Admissions

The Individualized Major Program requires students to apply to become individualized majors. Students prepare a formal proposal consisting of:

1) a 2-3 page statement of purpose (Go to guidelines for the statement of purpose; Go to sample statements of purpose.)
2) a plan of study endorsed by three faculty members (Go to guidelines for the plan of study); and
3) an unofficial transcript (a print-out of your PeopleSoft transcript is acceptable).

Other documentation may be necessary if you plan a double major or additional degree (Click here for information.)

PLEASE NOTE:

• All Individualized Majors must meet the graduation requirements of the College granting their degree. Students are urged to review their progress toward meeting those requirements when they apply for admission to the Individualized Major Program.
• Students receiving a degree from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences should be aware that in addition to the minimum general education requirements set by the University, CLAS has additional requirements that students must fulfill in order to graduate with a CLAS degree.
• An audit sheet delineating those requirements can be found at the CLAS Academic Services website.

Admissions Decisions and Criteria

Admissions decisions are made by the Individualized Major Committee. The Committee is comprised of faculty from the two colleges that grant degrees to individualized majors: the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) and the College of Agricultural and Natural Resources (CANR). The Individualized Major Committee meets several times during the Fall and Spring semesters.

In evaluating your application, the IMJR Committee will consider two broad criteria:

You must be in “good standing” at the University, and meet certain cumulative GPA standards at the time of application. For CLAS this is a GPA of 2.0 and for CANR a GPA of 2.5. To graduate with an individualized major (in both CLAS and CANR), you must achieve a major GPA of 2.5 in the 36 credits of courses at the 2000-level or higher that comprise the formal major plan of study. Therefore, the Committee will consider not only whether you meet the minimum GPA standard, but also whether you will be likely to meet the GPA requirements for graduation.

The Committee will evaluate whether your major theme (as presented in your statement of purpose) and your plan of study together form a cohesive and conceptually-sound degree. Your proposed major must be academically rigorous and on par with other majors in the University. The Committee will also consider whether you will be able to take the courses and complete the related experiences (e.g. internship, study abroad) as planned.