MCS Information on Multiple Majors, Coterm BS and MS Degrees, and Honors

Multiple Majors - A number of choices are available for students who may wish to complete work in more than one discipline. A brief description is given below; further information may be found in the degrees section of Courses and Degrees of the Stanford bulletin.

Bachelor of Arts and Sciences Degree (B.A.S.) - This is a single degree awarded to students who have completed, with no overlapping courses, the curricular requirements of two majors which ordinarily would lead to different bachelor’s degrees ; that is, a B.A. and a B.S. (180 units). Students who cannot meet the requirements for both majors without overlapping courses are not eligible for the B.A.S., but may apply to have a secondary major recorded on their transcripts.

Double Majors - Students can also declare multiple majors within the same bachelor degree program (AB, BS, or BAS ) . Double majors must complete 180 units and fulfill all of the requirements for both majors with no overlapping. [Exceptions are courses that satisfy an introductory skill requirement (e.g., introductory math).]

Dual Bachelor's Degrees (Concurrent B.A. & B.S.) - To qualify for both a B.A. and a B.S. degree, a student must complete a minimum of 225 units.

Single Bachelor's Degree with Secondary Major - When students complete requirements for a second major, but with overlapping courses, the diploma will be awarded for the first major only; however, the transcript will bear the notation that the requirements for the second major have also been met.

Coterminal B.S. & M.S. Degrees - The coterminal degree plan allows undergraduates to work simultaneously towards a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. Coterminal students must fulfill the requirements of both degrees: that is, complete all units required by the department conferring the MS degree in addition to the usual 180 units for the BS degree. Since no MS degree is offered in Math&Comp Sci, students wishing an advanced degree often enter a coterminal program in Computer Science, Statistics, MS&E, or Financial Math.

Undergraduates may petition to enter the coterminal program as early as the 8th quarter and no later than the 11th quarter. Petitions for admission may be obtained from the department which will confer the MS degree. [Note: Deadlines for admission to MS program differ for each department.]

Students in the coterm program may spread the bachelor’s requirements through all five years. As many MCS core courses are also part of the MS degree requirements, majors have more flexibility in setting up their graduate programs.

Honors - The Math&CompSci honors program encourages intensive study in an area of mathematical science in addition to meeting the requirements for the major. Completion of at least 15 units of courses that form a sustained effort in one area, -- including an approved higher level graduate course, or participation in a small group seminar, or at least three units of directed reading – are required. Some past examples include concentration on (1) CS theory, especially different types of algorithms and algorithmic paradigms; (2) detecting the difference between human and non-human responses in game-theory type games; (3) demonstrating Bayesian models and networks potential in a legal analysis context to evaluate real-world applicability of Bayesian networks to criminal law and civil litigation; (4) analyzing phylogenetic trees of bacterial data.