https://www.american.edu/provost/registrar/pdf/upload/individualized-majors-minors-processes

American

iversity

Proposal for an Individualized or

Interdisciplinary

Degree

Cover and Signatures

age

This form is for students who enrolled at AU for the first time for the fall 2014 semester, or

were readmitted for fall 2014 or later.

Before completing this form, please read the guidelines at

https://www.american.edu/provost/registrar/pdf/upload/Individualized-Majors-

Minors- Processes_2014.pdf.

Name AU Email

AU ID Expected Graduation

Home Academic Unit Degree

Proposal type

Completed credits Cumulative GPA

***

Must be 3.5 or above

Contact person for this proposal

Student Name (print) Student Signature Date

Faculty Sponsor Name (print) Faculty Signature Date

Faculty Advisor Name (print) Faculty Signature Date

Program Chair/Director

Chair/Director

Signature Date

Home Academic Unit Dean Name (print) Dean Signature Date

Second Dean Name Dean Signature Date

Third Dean Name Dean Signature Date

Select One

Please attach the following:

a. A statement of the central concept of the major or minor, and, if applicable, an

explanation of its

interdisciplinary

character. This statement should include how the

major or minor contributes to the student’s academic goals along with an

explanation of how existing programs of study do not satisfy those goals.

b. An outline of the academic requirements of the major or minor, including a list of all

required courses with their

corresponding prerequisites

and a tentative semester-

by-semester schedule for their completion. Include both the course number and

course title.

c. Electronic copy of your AU transcript, including the evaluation of your transfer

credits that was completed by your advisor when you enrolled at AU (if applicable).

Once you have collected all the necessary signatures, please scan this page to PDF, and

combine it into a single PDF file with elements a, b and c.

Order of Review

1. Complete template and all required signatures. Submit all in one PDF document to

Faculty Sponsor.

2. Faculty Sponsor submits the proposal to facultysenate@american.edu for a

recommendation.

3. After receiving the recommendation of the Faculty Sen ate committee, the Vice

Provost for Undergraduate Studies will approve or will not approve the program.

3a. If app roved, the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies will notify the Office of

the University Registrar, an d all signatories on the proposal.

3b. If not approved, the Vice Provost for Under graduate Studies will notify all

signatories on the proposal.

***

This form is for students who enrolled at AU for the first time for the fall 2014 semester,

or were readmitted for fall 2014 or later.

Office for

Undergraduate

Studies

Process for Writing Proposals and

Submitting

for Review

Individualized

Majors

Effective fall 2014

This information is for students who enrolled at AU for the first time for the fall 2014 semester, or were

readmitted for fall 2014 or later.

The Individualized Major

The university’s Individualized major program allows students the opportunity to design their own

discipline or interdisciplinary major. The program is offered for those students who have a minimum

cumulative GPA of 3.5 and wish to study several subjects concurrently. This gives the student the

flexibility to create a major which is specially adapted for the student to pursue a particular academic or

career path. An individual major should only be considered after thorough research by the student in

collaboration with his or her faculty advisor and only if the outcome of the student’s research of

American University’s existing curriculum does not meet the student’s needs.

An individualized major within one discipline or program requires oversight from at least two faculty

members from that discipline or program. An individualized interdisciplinary major program requires

faculty oversight from more than one academic unit or more than one department or program within an

academic unit. The faculty advisor(s) must be from the disciplines required for the individualized

interdisciplinary major

The Individualized Minor

An individualized minor is similar to the individualized major as described above, but requires a smaller

number of credit hours. As is the case for any minor, an individualized minor should complement the

major(s) being pursued by the student.

Eligibility

Students intending to pursue an individualized major must submit his or her proposal at least a year

before their intended graduation date. A maximum of 18 credit hours completed prior to the semester

in which the application is being submitted may be included in an individualized major. No such

restriction applies to an individualized minor. Students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 in order to

submit proposals for individualized majors and for individualized minors.

Faculty Sponsor and Advisors

The student is responsible for securing the advice and approval of at least two faculty members: one

faculty sponsor (who must be a full-time faculty member) and one or two faculty advisors. The faculty

members should represent the core disciplines involved in the student’s chosen field. The faculty

sponsor will advise the student actively for the rest of the student’s undergraduate career and assist the

student in selecting courses appropriate to the program of study.

