Academic Catalog

Unit Criteria

30 or more units

Definition

A major is a structured program of study in a specific academic discipline, containing 30 or more units focused on the development of expertise in that field. It serves as the primary focus of a student's degree, providing both foundational and advanced knowledge, preparing students for relevant career paths or further education.

Function

A major provides students with in-depth knowledge and training in a specific discipline. While some majors are directly tied to specific career paths (e.g., education, engineering, nursing), others provide broad skills in critical thinking, research, and problem-solving that can apply to multiple fields or industries.

Description

A major is differentiated by required course commonality: 18 units of a major must be unique and not used as a required course in another major. If there are not 18 unique units, the program will need to justify why the major is not conforming to this request and implement a prohibiting policy statement on the academic plan pages of the catalog to prevent students from earning duplicate dual majors/dual degrees.

Beginning in the 2014-2015 catalog, up to 9 units of a student's major courses (defined by the major prefix) may be used to satisfy both major and Liberal Studies/General Studies requirements.

Each discipline should offer only one major unless there are distinct sub-disciplines that are organized as separate majors and there is sufficient student demand for the additional majors (e.g., the Biological Sciences' creation of the Biology BS, Biomedical Science BS, Microbiology BS, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology BS, and Exercise Physiology BS). Specialized degree paths can also be created through the use of emphases (sub-plans). The minimum units required for a major with emphases to align with ABOR's policy 2-221 sub-specialization policy is 42 units. To establish emphases, the major must have a 24-unit required core that is common to all plan/sub-plan combinations and more than one emphasis. Major and Emphasis titles are listed on the diploma and the transcript.

Printed as Credential?

Yes - Printed on the Diploma

Printed on the Transcript?

Yes

Unit Criteria

15 to 24 units

Definition

A secondary field of academic study consisting of a focused set of courses in a specific discipline or interdisciplinary area. For example, an Exercise Physiology major with career aspirations in Athletic Training might choose to minor in Health and Wellness Coaching.

Function

Minors allow students to broaden their knowledge, enhance their major field of study, or pursue a personal interest without committing to another major. 

Description

A minor is at least 15 units and no more than 24 units; completed with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0. Because some academic units offer more than one minor and/or interdisciplinary minors, no more than fifty percent of the units used to satisfy minor requirements may be used to satisfy major requirements. Additionally, for students taking multiple minors, no more than fifty percent of the units used to satisfy one set of minor requirements may be used to satisfy a second set of minor requirements.

A student may also use the same course or courses to meet both liberal studies/general studies and minor requirements as long as the student meets all requirements for the minor. There is no limit to the number of Liberal Studies/ General Studies courses within a student’s minor that may satisfy Liberal Studies/ General Studies, as long as the minor does not overlap more than 50 percent with the student’s major.

Minors must be pursued and completed concurrently with a degree program. 

Printed as Credential?

No

Printed on the Transcript?

Yes

Unit Criteria

18 or more units

Definition

An Emphasis is a focused subset of a major, enabling students to delve deeper into a specific area of their chosen field. For example, an Informatics major might choose an emphasis in Bioinformatics.

Function

Emphases allow students to gain specialized knowledge and skills that can enhance their expertise and career prospects in a particular niche within their major.

Description

The minimum units for a major with emphases to align with ABOR’s sub-specialization policy 2-221 is:  

• 42 or more total units.
• 18 units of the required credit hours of a major must be unique to that major.
• 24 units of the major must be common to all plan/sub-plan combinations.
• An emphasis will comprise at least 18 units.
• At least 15 units of the emphasis must be unique to that emphasis to differentiate it from other emphases.
• Emphasis requirements can account for up to 60 percent of the total major requirements.
• Emphases must be pursued and completed concurrently with a degree program.
• At least 60 percent of the coursework must be resident credit (awarded by NAU).
• Up to 20 percent of the coursework may include course lines such as Cooperative Education, Fieldwork Experience, Undergraduate Research, Independent Study, and/or credit received through proficiency examinations acceptable to the unit awarding the certificate.

Emphases must be pursued and completed concurrently with a degree program.

Printed as Credential?

Yes – Printed on the Diploma with the Major. Example: Bachelor of Science in Informatics with an Emphasis in Bioinformatics

Printed on the Transcript?

Yes

Unit Criteria

15 or fewer units

Description

A major, minor, or certificate may label smaller groupings of courses as concentrations or tracks within the major, minor, or certificate. 

Function

Concentrations or tracks are permitted for the purpose of advising students to consider or engage in categories of coursework aligned with student interests.

Description

Courses put forward for a concentration or track are in no way evaluated by the Academic Advisement Report as requirements for a major but are treated by the Academic Advisement Report as lists of electives from which students may select courses (e.g., there is no requirement tracking of these course lists, nor any constraints on student course selection). 

Concentrations are implemented when a student in a particular major, minor or certificate would benefit from understanding these additional categories of elective coursework for the major, minor or certificate.

Tracks are used exclusively to guide students to specific coursework, typically for a minor, that allows a student within a specific plan (major or minor) to take courses for another plan (major or minor) such that course selections do not impinge upon rules of overlap between/among plans.

Printed as Credential?

No

Printed on the Transcript?

No

Unit Criteria

1 or more units

Definition

Specialized plans that recognize the acquisition of specific skills, competencies, or knowledge in a particular industry or academic area. These credentials provide a flexible and targeted approach to professional development, allowing individuals to enhance their expertise and career prospects. A certificate focuses on practical training and workforce skill development in a particular field.

