Individual Major

As an alternative to the major fields of study, students may declare an individual
major by designing an interdepartmental concentration of courses focusing on
particular problems or areas of investigation which, though not adequately included
within a single department or discipline, are worthy of concentrated study.

Students intending to pursue an individual major must submit a proposal for their
custom plan of study to the Committee on Interdisciplinary Studies. The proposed
program must be an integrated plan of study that incorporates course work from a
minimum of two departments or fields. An individual major must include a total of 

• ten to twelve courses, no fewer than eight of which must be above the 100-level;
• three or more courses at the 300-level or above;
• and a 400-level individualized study course which is normally taken during the
  senior year.
  
  Individualized study allows students to pursue independent work in their areas of
  interest as defined by the proposal and should result in a senior thesis demon-
  strating the interrelationships among the fields comprising the individual major.

After consulting with and obtaining an application from the Interdisciplinary Studies
office and meeting several times with two prospective sponsors/advisors,
students should submit their proposals during the sophomore year. The latest students may submit a proposal is the end of March during their sophomore year.
It is often possible to build into an individual major a significant component of
off-campus study.

Normally, to be accepted as an individual major, a student should have a 2.3 overall GPA. Students should be aware that a special major program may require some departmental methods or theory courses particular to each of the fields within the program.

A student may graduate with honors from the individual major program. Honors
designation requires a high GPA, the endorsement of an advisor/faculty member, and
an outstanding 464 Project.

Individual Major Application Form

IDS 464 Application

Course change request form