Majors (Program/Plan)

Changing a Program or Plan

Students are admitted to the College with a specified plan or may choose to enter as Open Option students in a designated school. Any currently enrolled student has the right to apply and be considered for entrance into an academic major in accordance with program entrance standards (see section on Departmental/ Program Entrance, Retention, and Exit Standards). Students should understand, however, that certain majors may not be able to accept them because of high student demand. Students seeking to change a major should begin the process as early as possible in the semester in which they wish to change their major. This will help to ensure that students will meet any departmental deadlines and/or   the campus wide deadline dates as established by the Office of Records and Registration and posted annually on the registration calendar (http://www.tcnj.edu/~pa/calendars/academic.html ). It also will provide time for the new program/plan (if approved) to be effective for the next registration and a new program evaluation to be completed. Students may download the Change of Program/Plan Form below or pick up a copy at the office in Green Hall 112. Students should also print a copy of their TCNJ transcript from the PAWS Student Center and take it and other required information to a meeting with the chair of the department into which the change is requested. With this information and discussion with the student, chairs will make determinations as to whether program/plan changes are approved. When students are admitted to a program/plan, they should be provided with a statement of degree requirements. The student is expected to follow the requirements for the year in which the change takes effect unless special exemption is made by the department chairperson and noted on the form. Approved changes will be effective on the date they are received by the Office of Records and Registration and will be recorded as of that date.

Second or Third Plans

Students may elect to take a second or third major. However, no more than three plans may be elected and normally no more than one plan within a department. To elect an additional plan, a student must apply to and be accepted by the department of the additional plan. Some education majors are automatically double majors and upon admission only have to apply to a department if considering a third plan. Course scheduling may make it difficult to complete some plans simultaneously. Completion of a second or third plan may require more than the minimum number of course units required for a degree and may prolong the period of study at The College of New Jersey. A student may double or triple plan by completing all requirements for each plan. Correlate courses and liberal learning requirements may be applied to each plan. Double or triple plans qualify students for “Option A: Designated Interdisciplinary Concentrations or Second plans” under Broad Sectors of Human Inquiry if, between or among the plans, there are two or more courses from at least two of the sectors (Arts and Humanities, Social Science and History, and Natural Science and Quantitative Reasoning). If only two sectors are represented, students must then take two additional courses from the missing sector. Except for Natural Sciences and Quantitative Reasoning, where students must complete a laboratory science course and a course in quantitative reasoning whether or not the sector is included in one of the plans, it is not necessary to cover both domains in each sector. When additional courses in a sector not covered in one of the plans is required, each course must have a different prefix. Furthermore, a maximum of three full courses from the first plan may be applied to the second or third plan. Unless the capstone requirement carries the weight of two full courses and is approved by both plan advisers, a capstone cannot apply to more than one plan. Students completing a second or third plan will receive only one degree. The first plan, as indicated by the student, will determine which degree will be granted (B.A., B.S., etc.). However, all students majoring in elementary, early childhood, deaf/hard of hearing, or special education also take an additional academic plan, which will be reflected on their transcript and receive the BS degree. All program/plan changes will be reflected on the transcript. While the second or third plan may be dropped at any time, the election of a second or third plan or the switching of what will serve as the first plan must be done prior to the semester of the student’s graduation. A second or third plan cannot be completed after graduation (see college policy regarding second degrees). Applications to elect, drop or switch plans must be processed through the Office of Records and Registration by the same deadlines and following the same departmental requirements as a change of program/plan request. Students pursuing a second or third plan are expected to seek advisement as they would for the first.

TCNJ Policy on Changing a Program or Plan