Classification
Transfer of Credits
Two Bachelor's Degrees
Double Major/Curriculum
Second Major (Curriculum) Completed after the Bachelor’s Degree
Changing Curriculum or Major
Declaring a Minor

Degree Planning

In addition to being properly registered, students are responsible for knowing the requirements for their degree and planning their schedule to meet those requirements.

At each fall and spring registration, students receive an degree audit printout. This printout shows in a degree program format those courses that have been completed and those courses in which the student is currently enrolled. Also shown are the graduation requirements that have not been completed.

Students should use the information on this printout to help them review progress towards their degrees(s), plan their course of study to complete degree requirements, and select courses for the next term. Graduation evaluators in the Office of the Registrar use a similar printout during the term a student will graduate to determine if the student will have completed all degree requirements upon successful completion of the courses on the student’s schedule that term.

For further information about how completed courses fulfill degree requirements or how other courses will apply toward their degree requirements, students should see their adviser.

Two Bachelor’s Degrees

Students may receive two bachelor’s degrees if the requirements for each major (curriculum) are met and the total number of semester credits earned is at least 30 more than the requirements of the curriculum requiring the greater number of credits. This rule applies whether or not the degrees are awarded at the same time. Students should have an academic adviser in each major (curriculum), with one adviser being designated as the registration adviser. Students should request approval to pursue two degrees by completing the form, Request for Double Major/Curriculum or Two Degrees. This form is available from advisers and classification offices. Each adviser will have access to the student’s information after this form has been processed. The appropriate department and college must approve each degree program.

Students who have earned advanced degrees and wish to earn a second Bachelor’s Degree may be eligible for a college waiver of certain basic and general education requirements. Students should contact the department offering the major for advice and appropriate planning.

Double Major/Curriculum

A double major is a program for a single degree in which all requirements for two or more majors (curricula) have been met. The majors (curricula) may be in different colleges or within the same college or department. The diploma and permanent record will designate all majors (curricula) that are completed at the same time.

To declare a double major (curriculum), students should complete the form, “Request for a Double Major/Curriculum or Two Degrees.” This form, available from advisers and classification offices, should be completed at least one term prior to graduation. One major (curriculum) should be designated as primary and the other secondary for purposes of record keeping, but the student’s rights and responsibilities are the same in both majors. The adviser of the primary major will serve as the student’s registration adviser, but both advisers will have access to the student’s information. Degree programs must be approved for each major (curriculum) by the appropriate department and college. One of the majors may subsequently be canceled using the same form.

Students in the College of Engineering are able to earn a degree with a second major/curriculum as long as the second major/curriculum is within another college, meets all requirements of the additional programs and contains a minimum of 15 additional credits beyond the requirements for a B.S. degree in engineering for each additional area of study. A student with multiple curricula within the College of Engineering is permitted to earn only multiple degrees. All requirements for each curricula must be met plus an additional 30 credits for each curricula being pursued beyond the curriculum which requires the most credits.

Students with a primary major in another college who wish to take a second major in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences are required to meet all requirements for the major, including the CFCS core, and prerequisite and supporting courses. Students taking a second major are not required to meet the CFCS General Education requirements for communications and library, natural sciences, and mathematical disciplines, humanities, or social science coursework.

Students with a primary major in another college who wish to take a second major in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences are not required to meet the Liberal Arts and Sciences General Education requirements. They must, however, meet all requirements for the major, including complementary courses. Students in the B.L.S. curriculum in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences do not have majors.

Second Major (Curriculum) Completed after the Bachelor’s Degree

After receiving a bachelor’s degree, a person may wish to complete all requirements for another major (curriculum). Approval of the department of the second major (curriculum) is needed before study for the program is begun. At the completion of the program a notation will be made on the permanent record (transcript), but no change will be made on the diploma received at the time of graduation. A degree program must be approved for the second major/curriculum by the department and by the dean’s office.

Changing Curriculum or Major

A student’s freedom to change their major, and the procedure that should be followed, depend on the student’s academic standing and on policies of individual colleges as approved by the provost.

1. If students are not on academic probation and have never been dismissed and reinstated, they may change their major by consulting first with their adviser. (If, however, they have been on academic probation in the past, they may also be subject to regulation 4, below.) Beyond that, they should follow these procedures:

a. If the change involves majors within the  same college, they should check with the college office to obtain instructions as to how to make the change.

b. If the change involves majors in different colleges, they should obtain a Change of Curriculum/Major form and their file from their adviser, present these materials to the classification office of their present college, then to the classification office of the college to which they are transferring, and finally to the office of their new major.

2. Students on academic probation must first obtain permission to enter the new major. Permission comes from the dean of the college responsible for that major in consultation with the department head. If permission is granted, students should then follow the procedures described above. If they are on academic probation and want to transfer to another college in the university, they must do so before the last day to drop a course in period 2 (see Index, Making Schedule Changes).

3. Students who have been reinstated may not transfer to another college during the first term following reinstatement, and they may not at any time transfer back to the college that originally dismissed them without the permission of the academic standards committee of that college.

4. Students who transferred from one college to another while on academic probation, may not transfer back unless they have the permission of the academic standards committee of the college from which they originally transferred.

Declaring a Minor

Many departments and programs in the university specify requirements for an undergraduate minor. A record of requirements completed appears on students’ transcripts. All minors require at least 15 credits, including at least 6 credits in courses numbered 300 or above taken at Iowa State . The minor must include at least 9 credits that are not used to meet any other department, college, or university requirement. Courses taken for a minor may not be taken on a pass-not pass basis. For additional information regarding policies which govern minors, see Index, Minor. To declare a minor, students must submit a completed Request for a Minor form to their college office at least one term before graduation. The minor may be from the catalog under which the student is graduating or a later catalog.