Major Declaration
Change/Declaration of Major:
The procedure to be followed by a student to change his or her major depends on the change and the timing of the request.
Within the College of Engineering: Students in an entering class are invited to declare or change their engineering degree program in the middle of the fall semester prior to registration for spring semester classes. Students seeking to change or declare their major will register for the courses for their preferred major during the registration period and submit an application to the Office of the Dean of Engineering indicating their preferred engineering major. Once fall semester grades are submitted, the associate dean of engineering will process all applications to the engineering degree programs. If the total number of students who are currently declared in a major program plus the new applicants is under the maximum enrollment size for that major program, all matriculated engineering students will be admitted to the major program. If the number of students applying to a major program would cause the program to exceed the maximum enrollment size, matriculated engineering students are admitted first based on rank order cumulative GPA. The maximum enrollments for the major programs are as follows:
Major Maximum Enrollment Size
Biomedical Engineering 24
Chemical Engineering 35
Civil Engineering 32
Computer Science & Engineering 35
Electrical & Computer Engineering 35
Environmental Engineering 16
Mechanical Engineering 48
In the chance that a student is not accepted into their first choice of major, they will be contacted by the associate dean prior to the beginning of the spring (second) semester to discuss an alternate major program.
At the end of the spring (second) semester this process is repeated if there is enrollment space in the degree program for those students who may still wish to change their major. Applications for changes of major are considered as long as graduation in a total of eight semesters (ten semesters for the BS/BA or BS/Engineering Management program) is still possible. It is anticipated that this process will allow nearly all students to declare their first choice of engineering degree program.
Transferring from the College of Arts & Sciences to the College of Engineering:
To transfer between the two colleges, a student must meet with the associate dean of engineering. Students should recognize that restrictions may be placed on transfers into engineering programs due to the maximum enrollment caps in place for all engineering majors. Prior to matriculation as a student at Bucknell, any accepted student can request to be re-evaluated by the Office of Admissions as an applicant to the College of Engineering. If the student qualifies for admission to the College of Engineering and the degree program (or undecided category) specified, he or she will be admitted to the College of Engineering providing that the enrollment targets for the College of Engineering have not been met. Requests will be reviewed by the Office of Admissions in the order in which they are received.
After matriculation, applications for transfer to the College of Engineering will be considered at the end of each semester based on the space available in each degree program. Students who apply to transfer to the College of Engineering will be subject to a review of their academic performance at Bucknell for entrance into any engineering program.
If a student would like to transfer during his/her first semester or is denied transfer prior to matriculation, the student should enroll, at a minimum, in ENGR 100 and MATH 201 during their first semester, enrollment in PHYS 211 is also highly recommended. A minimum of a B- will be required in both ENGR 100 and MATH 201 for entrance into any engineering program. Students who elect to take ENGR 100, MATH 201 and PHYS 211 and meet or surpass the minimum B- grade in all three classes will be given priority should enrollment space within the programs be limited. The grade requirements do not apply to students with AP math credit. If a student meets these requirements, transfer into a specific degree program will be authorized if there is sufficient enrollment space in the degree program. Selection for transfer approval will be based on GPA if enrollment limits prevent transfer of all eligible applicants.
If a student has not taken both ENGR 100 and MATH 201 by the end of the first semester and would like to apply to the College of Engineering, they may apply at the end of the second semester. During the second semester, the student should enroll, at a minimum, in a math or science course required by the degree program of interest, and an engineering course in that discipline. At the end of the semester the student’s academic record will be reviewed by the appropriate department chair and associate dean of engineering.
If the student’s academic record is satisfactory, transfer into a specific degree program will be authorized providing:
- It is still possible for the student to graduate in a total of 8 semesters and the student has discussed a tentative course plan to complete the specified degree with the associate dean of engineering.
- The degree program has not reached its maximum enrollment size. Selection for transfer approval will be based on GPA if enrollment limits prevent transfer of all eligible applicants.
The associate dean of engineering and the appropriate department chair will evaluate students who wish to apply for transfer to the College of Engineering following their second semester on a case-by-case basis.
Transferring from the College of Engineering to the College of Arts & Sciences:
To transfer between the two colleges, a student must meet with the associate dean of engineering and discuss the transfer with his or her department chairperson. Then the student should obtain and complete an “Application for Transfer Between Colleges of the University” and meet with one of the associate deans in the College of Arts & Sciences. Students should recognize that restrictions may be placed on transfers into certain programs due to limitations on faculty size and facilities in a given department.