Interdisciplinary & Special Majors

Although we take great pride in our departmental majors, we also understand that great ideas may transcend traditional boundaries. If you find that your interests fall outside departmental lines, Mount Holyoke offers more than a dozen interdisciplinary majors as well as the opportunity to develop your own special major in a field of your choosing.

Interdisciplinary Majors
Interdisciplinary majors are structured enough to emphasize the central theme of a topic of study, but flexible enough to allow for a range of interest within a given topic.

Interdisciplinary majors can be declared in the following areas of study:

*The program in American Studies will no longer admit students after the class of 2010. Students in subsequent classes who want to specialize in American studies may design a special major or a special minor with an American Studies focus.

Special Majors
Students whose interests cross department lines in an area where no interdisciplinary major exists may plan a special major incorporating work in two or more departments. Students are expected to work closely with their faculty advisers to create a plan that is academically and educationally rigorous.

Each year, 30 to 40 students graduate with a special major. Recent examples include astrophysics, biomedical ethics, Middle Eastern studies, musical theatre, neurochemistry, political art, and wildlife biology.