Function

Certificates provide targeted education and training for specific careers or job roles. They provide new skills or enhance existing skills.

Description

Certificates can stack into other credentials - 100 percent of Certificate coursework may stack into, or duplicate, the requirements of a major, minor, or emphasis. Credentials intended to be “stacked” into a bachelor's degree must incorporate a plan for completion of general studies requirements to allow students to seamlessly integrate their credentials into a degree pathway. With clear articulation of credits, learning outcomes, and pathways between each credential, certificates offered by NAU may be designed with a modular structure, allowing students to earn individual certificates that can be stacked towards a certificate and/or degree program. Stackable credentials should be intentionally scaffolded, beginning with foundational skills and progressively advancing to more complex competencies, ensuring a structured learning progression that supports student development and career readiness.

When Certificates are stacked into other credentials, specific naming conventions are followed to duplicate names of similar credentials wherever possible.

Not-for-credit badges or certificates cannot be offered as for-credit certificates. Note that students may request to transfer not-for-credit badges for review of potential equivalency of Prior Learning Assessment credit per the transfer policy. Lists of transferable not-for-credit badges can be found here.

Certificate Design Parameters, based on Units of Credit Required:

For the purposes of this section, the nomenclature of “Skills” Certificates, “Professional” Certificates, and “Career” Certificates are used to differentiate the design of certificates based on units of credit required. This nomenclature does not carry to the presentation of this credential type to the diploma, transcript, or catalog.

Common design parameters pertaining to all certificates:

• Coursework may be lower-division, upper-division, or a mixture of both. 
• Courses for certificates must either have no prerequisites or the prerequisite must be included as a required course in the certificate.
• Courses with co-requisites must include the co-requisite as a required course in the certificate.
• Courses are completed with a cumulative grade point average of 2.0.

Design Parameters for “Skills” Certificates – 1-5 units of credit

• 100 percent residency requirement (All courses must be taken at NAU).
• Certificates can be “stand-alone,” yet certificates of 15 or fewer units cannot qualify for federal financial aid. Students enrolled in a major/degree program can use federal financial aid from their major/degree program for the certificate, if they are eligible for financial aid.
• All credits/units of credit must be letter-graded.
• Course Lines: Coursework may not include Course Lines identified in the Course Numbering and Prefixes policy (e.g., Research, Contemporary Developments, Fieldwork Experience, Special Topics, etc.). If these course types are desired as requirements in the certificate, the program will submit a New Course Proposal with a Syllabus of Record to demonstrate intentional design for all units of credit required in a certificate.

Design Parameters for “Professional” Certificates – 6-11 units of credit

• 100 percent residency requirement (All units of credit must be taken for-credit at NAU).
• Certificates can be “stand-alone,” yet certificates of 15 or fewer units cannot qualify for federal financial aid. Students enrolled in a major/degree program can use federal financial aid from their major/degree program for the certificate, if they are eligible for financial aid.
• All credits/units of credit must be letter-graded.
• Course Lines: Coursework may not include Course Lines identified in the Course Numbering and Prefixes policy (e.g., Research, Contemporary Developments, Fieldwork Experience, Special Topics, etc.). If these course types are desired as requirements in the certificate, the program will submit a New Course Proposal with a Syllabus of Record to demonstrate intentional design for all units of credit required in a certificate.

Design Parameters for “Career” Certificates – 12 or more units of credit

• Minimum seventy-five percent residency requirement.
• Certificates can be “stand-alone,” yet certificates of 15 or fewer units cannot qualify for federal financial aid. If the certificate is at least 16 units of credit, the CIP Code is on the high-demand ABOR degree list and the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List, then the certificate can apply for receipt of federal financial aid as a stand-alone certificate.
• Seventy-five percent of the credits/units of credit must be letter-graded.
• Course Lines: Coursework may not include Course Lines identified in the Course Numbering and Prefixes policy (e.g., Research, Contemporary Developments, Fieldwork Experience, Special Topics, etc.). If these course types are desired as requirements in the certificate, the program will submit a New Course Proposal with a Syllabus of Record to demonstrate intentional design for all units of credit required in a certificate.

Certificates may be pursued and completed concurrently with a degree program or as a stand-alone certificate, as specified by NAU Policy 100304: Catalog to Use for Academic Plan Requirements.

Undergraduate Degree-seeking Students

Undergraduate students who are already admitted to and enrolled in a degree or certificate program are not required to submit a separate admission application to pursue an undergraduate certificate. Students may begin completing certificate coursework at any time; however, the certificate must be officially declared in order to be awarded.

Students must declare the certificate before their undergraduate degree is awarded. Students who do not declare the certificate prior to degree conferral forfeit eligibility to have the certificate awarded retroactively. See NAU Policy 100338: Applying for Graduation, Undergraduate for additional information.

When a certificate is earned in conjunction with a degree program, all certificate requirements must be completed within the time limit established for the degree program. Students are strongly encouraged to consult with their academic advisor before pursuing a certificate to ensure timely completion and appropriate application of coursework.  

Certificate-seeking Students

Students who are not current undergraduate degree-seeking students and who intend to pursue a certificate must apply to NAU as certificate-seeking and be admitted to the university in order to enroll. Enrollment in a stand-alone certificate that is eligible for financial aid is necessary in order to apply for that financial aid. Minimum university and program-level admissions requirements apply.
 

Printed as Credential?

Yes – Printed as a “Certificate” of Completion. Completion of a Certificate does not appear on the diploma, since it receives its own printed credential.

Printed on the Transcript?

Yes