The programs of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) emphasize life sciences, agriculture and food systems, environment, sustainability, and the preservation of healthy rural communities. In cooperation with the Agricultural Experiment Station and the University of Vermont Extension Service, CALS fulfills the four core public functions of the University's land grant mission: teaching, research, outreach, and providing related services.
As an integral part of the University of Vermont, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences helps fulfill the university’s mission to discover, interpret and share knowledge; to prepare students to lead productive, responsible, and creative lives; and to promote the application of relevant knowledge to benefit the State of Vermont and society as a whole.
The college faculty strive for excellence in undergraduate education as evidenced by a sustained and enviable record of university teaching award winners. The college emphasizes the importance of each individual student and promotes significant student-faculty interaction. Students are provided with a firm foundation in the life sciences and social sciences in order to excel and meet the challenges in future professional careers. Faculty and staff provide a broad range of support to help students develop high-quality academic programs that meet individual needs.
Applying knowledge outside the classroom is a signature of all CALS programs. Opportunities abound for on and off-campus experiences such as internships, community service learning, undergraduate research, independent study, and study abroad. Pre-professional tracks prepare students for employment upon graduation or for the successful pursuit of advanced degrees. Career choices are broad, but focus primarily on entrepreneurship, dietetics, international and rural community development, agriculture, veterinary and human medicine, biotechnology, nutrition, research and teaching, horticulture, and the plant sciences.
Academic study is enhanced by university farm and field facilities, the labs, and the research for which the college is renowned. Many CALS faculty, working through the Agricultural Experiment Station, conduct mission-oriented, applied research and encourage undergraduate participation.
The office of the dean of the college is located in Rooms 106 and 108 in Morrill Hall. For more information, contact the Student Services office at calsstudentservices@uvm.edu or call (802) 656-2980.
Catamount Core Curriculum Requirements
All undergraduate degree students matriculating after Fall 2023 are required to successfully complete the Catamount Core Curriculum Requirements.
The Catamount Core Curriculum is designed to expose students to the intellectual breadth of the liberal arts, develop the skills needed to integrate and apply diverse areas of knowledge, and build the foundations for lifelong learning and active participation in local and global communities.
The Catamount Core Curriculum is made up of 42 credits in courses distributed across three main areas: LIBERAL ARTS (21 credits); CORE SKILLS (9 credits); and COMMON GROUND VALUES (12 credits).
CALS Foundation Requirements
Students develop abilities and use tools to communicate effectively, analyze, problem-solve, think critically, and work well with others.
Oral Communication
Students show confidence and efficacy in speaking before a group, expressing themselves in a way that is easily understood at a level that is appropriate for the audience. Competency may be met by satisfactory completion of CALS 1010 or CALS 2830 (or approved equivalent, where the primary focus is public speaking).
Information Technology
Students demonstrate mastery of technology for communication, data gathering and manipulation, and information analysis. Competency may be met by satisfactory completion of CALS 1020 or CALS 1850 (or approved equivalent).
Distinguished Undergraduate Research (DUR) College Honors Program
The CALS Academic Awards committee promotes and encourages independent research by recognizing those students who especially excel in their creative, innovative, responsible, and independent pursuit of research. DUR Committee Guidelines for student projects may be obtained on the CALS website or by emailing calsstudentservices@uvm.edu.
Independent research can be an important aspect of a student’s education. Scientific research, independent projects, and internships or field practice are examples of independent research which benefit students as they pursue graduate study or seek employment. Over the years a number of undergraduate research projects have been published in well-known scientific journals and manuals, videotapes, and other products of special projects have been incorporated into classes to enhance the learning environment in the college.
The completed research, in a form appropriate to the discipline, is evaluated first by a review committee. Independent research of the highest quality will be chosen for college Honors by the Academic Awards committee.
Honors Program
The CALS Honors program is a four-year Honors sequence for CALS students who are accepted into the university Honors College. It is designed for highly qualified and motivated students desiring an academically challenging undergraduate experience in the broad areas of the life sciences and agriculture.
In their first two years, Honors scholars will join Honors students from across the university in small, interdisciplinary Honors seminars conducted by renowned scholars from the University of Vermont and other institutions. In their junior and senior years, Honors scholars do Honors work within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The program culminates with an Honors thesis: an opportunity to conduct independent scholarly research under the guidance of a faculty advisor.
Entering first-year students with outstanding academic records will be invited to participate in the Honors College. Scholars will be required to maintain a minimum grade-point average, participate in program activities, enroll in Honors classes and successfully complete a Senior Honors thesis.
Students in CALS who demonstrate academic excellence during their first year may apply for sophomore admission to the Honors College.
Accelerated Master's Programs (AMPs)
The AMP allows early admission to graduate studies with up to 6 concurrent credits double-counted toward the bachelor's and master's degrees. Most programs also allow students to take an additional 3 credits of graduate coursework while still an undergraduate, but these credits may not be double counted. AMPs affiliated with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences include:
Animal Biosciences
Food Systems
Microbiology and Molecular Genetics
Nutrition and Food Science
Public Administration
Visit the UVM Graduate College for more information.
