Majors & Minors
MIT is organized into academic departments, or Courses, which you will often hear referred to by their Course number or acronym. These academic departments offer various undergraduate degrees and minors. The complete lists of bachelors degree programs and minor programs are below.
When you apply to MIT, you apply to the entire university, not to a specific major or school. All first year students begin MIT with an undeclared major. During the freshman year, MIT will provide academic fairs, lectures, seminars, and other programs to help students determine which major will suit them best. At the conclusion of the first year, students are free to choose from any of MIT's majors, without any additional requirements or admissions procedures. To get a feel for the types of classes and topics offered in each department, you can visit MIT OpenCourseWare to see lecture notes, sample homework, and even some videos from actual MIT classes.
You must declare a major prior to your junior year, though most students do so by the end of freshman year. Data on how many students choose each major is available from the Registrar's Office. Approximately 15% of our students choose to double-major; you may also choose up to two minors.
Academic Departments
Degree Programs
- Aeronautics and Astronautics
- Aerospace Engineering
- Aerospace Engineering with Information Technology
- American Studies (available as a joint degree)
- Ancient and Medieval Studies (available as a major departure)
- Anthropology
- Archaeology and Materials
- Architecture
- Art and Design (with concentrations in Architectural Design, Building Technology, Visual Arts, or History, Theory, and Criticism of Art and Architecture)
- Biological Engineering
- Biology
- Brain and Cognitive Sciences
- Chemical Engineering
- Chemistry
- Civil Engineering
- Comparative Media Studies
- Computer Science and Engineering
- Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (with concentrations in Geoscience, Environmental Science, Physics of Atmospheres and Oceans, or Planetary Science and Astronomy)
- East Asian Studies
- Economics
- Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
- Electrical Science and Engineering
- Environmental Engineering Science
- Film and Media Studies
- Foreign Languages and Literatures
- History
- Humanities
- Humanities and Engineering
- Humanities and Science
- Latin American Studies
- Linguistics and Philosophy
- Literature
- Management (with concentrations in Information Technology, Operations Research, Marketing Research, or Finance)
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Mathematics
- Mathematics with Computer Science
- Mechanical Engineering
- Music and Theater Arts
- Nuclear Engineering
- Ocean Engineering
- Philosophy
- Physics
- Physics with Electrical Engineering.
- Planning
- Political Science
- Psychology (available as a major departure)
- Russian Studies
- Science, Technology, and Society (available as a double major or joint major in conjunction with the Science and Humanities or Engineering and Humanities programs)
- Theater
- Women's Studies (available as a major departure)
- Writing
Minors
- African and African Diaspora Studies
- Ancient and Medieval Studies
- Anthropology
- Applied International Studies
- Architecture
- Astronomy
- Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Brain and Cognitive Sciences
- Chemistry
- Chinese
- Civil Engineering
- Comparative Media Studies
- Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
- East Asian Studies
- Economics
- Energy Studies
- Environmental Engineering Science
- European Studies
- French
- German
- History
- History of Art and Architecture
- Latin American Studies
- Linguistics
- Literature
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Mathematics
- Mechanical Engineering
- Middle Eastern Studies
- Music
- Nuclear Engineering
- Ocean Engineering
- Philosophy
- Physics
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Public Policy
- Russian Studies
- Science, Technology, and Society
- Spanish
- Theater Arts
- Toxicology and Environmental Health
- Urban Studies and Planning
- Women's Studies
- Writing
