Is yale curriculum flexible?

gibby
Sat, 13 Oct 2018 19:32:11 +0000

No, Yale is not known for it’s flexible open curriculum like Brown (https://www.brown.edu/admission/undergraduate/content/what-open-curriculum), which is unique in that student’s can build their own curriculum.

Yale has distributional requirments which every student must take in order to graduate. See: http://catalog.yale.edu/ycps/academic-regulations/requirements-for-ba-bs-degree.

It also should be noted that unlike other colleges, which require students to graduate with 32 credits (4 courses per semester times 8 semesters = 32 credits), Yale requires students to graduate with 36 credits. That means students at Yale tend to spend two years taking 5 courses per semester. See: http://catalog.yale.edu/handbook-instructors-undergraduates-yale-college/grades/degree-requirements/

In addition, student’s at Yale usually declare a major during their sophomore year, so there is time to explore areas of interest before committing to a major. That said, Yale will not allow a student to declare a major without having taken the “intro course” for that particular major. So, students are encouraged their freshman and sophomore year to take as many “intro courses” as possible in their areas of interest. See: https://advising.yalecollege.yale.edu/declaring-major and https://registrar.yale.edu/students/major-roadmaps.

Yale does allow for double majoring, however . . .

If you plan to complete the requirements of two majors, you need to talk to your residential college dean. Note that each major must be completed independently of the other, with no more than two term courses overlapping. You must petition the Committee on Honors and Academic Standing (CHAS) to be allowed to complete two majors.