Graduate Minors

Graduate Minors

This is a new credential and it is anticipated that proposals will begin in academic year 2024-2025. At present, there are no Graduate Minors that have been approved. As they are approved, they will be listed in the Catalog.

The function it is intended to serve is to give the degree-seeking graduate student, Master’s or doctoral, some skills or knowledge in an area that their academic program did not provide. Graduate Minors are intended to broaden the student's education by encouraging and officially recognizing knowledge obtained by the student in fields other than their major program of study.

Graduate Minors will be granted only to students who, in addition to the Graduate Minor requirements, have satisfied requirements for a graduate degree. The offering unit is responsible for verifying satisfaction of all Graduate Minor requirements, as well as completion of a graduate degree. Graduate Minors are recorded on the student's transcript but are not listed on the diploma.

Relationship to the Minor Field of Study for Doctoral Programs

The Minor Field of study for doctoral programs is separate from the Graduate Minor. The Minor Field of Study for PhD students must still be certified by the program through submitting the paperwork to the Office of Graduate Studies. The action to add a Graduate Minor and the action to report a Minor Field of study for the doctoral degree are two separate actions.

The Graduate Minor may be used to fulfill the Minor Field of Study for the doctoral program subject to approval by the major academic program of study. Specific information may be found in the Catalog here: https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/graduate/doctoral-degree-info/#minor-field-of-study

Graduate Minor Guidelines

Program of Study

The program of study for each Graduate Minor must satisfy the curricular requirements listed below. However, some Graduate Minors, with the approval of the Institute Graduate Curriculum Committee and the Academic Faculty Senate may be exempt from some of these requirements, may exceed some requirements, and/or add additional requirements. Consult the advisor for the Graduate Minor program for the specific requirements.

A program of study for the minor is outlined, and it may include more than one option or "track". Tracks allow students to focus on an aspect of the academic field that is of particular interest to them.

Requirements for the Program of Study

  1. A Graduate Minor program of study must include at least 6 credit hours of courses completed at the 6000-level or above.
  2. A maximum of 3 credit hours of Special Topics courses may be included in a Graduate Minor program of study.
  3. Transfer credit will not be allowed to be used to complete a Graduate Minor program of study.
  4. Graduate students may pursue more than one Graduate Minor. These minors would be awarded at the same time as the graduate degree.
  5. Courses used to complete one Graduate Minor may not be used for another Graduate Minor. There is no double-counting of credits between and among Graduate Minors.
  6. Courses used to complete a Graduate Minor may be used to complete a Graduate Certificate (stand-alone or embedded).
  7. Any course that is required by the graduate degree specifically by name/number or from a list of options to fulfill a degree requirement cannot also count towards a Graduate Minor. Courses that are considered electives outside of the major may count towards a Graduate Minor.
  8. All courses counting toward the Graduate Minor must be taken on a letter-grade basis.
  9. All courses used to satisfy the course requirements for a minor must be completed with a grade of C or better.

Other Guidelines

  1. A graduate student should select a Graduate Minor in consultation with an advisor in their major field of study.
  2. The graduate student should also consult with an advisor in the Graduate Minor field of study who can inform and advise the student about the specific requirements of the Graduate Minor.
  3. Students can declare a Graduate Minor at any time. However, it is recommended that students declare the Graduate Minor as soon as they have made the decision so that they can monitor their progress using the online degree audit (DegreeWorks) and with their advisor. Declaration of the Graduate Minor also provides information to the relevant academic units that is helpful in planning courses.
  4. The Graduate Minor is conferred at the same time the major degree is conferred. The MS or PhD degree and Graduate Minor will be recorded on the student's transcript. The Graduate Minor will not appear on the student's diploma. In the case of a Graduate Minor with tracks, each track will be created in Banner as a separate credential using the convention “Minor in ‘X’: ‘Y Track” where ‘X’ is the name of the Graduate Minor and ‘Y’ is the name of the Track.
  5. Graduate Minors will not be conferred retroactively upon students who have graduated.

Administrative Guidelines

  1. Graduate Minors may originate in several ways, such as:
    1. From a field in which Georgia Tech offers a degree program;
    2. From a multidisciplinary field, in which the subject matter is covered by multiple academic programs in multiple units;
  2. All proposals for a Graduate Minor must include a statement of the educational objectives of the program and how the program of study is used to satisfy these objectives.
  3. The academic unit(s) offering the Graduate Minor may choose to require an admission process, set admission standards, and/or set enrollment limits.
  4. The academic units(s) offering the Graduate Minor may request the Institute Graduate Curriculum Committee to be exempted from some of the curricular requirements applied to the program of study or add additional requirements if this is justified as essential to meeting the stated educational objectives of the Graduate Minor. Any exceptions would require approval of the Institute Graduate Curriculum Committee and the Academic Faculty Senate.
  5. All proposals for a Graduate Minor must include a plan for advising students pursuing the Graduate Minor and for approving a student's completion of the required program of study.
  6. All proposals for a Graduate Minor must be endorsed by the appropriate School (Chair) or other unit offering the courses, College Dean(s), or unit head, and by the Vice Provost.
  7. All Graduate Minors must be approved by the Institute Graduate Curriculum Committee and by the Academic Faculty Senate.
  8. Information and relevant documents for proposing a new Graduate Minor can be found at: icc.gatech.edu.
  9. A Graduate Minor generally will be available to all graduate students, subject to restrictions within their degree programs or admission or other restrictions as clearly justified in the Graduate Minor proposal.