Major/Minor Submission Guidelines

Departments wishing to create new major or minor programs or amend existing programs must submit a proposal to the Curriculum and Educational Policy Committee. Departments considering new programs or significant changes to existing programs should contact Jason Ciejka, Associate Dean in OUE, early in the process for consultation.

Deadlines for Spring 2025 Meeting Dates: 

Deadline 1: January 17

Deadline 2: March 7

Deadline 3: March 28

A complete proposal includes the following documents:

1. New Program Prospectus: When this document refers to "program," read that as major or minor.
2. Emory College New Major Data Form: This form is the outline of the major that will appear in the College catalog. It should clearly mark out the various areas of the major and which courses can be used to satisfy them as well as any special policies or other requirements.
3. Letter of Support from the Department: The letter from the chair or director should include information about the department's internal approval process and reasons for supporting the new program.
4. Letter of Support from the Dean of the College: If new resources are requested/required in order to offer the program, a letter of support from the Dean is needed. This will be the case for most new majors; minors may or may not need a letter of support.
5. Letter of Support from Participating Departments: If the program is interdisciplinary in nature or includes courses from other departments, then letters of support from participating departments are also required.
6. Letter of Support from Oxford College: Proposals for new programs must be communicated to Oxford College through Valerie Molyneaux, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Oxford College. Once contacted, Dean Molyneaux will forward the information to the appropriate faculty members at Oxford. The corresponding Oxford College department should send a letter or memo to you indicating that they have been notified about the proposed changes. 
7. Letter of Support from University Librarian: The Library Assessment letter is required for new major proposals (most new minors will not need this letter). The Libraries will conduct an analysis of staffing, services, and collections to support the proposed program. This analysis will include a comparison of collection holdings to other universities with similar programs and assess the cost of collection development and maintenance. Please contact Lisa Macklin (lisa.macklin@emory.edu) to request this analysis and plan at least one month to six weeks before the submission of your proposal. A report of the Libraries assessment, along with a letter of support from the Dean and University Librarian discussing the feasibility of library support for the new program, will be returned to you and should be included in the proposal. 

Once the Curriculum and Educational Policy Committee (CEPC) has discussed and approved your new major or minor proposal, the prospectus and letters of support will be submitted to the Academic Review Committee and the Substantive Change Committee in the Office of the Provost to begin the SACSCOC review. The Substantive Change Committee will determine if SACSCOC approval for the new major is required.

• If the Substantive Change Committee determines your proposal requires SACSCOC Review then your proposal will be submitted to the University Board of Trustees for review and approval. It will then be sent to SACSCOC for final approval. This process can take up to one year. Once final approval from SACSCOC has been obtained, university offices will begin to implement the major, which may take a semester or longer.
• If the Substantive Change Committee determines your proposal does not require SACSCOC Review, then your proposal will be submitted to the University Board of Trustees for review and final Emory University approval. Upon receipt of this approval, university offices will begin to implement the major, which may take a semester or longer.

A complete proposal includes the following documents:

1. Emory College Revision Data Form: This form asks you to list the current structure of your major/minor and the new proposed structure of the major/minor so that the committee can review them side by side. The revised structure will be updated in the College Catalog when final approval is given. Be sure to indicate any special policies or other requirements.
2. Letter of Support from the Department and Rationale for Change: The chair or DUS should explain the rationale for the changes.
3. Letters of Support from the Dean of the College*: Departments only need to submit this letter in cases where new resources are required to support the revised program. *This letter is rarely needed for revisions to existing programs.
4. Letter of Support from Oxford College: Proposals to revise existing programs must be communicated to Oxford College through Valerie Molyneaux, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Oxford College. Once contacted, Dean Molyneaux will forward the information to the appropriate faculty members at Oxford. The corresponding Oxford College department should send a letter or memo to you indicating that they have been notified about the proposed changes.

Changes to existing majors and minors are not ordinarily subject to the Substantive Change or Academic Review Committee process that new programs must go through. Upon approval, changes to majors and minors approved in the fall will go into effect the following fall semester; changes approved in the spring will go into effect the following spring semester.

These numbers should be representative of the work that is expected of each student for the program. As such, they should contain all required courses for the appropriate program including necessary pre-requisites to enable students to qualify for the program. The CEPC is aware that there may be cases for exceptions to these hour requirements. Any program proposed outside of these norms should include an appropriate justification.

Major and minor proposals received two weeks before a CEPC meeting will be considered at the next meeting of the committee. Proposals submitted after the meeting deadline will be held over until a future committee meeting. For a list of committee meeting dates, please review the Committee meeting schedule.

Once you have completed your major/minor proposal packet and it is ready for submission, please submit it electronically to Curriculum-Submissions@listserv.emory.edu.

For questions about proposals, please email oue.facultysupport@emory.edu.