Students may choose from over 50 departmental, interdepartmental, and structured individual majors or they may design an individual major.
Of the 32 units required for graduation, at least eight are to be elected in the major. Many departments and programs require more than eight units, and specific major requirements vary. (See departmental listings for specific requirements.) While students must complete one major, they may choose to complete two majors, or a major and a minor. No single course may be counted toward two majors or toward both a major and a minor.
The Individual Majors Program allows a student to design a course of study which is not represented in one of the more than 50 departmental and interdepartmental majors currently offered. A student interested in designing an individual major should submit a plan of study to two faculty members from different departments. The proposed individual major must represent and be described as a meaningful program of interdepartmental course work built around a specific departmental concentration. The major should lead to the cumulative development of knowledge and expertise in a student’s field of interest, and should include both theoretical and methodological work at an advanced level. Normally, the plan should include eight units above the introductory level, four of which should be in one department. The program for the individual major is subject to the approval of the Committee on Curriculum and Academic Policy. Instructions for requesting an individual major are posted here.
By the second semester of the sophomore year each student elects a major field, by discussing their plans with a member of the faculty and asking them to serve as their major advisor. Together they review the student's proposed plans, and then the student submits the online Major Declaration form (found on MyWellesley, on the Administrivia tab, in the Especially for Students section) and submits that form listing the courses to be included in the major. The form is then reviewed and approved by the advisor. Later revisions may be made with the approval of the chair of the major department, the director of the interdepartmental major, or in the case of the individual major, with the consent of the student’s advisors and the Committee on Curriculum and Academic Policy.