Students
LAS Student Handbook
- Admission to LAS
- Majors & Minors
- Degree Requirements
- Course Guidelines
- Academic Standing
- Attendance & Withdrawals
- Graduation
- Dates & Deadlines
- Advising & Support
Freshman Seminar
Careers and Extracurricular Development
Student Activities and Forms
Multiple Majors/Degrees
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offers several vehicles through which students may pursue multiple majors.
Double Majors
In the course of fulfilling the degree requirements, LAS students may complete the minimum requirements for a second program of study in LAS. (Multiple majors cannot be declared across colleges. See "Second Degrees" below.)
Some restrictions apply for double majors:
- A course cannot count toward requirements of more than two majors.
- If you want to complete an additional major, you must earn at least 12 hours of distinct, advanced level course work in the major discipline. [NOTE: These hours do not include supporting course work or technical electives used for the first major.] You may not double major in integrative biology and molecular and cellular biology.
- Students completing Individual Plans of Study must receive the approval of their advisors before declaring a double major.
You can officially declare more than one major. All completed majors do appear on your transcripts.
Students in LAS's Sciences and Letters Curriculum may declare their intent to complete multiple majors in LAS during the regular periods designated for intercollegiate transfer (ICT) and curricular changes by notifying their admissions/records officer in LAS Student Academic Affairs. Secure the appropriate form, meet with an advisor in each department, and submit the completed form to the admissions/records officer during the ICT/curricular change period.
Please note that students declaring a major with a tuition differential will have this major listed as their primary major, affecting tuition billing.
Multiple majors are not available to students in Specialized Curricula.
Combined Degrees
LAS/Engineering
For a number of years, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the College of Engineering have jointly sponsored a five-year program leading to a BA or BS degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences and a BS degree in a field of engineering. The program allows motivated students to combine a professional engineering education with a broad liberal arts background. Students are required to complete all the degree requirements of both colleges.
Freshmen normally apply for entrance through the College of Engineering, but students who have applied to and been accepted by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences may be able to enter the program. All students must meet the entrance requirements of both colleges. In addition, they may be required to meet the intercollegiate transfer requirements of both colleges. For further information about the program, students should consult LAS Student Academic Affairs.
LAS/Business
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, together with the College of Business, offers a joint-degree program that leads to the degree of BA or BS in Liberal Arts and Sciences and MBA. The program, which takes five years to complete, allows students to complete a master's program in business administration while providing students with the broad opportunities unique to a liberal arts program. Students interested in this opportunity should contact LAS Student Academic Affairs.
Baccalaureate–Master of Business Administration Program
The BA/BS-MBA program is designed to enable the qualified student to earn both a bachelor's degree in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the Master of Business Administration degree in five years rather than the normal six years. The program integrates an undergraduate education in a field such as English, political science, or economics with a professional business education without diluting the quality or purpose of either. Program objectives will be met primarily by the completion of courses during the student's fourth year that are simultaneously electives in the baccalaureate program and requirements for the MBA degree. A student who is interested in the joint degree should contact LAS Student Academic Affairs early in the first year.
The program is open to all students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences who meet the requirements below. In all cases, participants in the BA/BS-MBA program must complete their undergraduate majors by the end of the third year. As a consequence, some students will have to plan their course work carefully to meet their undergraduate educational objectives and to participate in the program; this will be particularly true for undergraduates whose majors require extensive sequential course work.
Since the BA/BS-MBA program is based on careful course selection and program planning, an interested student should consult with a BA/BS-MBA program adviser during the first year. The program's objectives and requirements will be explained so that the student, in consultation with his or her baccalaureate degree program adviser, may plan the course work to meet both objectives. A student who wishes to participate in the BA/BS-MBA program must make formal application by March 31 in the second semester of the junior year. To be eligible for consideration, the student must have at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average on the last 45 hours of course work completed, with at least 96 hours of course work completed by the beginning of the student's fourth year, and at least a score of 600 on the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT).
Second Degrees
Second degrees in LAS, as compared with multiple majors, are available to Sciences and Letters students in special cases.
- All students who desire a second degree in LAS must apply for admissions to second degree candidacy.
- Students in LAS pursuing a second field in another college must apply to that college directly for a second degree.