Declaring or Changing a Major

Primary Major Declaration: Fill out the Major Declaration Form to declare your primary major by October 29, 2017. A primary major declaration submitted by this deadline will be posted in Albert, pending approval, by November 10, 2017.

Second Major Declaration: If you are close to completing a second major that hasn’t been posted on your transcript yet, follow these steps by October 29, 2017:
1. First, ensure that you have already completed all the courses needed to at least get a NYU Shanghai minor in the subject. NYU Shanghai minor requirements are here.
2. If you’ve satisfied the above, fill out the Major Declaration Form and then email your academic advisor with a clear plan showing by which semester you will have completed each requirement (see sample here). After this has been reviewed and your plan approved as feasible, your second major will be posted to your transcript.
If you no longer intend to pursue a second major that has already been posted on your transcript, you should inform us at shanghai.registrar@nyu.edu with a cc to your advisor to drop the major.

If you miss the above deadlines, you will have another opportunity in the spring semester before registration in April 2018.

Declared majors will get priority of registering for some classes of the primary major. Priority registration does not apply for the second major.

Students may declare a major prior to registration for the next semester if they are registered for enough credits in the current semester so that at the end of it they will have completed at least 32 credits (typically when registering for fall of their second year). They must have a final grade of C, or current semester midterm grade of B, or higher in a designated prerequisite course for that major. When students do not have enough earned credits to declare a major, their major declaration will not be recognized even if they have completed a major declaration form.

The prerequisite courses for each major are:

  1. Humanities – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Global Perspective on Society
  2. Social Science – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Global Perspective on Society
  3. Global China Studies – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in any required Global China Studies course
  4. Biology – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Foundations of Biology 1
  5. Neural Science – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Foundations of Biology 1
  6. Chemistry – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Foundations of Chemistry 2
  7. Physics – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Foundations of Physics 2
  8. Honors Mathematics – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Analysis 1. A grade of B in Honors Analysis 1 is strongly recommended. 
  9. Mathematics – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Multivariable Calculus. A grade of B in Multivariable Calculus is strongly recommended.
  10. Computer Science – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Introduction to Computer Programming OR Introduction to Computer Science
  11. Data Science – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Introduction to Computer Programming OR Introduction to Computer Science AND in Calculus
  12. Computer Systems Engineering – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Introduction to Computer Programming OR Introduction to Computer Science
  13. Electrical and Systems Engineering – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Introduction to Computer Programming OR Introduction to Computer Science
  14. Interactive Media Arts – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Interaction Lab OR Communications Lab
  15. Interactive Media and Business – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Application Lab OR Interaction Lab OR Communications Lab OR Principles of Financial Accounting OR Economics of Global Business
  16. Business – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Statistics for Business and Economics
  17. Economics – Final grade of C, or currently enrolled in Microeconomics

Note: If you receive a final grade of C- or below for a currently-enrolled prerequisite course, your major declaration will be removed.


*VIDEO: Student advice on how to choose a major. This video, created by Louis Demetroulakos, Class of 2019, interviewed NYU Shanghai students about their advice on deciding on a major.