UVM & Vermont Law & Graduate School
The University of Vermont (UVM) and Vermont Law & Graduate School (VLGS) offer unique 3+2 and 3+3 dual-degree programs. The dual-degree programs enable highly-focused students to earn both degrees in less time and at less cost from two distinguished institutions. In addition to the dual-degree programs, VLGS offers a guaranteed admission program for UVM graduates. Learn more about the dual-degree and guaranteed admission programs. Learn more about this program by contacting calsstudentservices@uvm.edu.
Examples of Pre-Medical and Pre-Veterinary Opportunities may include:
Pre-Medical Enhancement Program
The Premedical Enhancement Program (PEP) is a mentoring and shadowing program co-sponsored by the Larner College of Medicine’s Office of Primary Care and the UVM Honors College. A small number of UVM pre-health students are accepted after a thorough application process. Read more about this program on the Larner College of Medicine website. The application season will begin in a student’s sophomore year. Any pre-health UVM sophomore who meets eligibility criteria can apply.
ACEND-Accredited Didactic Program
UVM students who aspire to become Registered Dietitian Nutritionists have the opportunity to successfully complete the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics(ACEND)-accredited didactic program while majoring in Nutrition & Food Sciences with a dietetics concentration at UVM. Dietetics is a growing profession as healthcare moves from treatment to prevention. Healthcare reform and policies discussed in Washington DC and across the country all include prevention-related components. Although many health professionals are interested in prevention, Registered Dietitian/Nutritionists are at the cutting edge of prevention, because so many preventable diseases and conditions are tied to food and nutrition. Our UVM dietetics graduates are eligible to apply to an ACEND-accredited supervised practice program to be eligible to become Registered Dietitian Nutritionists.
UVM/Tufts School of Veterinary Medicine Program
Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine offers undergraduates at UVM an opportunity to apply for admission in the spring of their sophomore year. A limited number of students are admitted; they are guaranteed a space in the veterinary school class once they graduate if they have maintained the required grade-point average upon graduation.
Participants in this program are offered the assurance of veterinary school admission without the substantial investments of time and energy that other pre-veterinary students typically make in the process of preparing, researching, and applying to numerous veterinary schools and preparing for optimal scores on the GRE. Program participants can select any undergraduate major, explore other areas of interest during their junior and senior years or choose to study abroad, thus broadening their undergraduate experience.
To be eligible to apply, candidates for this program must be sophomores and must have demonstrated academic proficiency in their course work, particularly in the pre-veterinary science courses.
It is expected that competitive applicants will have:
- Completed at least two science sequences (most typically the year of introductory chemistry and the year of introductory biology) by the spring semester of their sophomore year.
- Completed prerequisite courses at their undergraduate institution or at other universities by special permission of the veterinary school’s admissions office.
- Achieved a highly competitive cumulative grade-point average.
- AP credit is acceptable as long as it appears on the student’s transcript.
The applicant’s SAT and/or ACT are required for application to this program. Admission to this program is not binding - students can defer their admission for one year or they can choose not to enroll in the UVM program.
Contact Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University for more information.
UVM/Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, The University of Edinburgh (UoE, R(D)SVS) Placement Agreement
The University of Vermont (UVM) and the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, the University of Edinburgh (UoE, R(D)SVS) have entered into an early entrance admission placement program that will make available three guaranteed places for UVM early application students. Application to the UoE, R(D)SVS early admission program can be made at the end of the second year (four semesters) with predetermined science and math courses completed and a minimum GPA of 3.40. If accepted, the 3.40 or above GPA has to be maintained until the time of graduation. Admitted students must receive adequate animal handling experience throughout their residence at UVM. The type of experience required can be coordinated between the student and the UoE, R(D)SVS. Opportunity will exist to credit some components of UVM teaching in animal husbandry and animal handling as accredited prior learning for the Edinburgh degree. Advice will be given by UoE, in consultation with UVM, as to what courses can be credited. If requested, opportunity to undertake a four week vacation clinical placement (companion animal and/or equine) at R(D)SVS will be available to all students in the program.
UVM/University of Glasgow Matriculation Agreement
The University of Glasgow (UoG), Glasgow, UK and the University of Vermont (UVM), Burlington, VT USA have formed an agreement whereby University of Vermont students can complete a joint B.S./BVMS degree attending UoG in their fourth year at UVM. UVM may send students who have successfully completed three years of study in the University of Vermont Animal and Veterinary Sciences Bachelor of Science (B.S.) program to the Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery programme (BVMS) hosted by the School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences at Glasgow. Participating students will continue as candidates for degrees from their home institution (UVM) and will not, at the end of the first year at UoG, be eligible candidates for degrees from the host institution (UoG). Credit for subjects taken at UoG will be transferred to UVM to fulfill the requirements for awarding successful students a B.S. degree in Animal and Veterinary Sciences from UVM at the end of their fourth year. University of Vermont students meeting matriculation requirements and successfully completing Year 1 of the BVMS program at the University of Glasgow will be offered a direct entry place in Year 2 of the BVMS program. UVM students must work with the Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences to apply at the beginning of the fall semester of their junior year.
ARTICULATION AGREEMENTS
For more information on articulation agreements with other colleges and universities, please go to https://catalog-next.uvm.edu/undergraduate/admissioninfo/articulationagreements/