Changing Undergraduate Courses

In theory this is possible, but there are potential difficulties in practice. Chiefly, colleges need to match the numbers of undergraduates to the teaching resources available. Often the numbers will be large enough to allow a degree of flexibility, but this is not always the case. Another question that must be considered is whether you have covered enough of the new subject by the time of the change to avoid having to start from the very beginning, thus losing a year. A change of subject can mean an extra year as an undergraduate, which has financial and other implications. Admission to study is competitive, based on academic potential and commitment.  Undergraduates are expected to demonstrate flair at interview and also commitment to the course they wish to pursue for three or four years; a wish to change course is sometimes read (rightly or wrongly) as a lack of commitment. Finally, it is to be expected that someone entering a new course must be good enough to have been admitted for that subject in open competition. The new course may also have admission requirements, for example certain subjects studied at school, which the student wishing to swap is likely to need to meet.

Regulations and procedures vary between colleges, and what follows is a general guide.  If you want to change subject you will need the approval of both the tutors in the subject they are leaving and those in the subject that they wish to take up. You can if they wish talk to both sets of tutors and then, if they all agree, their current tutor will write to the Senior Tutor, informing him/her of the situation and saying that they approve of the change. Alternatively, you may prefer not to tell their current tutors until they have an approval from the tutors in the subject to which they wish to move. In this case, you can approach the Senior Tutor first, who will arrange meetings with the tutors in the proposed new subject. Whatever the approach taken, the Senior Tutor must finally submit the proposed change to a college committee for approval, usually the Tutorial Board or a Warden and Tutors Committee.  This can be turned down, even if both sets of tutors agree.

One important issue to consider when thinking about changing courses include the time of year.  Colleges differ on their policies of allowing people to change courses during their first year and some colleges may even specify that a student shoudl be allowed to change course after the completion of the first year of the subject for which they were originally admitted.  The financial and personal issues involved in effectively doing the first year twice should also be born in mind.

If the course you wish to take up is only available at another college (which is somethimes the case if you are changing to Archaeology and Anthropology or Geography, for example) this complicates matters (a little).  It is not impossible to do so but you must negoitate with your college and decide if you are happy to also migrate (change college) or if you would prefer to remain where you are, which means that you will have to talk to your college about accommodation and what they are willing to offer you.

In addition, there are sometimes conditions set for a student who wishes to change subject.  If a student wishes to change course during their first year they will sometimes be asked to attain a certain mark in the prelims/mods in the subject they are already studying.  Some may also be asked to sit an interview or reapply for the proposed new subject.  There is no uniform procedure across all colleges, so if this is something that you are thinking about, it's worthwhile to check out college policy on changing courses.  You can do this by looking in your college handbook or by informally approaching your Senior Tutor.  You common room Academic Affairs Officer will also be able to provide useful information and support and the OUSU VP (Access and Academic Affairs) is always available to you would like to speak to someone outside college.

If you are concerned about your course, you may wish to consider speaking to your college welfare reps, your Common Room President, Common Room Academic Affairs Officer or the Student Advice Service.