information regarding 2nd bachelor’s degree and the UC schools: University of California Counselors
For Cal states, only CSU Maritime and CSU San Bernardino accept 2nd Bachelor Degree candidates.
You would be better off pursuing a Graduate degree but it will require a fairly significant list of classes to qualify. Definitely contact any graduate programs of interest to get an idea of what you will need to take prior to applying.
Here is a link for UCSC: Student Resources
Yeaaa, that’s something I’m really considering too. I think I’m only thinking of doing a bachelor’s degree if I can afford it and if it is really needed for the graduate program I am applying for
Thank you so much! I will definitely take a closer look at this
it will probably be quickest to double major where you are. Contact the school you are considering for your MS and see what they suggest.