In order to graduate from the College students must (in addition to earning 120 credits and completing the College's area and competency requirements) complete a major in one of the College’s departments, interdepartmental programs, or in an individually designed interdisciplinary major.
You may submit the Request to Defer Declaring a Major ONLY if you are deferring major declaration because you have yet to complete the prerequisites for a major. The process of deferring a major requires the same steps as declaring a major and cannot be used to postpone choosing a major. Forms are available from 101 Monroe Hall. Deferral of Major Forms are not valid beyond your fifth semester.
Students must enroll in either a major program offered by one of the departments or an interdepartmental program before the last day of classes in the fourth semester; the program must be approved by an official major advisor. No student is permitted to enroll as a full-time student beyond the fifth semester without being in a major.
Students may declare a major in the first year, provided a department or program accepts them. Students who transfer as third-years must defer or declare no later than September 30. New third-year spring-term transfers must defer or declare by February 1. See the academic calendar for the exact deadline for fourth-semester students to declare a major.
Students who begin the fifth semester without either declaring a major or deferring declaration will be blocked from enrolling in the next semester's classes and may lose their enrollment place. No student may begin a sixth full-time semester without a declared major.
Major Subject
Students must enroll in either a major program offered by one of the departments or an interdepartmental program before the last day of classes in the fourth semester; the program must be approved by an official major advisor. Students not able to declare a major must see their Association Dean to request permission to defer the major for one semester. The permission is requested on a petition available in the Dean’s Office (Monroe Hall) and endorsed by an adviser in the major program. No student is permitted to enroll as a full time student beyond the fifth semester without being in a major.
Students who double major must submit at least 24 credits in each major; credits applied toward one major may not be included in the core 24 hours of the other major, unless one or both majors is interdisciplinary (see below). Students receive one diploma, but the double major status is reflected on their transcript. Credits applied toward a major may not also be applied toward a minor.
Courses used to meet area requirements in the College and the Second Writing Requirement may be offered in fulfillment of a first or second major or toward a minor, except that foreign language courses numbered 1010- 2020, 2120 for Portuguese, 2320 for French and 2060 for Chinese, may not be included as part of a minor.
Courses applied toward the major may not be transferred from another institution to the University except with special permission of the department.
The credit/no credit option may not be elected for the courses offered in the major program. Beyond the courses required for the major, however, a student may register for other courses in their major field on a credit/no credit basis.
For a listing of majors and minors offered in the College see:
http://college.artsandsciences.virginia.edu/degreeprograms/
Concentrations
Some departments and interdisciplinary programs offer concentrations along with the major. Students in these departments or programs may concentrate in designated areas of study that also meet the requirements of the major. Concentrations typically involve special topics, applications, or disciplines, and may include courses taken in other departments or schools of the University. A student’s concentration appears, along with the major, on his or her transcript.
Interdisciplinary Majors and Minors
A number of degree programs are administered by committees rather than by departments. These include African-American & African Studies; American Studies; Archaeology; Asian Pacific American Studies; Bioethics; Cognitive Science; Computer Science; East Asian Studies; Echols-Interdisciplinary; Environmental Thought and Practice; German Studies; Human Biology; Jewish Studies; Global Development Studies; Latin American Studies; Linguistics; Medieval Studies; Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies; Neuroscience; Political and Social Thought; Political Philosophy, Policy and Law; Studies of Women and Gender; Media Studies; and self-designed interdisciplinary major.
Students completing an interdisciplinary major may submit up to three courses toward the completion of another major. Not all programs allow this amount of sharing.
Students completing an interdisciplinary minor may submit up to three courses toward the completion of another major. Not all programs allow this amount of sharing.
Students who complete the Global Public Health track with the Global Development Studies major may count the four required PHS courses as “inside” the College credit.
Students wishing to focus on an area for which there is no departmental or interdepartmental major program may apply to the chair for acceptance in the Interdisciplinary Major Program. Such a plan of study must include at least 30 credits of courses, in addition to a 6-credit thesis. The program must also be approved by three faculty sponsors, who will serve as the student’s major committee. Details are available inMonroe Hall.
Distinguished Major
Students who show exceptional promise in their major field of study may be eligible for admission to the Distinguished Majors Program (DMP) within their department. This program consists of at least twelve credits of advanced work and a thesis, special project, experiment, or exhibit based on at least six credits of supervised research, advanced laboratory work, or advanced study, as determined by the department. Successful completion of the program with a University cumulative grade point average of at least 3.400 will qualify a student for graduation with distinction, high distinction, or highest distinction.
Foreign language courses numbered 1010-2020, 2320 in French, 2060 in Chinese, and 2120 in Portuguese may not be applied towards a minor.
Students beyond the second year must remain in good standing in a major or have their enrollment in the College cancelled.
You may major in two subjects; a Declaration of Major form must be completed by each major program. See above statement on credits.
The credit/no credit option cannot be used for courses toward your major. Beyond the courses required for the major, however, you may register for other courses in your major field on a credit/no credit basis.
Department permission is required to count the following types of courses as credit toward your major: