2023-2024 Catalog > Academic Policies > Undergraduate Academic Policies > College of Arts and Sciences > Declaring a Major

Declaring a Major

An academic major program enables a student to concentrate a portion of his or her studies in a specific subject area. Although many students come to the University with a specific major in mind, many other students decide to postpone the declaration of a major until they find out more about certain fields and concentrations of study. These latter students leave open their choice of a major, and are thus referred to as “open” majors. In general, students do not have to select their major until the second semester of their sophomore year.

Students wishing to declare or change a major need to obtain a Change of Major Form at either the Office of the Registrar or the Undergraduate Academic Advising Center. This form should be brought to the new major department for advisor assignment. The form is then submitted either by the new department or by the student to the Office of the Registrar.