Southern Polytechnic State University
Policy and Procedure Manual
P&P Number:  305.2
Original Date: March 1993
Previous Revisions: none
Approved: August 26, 2002
 
Minor Fields of Undergraduate Study
Contents This P&P includes the following main sections:
  • Background
  • Guidelines for establishing a minor
  • Procedure for establishing a minor
  • Student requirements for minor study
  • Review of minor fields of study
Background The intent of establishing minor fields of undergraduate study is to offer students the opportunity to broaden their education. By instituting minors, the university encourages and officially acknowledges the attainment by students of a fair measure of knowledge in more than one academic field.  The selection of a minor field should be made to fulfill this goal.
Guidelines for
Establishing
a Minor
  1. The option to create a minor and the formulation of requirements for a minor are curriculum decisions; therefore, they should originate from the faculty of the academic unit offering the minor.
  2. Ordinarily, a minor may be offered only in a curricular area where Southern Polytechnic State University has an authorized major. However, should a program that does not have an authorized major in a field wish to offer a minor, then the procedure outlined below needs to be followed.
  3. The availability of a minor should be noted in the university catalog. The program shall publish and make available to students the requirements for the minor--the total number of hours required, along with the list of any particular courses mandated or excluded, residency requirements (if any) for minor courses, and grade requirements for the minor if they differ from the general college requirement.
  4. A minor comprises 15 to 18 semester hours of coursework--including at least 9 hours of upper-division courses (numbered 3000 or above)--in a field of study other than the student's major.  Courses taken to satisfy Core Areas A through E may not be counted in the minor, though courses taken in Area F may be counted.
Procedure for
Establishing
a Minor
Step Procedure
1. The program, with approval of its dean, submits a written proposal for the proposed minor to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. This proposal should at the minimum describe the courses required, provide justification for the minor, and show that the program has the faculty expertise and facilities needed to support the minor.
2. The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee submits its recommendation to the faculty for approval.
3. If the minor is approved by the faculty, the VPAA, and the president, then the president submits the proposal to the chancellor for review and approval. Only after receiving approval from the chancellor can the minor be placed in the catalog and offered by the program.
Student
Requirements for
Minor Study
  1. A student may have more than one minor.
  2. A student may select a minor in consultation with the advisor in the major field. The student may then consult an advisor in the minor field, who can inform the student of remaining requirements for the minor.
  3. When the student has met the requirements for the minor, the registrar will then certify that fact.
  4. The completed minor will be recorded on the student's permanent transcript--but not on the diploma.
Review of Minor
Fields of Study		 Every five years, a review of the use of minors by students will be conducted by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.  Based upon its findings, the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee will make recommendations as to whether these should be discontinued.