The Secondary Concentration Requirement
In addition to a student’s primary major, students will be required to fulfill a secondary concentration. This may include:
- Double-Majors
- Minors
- Certificates
Benefits of the secondary concentration include:
A required secondary concentration contributes to breadth in that it involves classes outside of the primary discipline. With this goal in mind, the secondary concentration must include a minimum number of credit hours unique from the primary major:
- Minors must include 12 hours that are not included in the major;
- Certificates must include 6 hours that are not included in major;
- In the case of double majors, each major must include 18 hours at the 300-400 level that are not included in the other major.
Please see the Curricular Options and Enhancements section of the catalog for more details on rules applying to secondary concentrations.
The Secondary Concentration promotes MC's core value of advanced studies. Majors and minors move students beyond broad introductory work, engaging them with an additional discipline's way of "knowing," and include assignments that foster essential skill development complementary to those engaged in the primary major.
Courses that are combined to fulfill a Minor or Certificate are designed to work together towards a specific educational goal (intellectual skill, knowledge of discipline) and are not designed to be disparate classes that fulfill a breadth of knowledge only (Distribution Categories). As a result, the breadth/depth within an additional subject area will serve to improve students’ ability to draw connections between courses.
Exemption for Secondary Concentration
Students completing the following interdisciplinary majors have been identified as meeting the “spirit” of the Secondary Concentration (to study an additional discipline in a more integrative manner) and are exempt from fulfilling an additional concentration:
- Petroleum Engineering
- Environmental Engineering
- Special Education/Elementary Dual Preparation
- Middle Childhood/Special Education Dual Preparation
- Education Adolescent/Young Adult Licensure
- Music Education
- Music Therapy
- BFA in Theatre
- Dual-Degree Programs