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Proposal for Self Designed Major or Minor



Requirements

Packet of Forms (Word Version)

The self-designed major/minor packet is available at Academic Services, or can be downloaded.

Eligibility
To be eligible to propose a Student-Designed Major or Minor, students must be in good academic standing (minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average). Proposals to the Curriculum Committee should be filed before the end of the fourth semester of study.

Proposal
To propose a Student-Designed Major or Minor, students obtain a proposal form from the Academic Services Center and discuss procedures with the Coordinator of Advising. Advisors appropriate to the proposed areas of study will be identified. These advisors will collaborate in the development of the proposal, possibly recommending other faculty with whom the student should confer. At least one advisor must submit a letter of support explaining what s/he perceives to be the rationale for the courses listed in the application. The letter should briefly describe the advisor's collaborative role in the development of the major/minor. This Committee will accept no application without the attachment of this letter.

The Student-Designed Major or Minor proposal should be carefully constructed. The major should consist of no fewer than thirty and no more than fifty-four credits. The minor should consist of no fewer than eighteen and no more than twenty-one credits. In addition to the major/minor, the student will be required to complete the 42-credit Individual and Community Integrated Curriculum and accumulate a total of 120 credits in order to graduate. The proposal must represent a coherent educational goal with attention given to the nature of introductory, middle-level, upper-level, and culminating work in the Student-­Designed Major or Minor. Each such major must include a methods course appropriate to the field of study and a culminating activity, such as a senior thesis or independent project that pulls together the experience of the Student-Designed Major. The course choices must represent a coherent program as opposed to a set of electives. In other words, there is a difference between one thoughtfully arranging courses to comprise a program of study and one freely choosing elective courses.

Following the above guidelines for coherence of program content, the student reviews the proposal with the Coordinator of Advising, and then submits the proposal to the Office of the Provost for review, after which ten copies of it is forwarded to the Curriculum Committee. The student may be asked to meet with the Curriculum Committee to further explain the proposal. The Curriculum Committee will report its recommendation to the Office of the Provost, which will communicate the decision to the student and the Coordinator of Advising. If approved by the Office of the Provost, then the Office of the Provost should forward a copy of the proposal to Academic Services. Once approved, any changes in the proposed course of study must be approved by the academic advisors and the Office of the Provost.

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