Primary Teaching Unit

Some individualized major proposals may involve several teaching units or academic units, in which case

they must identify a primary teaching or academic unit. The primary academic unit is responsible for

confirming that the affected teaching or academic units will provide any courses or other support

Office for

Undergraduate

Studies

Process for Writing Proposals and

Submitting

for Review

Individualized

Majors

Effective fall 2014

needed for the student to successfully complete the portion of the program that pertains directly to the

individualized major or minor.

Proposal Requirements

A successful proposal will be structured in the same format as a custom specialized major, as outlined in

the American University Catalog: with a narrative rationale and set of core courses. Faculty sponsors

may approve substitutions from the courses if the course becomes unavailable.

The rationale must answer the following questions:

 What is the student’s academic goal?

 If the goal is interdisciplinary, what disciplines contribute to achieving the student’s goal?

 Why is it not possible to achieve the student’s academic goal by completing one of American

University’s existing majors, together with a carefully chosen minor and electives?

 What reasons can be given why each course is needed in order to complete the individualized

major?

Complete the individualized major proposal form or individualized minor proposal form, as

appropriate, including a list of all required courses with their corresponding prerequisites and a

tentative semester-by-semester schedule for their completion.

Submitting for Review

After the student completes the proposal form and rationale, they must be submitted with a Cover

and Signatures page to the faculty sponsor for his or her preliminary review. Once the faculty

sponsor approves the proposal, the proposal will be submitted to the Office of the Dean of the

home academic unit. That office will ensure that the proposal meets all academic requirements. If

the student needs to register for courses in the proposed program, then the student must submit

the proposed program to the Office of the Dean at least 60 days before registration begins for those

courses.

When the proposal is completed and signed by the faculty sponsor, the faculty advisor(s) and the

Office of the Dean of the home academic unit, the Office of the Dean of the home academic unit will

email the proposal to facultysenate@american.edu. The Faculty Senate Undergraduate Curriculum

Committee will make a recommendation for approval or non-approval to the Vice Provost. The Vice

Provost will make the final decision.

If the Vice Provost approves the proposal, she or he will notify the the faculty sponsor, the home

academic unit’s Office of the Dean, and the Office of the University Registrar.

Major Requirements

 Individualized Major

Office for

Undergraduate

Studies

Process for Writing Proposals and

Submitting

for Review

Individualized

Majors

Effective fall 2014

An individualized major requires 36 credit hours of course work and 6 credit hours of independent study.

At least 18 of the 36 credit hours of course work must be earned in residence at American University. At

least 18 credit hours of the 36 credit hours must be earned in upper-level courses in the major, and at

least 15 of those credit hours must be earned in residence. A maximum of 18 credit hours of courses

completed prior to the semester in which the application is being submitted may be included in the

program. Unless the academic unit specifies a higher grade, a grade of C or better is required for each

course chosen to satisfy the major.

 Interdisciplinary Major

An Interdisciplinary major requires 36 credit hours of course work and 6 credit hours of independent

study selected to form an academically sound, unified, and well-defined program. At least 30 credit

hours of the course work must be upper level as defined by the teaching units that offer them and at

least 15 of these credit hours must be in residence. A maximum of 18 credit hours of courses completed

prior to the semester in which the application is being submitted may be included in the program.

Unless the academic unit specifies a higher grade, a grade of C or better is required for each course

chosen to satisfy the major.

 Individualized and Interdisciplinary Majors Independent Study

As part of the 42 credit hours in the major, the student is required to take two independent study

courses or senior seminars (totaling 6 credit hours) supervised by the faculty sponsor and focused on the

program's central concept. If there is an available internship program appropriate to the

interdisciplinary theme, it may be substituted for all or part of this requirement. Also, with prior

approval, the student may substitute an appropriate advanced course (400 level) for one of the above

courses.

 Individualized or Interdisciplinary Minor Requirements

An individualized minor requires a minimum of 18 credit hours, at least 9 of which must be earned in

residence at American University. Academic units may have additional requirements including more

credit hours. At least 9 credit hours of the minor must be earned in upper-level courses. At least 12

credit hours of the minor cannot include courses required for any major or other minor the student is

pursuing. Unless the academic unit specifies a higher grade, a grade of C or better is required for each

course chosen to satisfy the minor.