Frequently asked questions

To be eligible to apply to the Freshman Science Honors program, you must be a first-year student entering in the fall semester with a Dornsife major in a natural science or Health and Human Sciences. Because this is a year-long program, spring admit freshmen are unfortunately not eligible to apply.

No, previous research experience is not required for admission to FSH.

Although pre-health students are welcome to participate in FSH, the program is not designed around the pre-health curriculum. FSH emphasizes understanding of scientific research. As such, we describe FSH students as a community of aspiring scientists who share a passion for understanding the natural world. The program exposes students to a variety of career opportunities available to students passionate about science.

FSH is comprised of four courses: Advanced General Biology I: Organismal Biology and Evolution (BISC 121) and Advanced General Chemistry A (CHEM 115a) are taken in the fall semester, and Advanced General Biology II: Cell Biology and Physiology (BISC 221) and Advanced General Chemistry B (CHEM 115b) are taken in the spring semester. If your major or pre-professional emphasis does not require these courses and/or you are not interested in taking these courses in your freshman year, Freshman Science Honors may not be a good fit for you. Please rest assured that there are many other opportunities at USC to engage in challenging science coursework and explore your interest in the natural sciences via academic research, internships, community service, and student organizations.

In previous years, FSH students have taken trips to the Aquarium of the Pacific, Natural History Museum, Catalina Island, and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, have met with medical students at USC’s Keck School of Medicine, and have attended presentations from upperclassmen describing undergraduate research.

FSH students obtain hands-on research experience through the BISC 121 and 221 labs. Students have the opportunity to choose from lab subjects like Phage Hunters, Characterization of Marine Bacterioplankton, and Creating Macroalgal Collections for Sustainability. Students will also be exposed to the broader world of research through required reading from scientific journals, lectures on faculty research projects, conversations with upperclassmen serving as mentors, and roundtables with both professors and students engaged in research.

As the name implies, FSH only lasts one year. The curriculum consists of one year of biology and one year of chemistry. Honors paths can then be continued through the student’s major department.

Following FSH, there are no honors-level versions of Organic Chemistry, Molecular Biology, or Biochemistry. Many students pursue research opportunities with faculty members. Some students will apply research projects toward honor curricula within their major department in their junior or senior year. FSH provides a strong foundation so students can succeed in future challenging science courses.