Common topics of interest  ~  Academic Advising and Trinity College

Academic requirements and programs
of study for premajor students

Graduation requirements

All Trinity students must complete a set of graduation requirements in order to receive their bachelor’s degree. These requirements are listed and explained in detail on T-Reqs, the Trinity College academic policies and procedures Web site.

First-year course requirements

Two graduation requirements must be completed during the first year at Duke. Students must pass Writing 20, a course that is designed to introduce students to university-level writing and provide the necessary skills and tools for future writing-intensive course work. The second graduation requirement that students must complete by the end of the first year is a seminar course. Seminars are small, discussion-based courses where students read, think and write about particular texts and other primary sources. Students can satisfy their seminar requirement in several ways:

  • 20-series seminars: These seminars, bearing course numbers in the 20s (e.g., 20S, 26S, etc.), are introductory special topics courses for students who seek an introductory course in a given discipline. The 20-series seminars tend to be taken by first-year students and sophomores.
  • 49S first-year seminars: Enrollment in 49S seminars is restricted to first-year students. These seminars are designed to engage first-year students in a small-group learning experience and enable them to work closely with a distinguished member of the Duke faculty and a small group of their classmates to explore a special topic of interest.
  • < 100-level seminars: Offered across many departments and programs, these seminars are very appropriate for first-year students. Students can find these seminars using the Schedule Search tool in ACES, the online course schedule and registration system.
  • 100-199-level seminars:  Some 100-level seminars may be appropriate for first-year students, depending on the prerequisites and the instructor’s guidelines on who should take the course. Students should check the course description and synopsis in ACES.

It does not matter in which semesters Writing 20 and a seminar course are taken, although we recommend that students try to complete one requirement in the fall and the other in the spring. First-year students who participate in the Focus program will take Writing 20 and a seminar together as part of their Focus course cluster.

Sophomore year course requirements

There are no required courses in the sophomore year. However, students who did not begin their foreign language study during their first year should enroll in a language course by their third semester of enrollment. Students who have settled on a major will continue with major prerequisite or core courses while students who are still undecided will take courses that will help them narrow their interests. Since sophomores do not need to take courses related only to their major program of study, they will also be able to choose elective courses in other subjects that interest them. Almost all courses taken for a major or as electives can be used to satisfy the general education curriculum requirements, so by the end of the sophomore year many Trinity students discover that they have relatively few curriculum requirements left to complete.

Course load and progress toward the degree

A normal semester course load at Duke is four course credits. Most courses carry one course credit. Partial credit (.25 or .5) courses are offered in several subject areas, including physical education, music and dance. There are also some double credit (2.0) intensive courses that are typically offered by foreign language departments. Students are required to enroll in four course credits each semester. After the first semester, they may enroll in up to 5.5 course credits each semester. Students enrolled in four course credits may petition their academic dean to withdraw to an underload (< 4.0 course credits) if they are in danger of failing the course or have unanticipated medical problem that makes carrying a full course load difficult.

In their first semester, students are required to pass two course credits in order to progress to the second semester. Thereafter, students must pass three course credits each semester. In addition to this semester-continuation requirement, students must pass a minimum number of Duke credits each academic year before they can be promoted to the next class year. Details about semester and annual continuation requirements are available on the T-Reqs Web site.

Advanced Placement (AP) and other prematriculation credit

Trinity students may apply two prematriculation credits toward the 34 credits needed for graduation. Types of prematriculation credit include:

As well as counting toward the 34-credit graduation requirement, AP and other forms of prematriculation credit can also be used for placement into intermediate or advanced level courses at Duke and may also be used toward course requirements in certain majors.

Prematriculation credit (e.g., in English) may not be used to satisfy the first-year Writing 20 requirement or any of the general education curriculum requirements.

Majors, minors and certificate programs

In addition to the one major required for graduation, Trinity students who have a strong, secondary interest in a different discipline can consider a minor or certificate or even a second major. No more than two majors are allowed, and the combined number of majors, minors and certificates that appear on the transcript cannot exceed three.

Major declaration can occur as early as the second semester of enrollment at Duke, although most students declare during the sophomore year. The deadline for major declaration is the end of the eighth full week of the fourth semester of enrollment (which for most students will be the beginning of spring break in the sophomore year). Thereafter, students may make changes to their major at the Registrar’s Office.

A complete list of current majors, minors and certificate programs is available on the T-Reqs Web site.