Interdepartmental Major

Policy

You may declare an interdepartmental major (or IDM) in two Trinity College departments or programs that offer a major after receiving the approval of the directors of undergraduate studies of both departments involved. The IDM must be planned early in your undergraduate career. Effective Fall 2003, an IDM must meet the following requirements:

The major must consist of 14 or more courses.
At least ten of the courses must be at the 100-level or above.
The courses must be split evenly between the two departments.
At least four of the seven courses required by each department must be taught within the department.
All courses must be among those normally accepted for a major in the two departments.
While one of the departments must be identified as the department primarily responsible for the advising for the student's major program, the student must have an advisor in both departments.

Procedure

If you have not yet declared a major and are interested in an interdepartmental major, you should consult the Academic Advising Center as part of the process of completing the long-range plan and declaring a major. If you have already declared a major and are interested in changing to an interdepartmental major, you should consult the Directors of Undergraduate Studies in the departments in which you foresee completing the IDM. You may also consult Dean Norman Keul, the academic dean responsible for students completing an interdepartmental major.

If you decide to pursue an interdepartmental major, you must prepare a written application, available here (PDF, 83KB).

For more in-depth information, see our page on procedures for declaring an interdepartmental major.