B.A. Special Major

Students who answer yes to all of the following statements may be eligible: 

• Are you a current SFSU student?
• Do you have a minimum of 45 and a maximum of 90 semester units of university study with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0?
• Do you have unique academic goals which cannot be satisfactorily attained through one of SFSU’s undergraduate major programs or through a combination of a major and minor?
• Can you identify a focused theme for the major you plan to create? 

In order to apply for a Special Major, an undergraduate student must be admitted and attending SFSU. 

The appropriate time for a student to pursue a Special Major is when they have completed a minimum of 45 and no more than 90 semester units of university coursework with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0. It is not guaranteed that a Special Major will be approved just because a student meets the qualifications and is interested. 

Some interested students may have unique academic goals, but their academic plan may not meet the guidelines for a Special Major approval. Additionally, some academic departments may not approve their courses to be included in a Special Major. 

It should also be noted that approval of a Special Major does not guarantee access to all courses included in a Special Major. Some departments restrict priority registration of their courses to students declared into the department major. 

• A Special Major requires a minimum of 45 approved units of which at least 36 units must be upper division
• Course work to support the identified theme must meet the following criteria:
  • Courses must be selected from at least three different departments within two or more colleges at SFSU
    • If a student’s academic plan can be accomplished with course work from two departments, a double major or major and minor combination should be considered
  • A minimum of 9 units and no more than 21 units must be completed in each department
  • As long as requirements are met for three departments from two colleges with units ranging from 9 to 21 units, the student can supplement their Special Major with relevant elective courses
    • If courses selected from a single department total fewer than 9 units, the courses are considered electives
• At least 30 units of work in the Special Major Program must be completed after final approval has been obtained
  • Courses enrolled in during the semester in which the special major is approved are counted as part of the 30 units

1. TImeline to degree
   1. Do I have enough time to put this together?
   2. You want to have a special major approved before the last 30 units of work in the Special Major.
2. Special major focus
   1. Is your special major very different than other majors or minors SFSU offers?
   2. Does your special major interest draw at least 3 major departments across two colleges?
      1. If your interests are really all in the same college, a special major won’t work.
   3. Are the courses that you think apply to the special major theme hard to get or very narrow in topic?
      1. Special majors do not get priority into the courses.
      2. If courses are too narrow and/or hard to get, it can be challenging to get or difficult to find a substitute related to the topic.
3. How hard it is to get a special approved?
   1. A number of factors go into approval and one can’t say it is generically easy or hard to approve.
      1. The two most challenging parts for students are:
         1. Finding a specific theme that ties the 3 majors together succinctly.
            1. Students often have courses of interest, but there is no theme that ties them together. They’re just areas of interests.
            2. Related to this, many students have an area they’re interested in but all areas are within the same college.
         2. Developing/writing a proposal
            1. This usually requires numerous drafts and sometimes requires help from the Tutoring and Academic Support Center.
            2. This requires the student to really elaborate on how these courses are integrated and crucial to the proposed field of study.

A Special Major is declared after the special major is approved by all necessary parties. This process usually takes a full semester to develop and to get approved.  If you want to pursue a special, there are a number of steps recommended to get you started: 

1. Start drafting your idea
   1. Think about your theme for the Special Major and how it could be represented by courses from 3 main departments.
2. Use the Bulletin to list majors and courses
   1. Note departments and potential courses you feel connect to your Special Major theme.
3. Draft a brief description summarizing your Special Major theme (one to two sentences)
   1. Think of this as an elevator pitch—you are taking an elevator ride with a potential employer and they ask you what you are majoring in.
      1. How would you describe your Special Major so they understand what you are studying?
4. Outline your timeline
   1. When will you complete your Special Major Proposal and when will you finish courses for the major if approved?
5. Consult with Lead Academic Counselor
   1. The Special Major advisor with the UAC, will discuss your idea in greater depth and plan the next steps of your proposal.
   2. Contact the Lead Academic Counselor to coordinate a meeting time to discuss your ideas.
6. Revise
   1. Expect to go through several drafts and an in-depth revision process to arrive at your final approved Special Major.
   2. This may take as long as a full semester and you may need a few meetings with the Lead Academic Counselor to finalize everything.

There are a lot of steps in the process of declaring a Special Major. 

1. Learn about Special Majors and Programs at SFSU
   1. The first step for a student interested in creating a Special Major is to review all of the information found on this webpage. You can read about the requirements and guidelines for Special majors. Students will also need to review existing programs and majors listed in the SFSU Bulletin.
2. Draft out the Special Major idea and courses
   1. It is recommended that the student create a course list for the proposed Special Major and start a first draft of their idea for the Special Major theme to bring to their meeting with Lead Academic Counselor, Michelle Kalus.
3. Meet with the Lead Academic Counselor from the UAC to confirm that the student’s interests align with Special Major guidelines
   1. Students can reach out to the Lead Academic Counselor to schedule an appointment to discuss the Special Major.
   2. The Lead Academic Counselor and the student will discuss the proposed Special Major and will help guide the student on the next steps in developing the course list and statement.
   3. Note: If the interested student feels stuck or has questions on how to proceed, it is appropriate for them to meet with the Lead Academic Counselor at any point in the process.
4. Meet with Department Chairs to review the proposed course list
   1. Students should schedule appointments with the department chairs to discuss and solicit feedback on the Special Major proposal.
      1. The department chairs must support the proposed special major.
   2. Review proposed course list:
      1. Discuss the relevance of proposed courses and any other recommendations.
      2. Discuss course content and any difficulties student might have with the courses.
      3. Discuss any enrollment challenges for students not declared in the major of the department teaching the proposed courses.
5. Complete the Special Major Statement
   1. Through the process of working with the Special Major Advisor, the student will develop and refine the Special Major statement and the course list.
      1. The writing of the statement is a process that usually requires at least a couple of rewrites before the statement is ready for approval.
   2. The student may also receive help writing the statement with a tutor at the Tutoring and Academic Support Center (TASC).
6. Obtain major department approval signatures on the Application for the Special Major and submit the completed special major application to the Special Major Advisor
   1. When the Lead Academic Counselor and the student feel that the statement is well developed and the course list is appropriate, the student proceeds to each department for approval from the department chair.
   2. The Lead Academic Counselor will sign off on the application after the major department chairs have signed off on the proposal.
   3. The Lead Academic Counselor will arrange for the final approval of the Special Major from the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education.
7. Wait for the Special Major Advisor to finalize the Special Major
   1. After your Special Major is approved, the Special Major Advisor will work with the University Curriculum Coordinator to official create the major and with the Registrar’s Office to assist the student in declaration of the Special Major.
   2. The Special Major advisor will notify you of the approval including a copy of the full application and signed forms:
      1. Once approved, your Special Major documents and course list will be archived with SFSU and retained for 5 years after your graduation or your last term of attendance.
      2. You should save a copy of your approved Special Major documents and course list for reference during your undergraduate studies and beyond.