2.5 Undergraduate Minors

Students completing a bachelor's degree may elect to complete one or more minors in addition to the major. A minor is a coherent program of study defined by the department or degree program. It may be a limited version of a major concentration or a specialized subset of a field. A minor consists of no fewer than six courses of 3 or more units to a maximum of 36 units of letter-graded work, except where letter grades are not offered. Departments and degree programs establish the structure and requirements of each minor in accordance with the policy above and within specific guidelines developed by the deans of schools. Programs which do not offer undergraduate degrees may also make proposals to their cognizant deans to establish a minor. 

Students may not declare a minor in the same program as their BA, BS, or Secondary Major. 

Students should refer to policy on Undergraduate Double Counting for information on double-counting courses towards combinations of majors and/or minors and consult with the departments or programs involved if questions arise.

Undergraduate students should be advised that applications to graduate with a declared minor are reviewed for completion of both major and minor requirements. Failure to complete the minor requirements will result in the denial of the degree unless the minor is officially dropped before the late application to graduate deadline of the conferral quarter.

Declaring a Minor

Minors must be officially declared by students no later than the deadline for their application(s) to graduate, according to declaration procedures developed and monitored by the Office of the University Registrar. Undergraduates use Axess to declare or drop a minor. The offering school or department may set earlier deadlines for declaration of the minor. Satisfactory completion of declared minors is noted on the student's transcript and diploma after degree conferral.

Students with questions about declaring minors should consult with the departments or programs involved and review the Student Services webpage opens in a new tab.

Undergraduate students with questions about the minor should consult with representatives in the minor department or program. For general academic advising regarding minors, undergraduate students should contact the office of Academic Advising opens in a new tab, under the office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE).

Undergraduate students should be advised that applications to graduate with a declared minor are reviewed for completion of both major and minor requirements. Failure to complete the minor requirements will result in the denial of the degree unless the minor is officially dropped prior to the conferral of degrees