Field of Study Definitions and Declaration

Definitions:

Major : A major represents a student's primary field of study for those pursuing a registered degree program. A major is a structured plan of study requiring a minimum of 30 credit hours.  It must be feasible for students to complete degree requirements within the minimum 120 credit hours required for an undergraduate degree. The major appears on the transcript but does not appear on the diploma.

Minor : A minor is a structured plan of study requiring a minimum of 18 credit hours.  A minor should require significant additional coursework beyond what is already required for a related major. The minor appears on the transcript, but does not appear on the diploma.

Concentration/Track: A concentration/track is a structured plan of study within a major.  The number of credit hours for a concentration varies, but is included within the credit hours for the major. The concentration/track appears on the transcript but does not appear on the diploma.

Declaration Procedures and Information: 

• Students who wish to declare or change their field of study must follow the procedures outlined on the Office of the Registrar website.  All declarations and change requests are subject to the approval of the academic department.  
• The declaration of major program, as well as changes in the major, minor or concertation/track, should be made well in advance of course selection and at least a semester prior to the date of graduation.
• The chairperson responsible for departmental programs or the coordinator responsible for interdisciplinary programs will assign students an advisor and will certify at the appropriate time that all program requirements have been completed.
• Students may declare a major before earning 30 semester hours of credit, except in some professional programs, and must make the declaration of major program prior to earning 60 semester hours of credit.
• Certain major programs have a minimum quality point average requirement for admission. Students should check with the academic department of their intended major for specific minimum GPA and/or course requirements.
• Students are generally not permitted to earn multiple degrees, nor declare multiple majors, from the same academic department. Exceptions include the following: Biology with Biology Adolescence Education; Chemistry with Chemistry Adolescence Education; Communication (all majors); Computer and Information Sciences (all majors); History/Social Studies; Geology with Earth Science; Mathematics with Mathematics Adolescence Education; Applied Mathematics with any other Mathematics major; Music (all majors); and Physics with Physics Adolescence Education.
• Students who are interested in declaring more than one minor program are to follow the procedure outlined above.