Registrar
Academic Policies
Declaring a Major
Students may formally declare a major at any time during the third or fourth semester of residence. The student selects a department and applies to that department for assignment to an adviser. Students wanting to develop an interdisciplinary program apply to the dean.
A major must be declared no later than the fourth semester. Each spring a program is arranged that provides for consultation of sophomores with department chairs, for the purpose of helping students select a major. Sophomore students who have not declared a major should participate in this program if they intend to attain junior standing before the next spring.
The selection of a major is of considerable importance, and the entire program of concentration for the junior and senior years should be planned with the major adviser before the beginning of the junior year. Students officially declare their majors by registering with the chosen department(s) or with an interdisciplinary adviser approved by the dean, and with the Office of Records and Institutional Research. When the student’s major has been registered, the student’s file is transferred from the pre-major adviser to the new major adviser.
How to Declare a Major
Sophomores and juniors who wish to declare a major or make changes to their major may download a Declaration of Major form. Students will need to print enough forms to leave one each with the major department(s) and the Arts and Science Registrar's office.
Students will take the form(s) to the department office of the subject area(s) in which they wish to major, where they will be assigned an adviser. Advisers will discuss the major requirements with the students, and sign both major declaration forms. Students will leave one form with the major department, and return one form to the Arts and Science Registrar's office (located in the Deans office--311 Kirkland Hall). For students with multiple majors, the form to be returned to the Registrar's office must have the signature of all major advisers.
Seniors who wish to make changes to their majors may do so only before the fifth class day of their senior year.
Students who wish to declare three majors first must petition the Administrative Committee. Petition forms are available in the Deans office.
» List of approved majors
» Declaration of Major form
Interdisciplinary Majors
The individually-created Interdisciplinary Major permits students to contract for an individually designed program of concentration consisting of at least 48 hours of approved work. The program is constructed around a coherent academic purpose and may draw together the academic resources of a number of departments and schools. The program’s purpose may include topical, period, or area studies. The student may be required to achieve a standard of proficiency in appropriately related areas such as foreign languages or mathematics in addition to the 48 hours constituting the program of concentration. A student who wants to develop such a program must first discuss it with the dean, as well as submit a written proposal to the Committee on Individual Programs.
The student’s contract for an interdisciplinary major is deemed to be a statement of required courses within a major discipline. Furthermore, because of the nature of interdisciplinary majors, all courses listed in this catalog as options within an interdisciplinary area and all courses that have previously been included in the student’s contract are considered to be part of the major discipline. The student must achieve at least a 2.000 average in all work taken in these categories.
This plan also permits students to major in one of the defined interdisciplinary programs listed below. There shall not be fewer than 36 hours in the major field, but a given program may require up to 48 hours. The student must achieve at least a 2.000 average in all work taken in the major.
Students may combine an interdisciplinary major with a more traditional major. Upon approval of the Committee on Individual Programs and the student’s adviser, (a) as many as 6 hours may be counted as part of both the interdisciplinary major and the second major, or (b) normally, no more than three introductory-level courses will be counted toward the interdisciplinary major.
--quoted from the 2006/2007 Undergraduate Catalog, p 133
» List of Interdisciplinary Programs
How to Declare an Interdisciplinary Major
In addition to the instructions found in How to Declare a Major (above), students who wish to declare an approved interdisciplinary major (see list below) must also pick up a Contract for Interdisciplinary Major. After obtaining an adviser's signature, students will submit the contract (with the Declaration of Major form) for Deans approval.
Students who wish to create an interdisciplinary major first must meet with a Dean and obtain the approval of the Committee on Individual Programs.
Please note that contract courses will be entered into the student's record exactly as written on the contract. Cross-listed courses cannot be recognized.
Students who wish to make changes to an interdisciplinary major must complete the Request for Change in Contract for Interdisciplinary Major, then submit the changes for Deans approval.
» Contract for Interdisciplinary Major
» Request for Change in Contract for Interdisciplinary Major
