Academic Regulations and Records Office
Academic Regulations and Records Office

Change of Home Major

Eligibility

Yes
Bachelor’s degrees students of the following categories are eligible to apply for change of home major during the specified round(s) of applications:

Year One Normative 4-year degree students Year Two or above Normative 4-year degrees students and those admitted with advanced standing
Majors for Selection Any majors except those within the students’ home academic units (and Any majors for major-based students) Any majors except those not open for application as stipulated by individual academic units
Application Round 2 1 and 2
Number of Choice Indication 1 2 (with order of priority)

Application Periods for Change of Home Major in

There are two application rounds in each academic year, and the application periods are as follows:

1st Round 2nd Round
Application Period
Announcement of Results
Effective Term for Change of Home Major

Note: Requests must be submitted online via AIMS by the deadlines (at 23:00) specified above, and late requests will not be accepted. Students can view the results of their requests in AIMS and no separate email will be issued to students.

Points to Note for Change of Home Major

  • Check the information and consult the Major Leader, especially on course requirements for the requested major.
  • Details on majors offered by academic units are available on the Programmes and Courses website and the respective academic unit's website.

  • Eligible students can submit their application via AIMS [Study Plan > Major and Minor Applications > Change of Home Major] [Step-by-step Guide].
  • If students are eligible for indicating two choices of major, the applications will be considered by both major-offering academic units simultaneously. In case of only one academic unit has approved the application, the student will be allocated to that major. If both major-offering academic units have approved the application, s/he will be allocated to the first choice major.

  • For students who are awarded a scholarship for their current programme of study (such as UGC Mainland Student Scholarship, CityU Mainland Student Scholarship, etc.), transferring to another major may affect their eligibility for receiving the scholarship.
  • Before submitting an application, students should ensure that they have obtained approval from the relevant authority (e.g. Student Development Services) to transfer their scholarship to the requested major if the application is successful.

  • Students can view the results of their requests in AIMS and no separate email will be issued.

Important Notes for Approved Applications

  • For approved change of home major requests, all courses and grades from the previous major will be included in the GPA calculation for the student’s requested degree and major.

  • Students undertaking a minor should review if the minor and the requested major are exclusive. If so, the minor is required to be dropped accordingly.
  • If students have been approved to change their major AND add a second major/minor in the same application round, the request for adding a second major/minor should be further approved by the new receiving major-offering academic unit (AU) [i.e., current home AU >> second major/minor-offering AU >> new receiving major-offering AU). If the change of major (and adding a minor) will result in exceeding the maximum credit limit, the approval for adding a minor will be rescinded.

  • After the change of major, students are still required to abide by the following maximum period of study (including periods of leave of absence and suspension of studies, etc.) stipulated in the Academic Regulations for Undergraduate Degrees:
    • Normative 4-year or Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine Degree: 8 years
    • Advanced Standing I: 6 years
    • Advanced Standing II: 5 years
  • If the completion of the requested major requires exceeding the stipulated maximum credit limit (e.g., 144 for normative 4-year degree, 114 for Advanced Standing I, 84 for Advanced Standing II, 273 for Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine degree), students should, via the online system, (i) indicate the number of extra credit units required for completing the requested home major, and (ii) provide justifications in support of the request.
  • Request will be forwarded to the major-offering academic unit for consideration, and final approval rests with the Associate Provost (Academic Affairs). If not approved, the offer for the change of home major will be rescinded.
  • If a student pursuing the changed major together with a second major results in exceeding the maximum credit limit, any further course registration exceeding the maximum credit limit must be non-UGC-funded. For details, please refer to Second Major.

  • If the recommendation for extra credit units mentioned above is approved, students will continue to pay the prevailing tuition fees (or non-local rate for non-local students) until completion of the extra credit units permitted for the requested major.
  • If a student pursuing the changed major together with a second major results in exceeding the maximum credit limit, any further course registration exceeding the maximum credit limit must be non-UGC-funded. For details, please refer to Second Major.

  • For non-local students, endorsement from the Hong Kong Immigration Department is necessary before the change of major comes into effect.
  • Any "No Objection Letter" (NOL) issued for the previous major will cease to be valid. Students' eligibility for study/curriculum-related internship, part-time on-campus employment and summer employment will be assessed afresh. Students should apply for a new NOL with the Immigration Department.
  • For inquiries, please contact the Global Engagement Office.

Frequently Asked Questions

    • The entry qualifications are as follows:
      Normative 4-year degree Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination, 12-year school-leaving qualification

       
      Advanced Standing I 13-year school-leaving qualification [e.g. an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma, a General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCEAL)], Associate Degree/Higher Diploma graduates admitted to a non-senior year place
      Advanced Standing II Associate Degree/Higher Diploma graduates admitted to a senior year place
      As the degree requirements for the above three types of students vary, please check your admission offer letter to ascertain your ‘student type’. Please also refer to the Academic Regulations for Undergraduate Degrees for the relevant degree requirements.

    • If you have fulfilled the minimum credit unit requirement specified by your major and degree as well as the University Language Requirements, you may apply for graduation. Alternatively, you can choose to take further courses for personal or career interests as long as your credit load does not exceed the maximum credit units permitted for a degree, and you have not reached the maximum period of study.

    • Students who have completed the maximum credit units permitted as mentioned above cannot register for further courses in subsequent semesters/terms except for (a) those pursuing a double major paying the extra credits exceeding the above maximum credit limit on a self-financing basis; (b) those pursuing a double degree paying the additional year(s) of study on a self-financing basis; or (c) students who have been granted special permission to exceed the maximum credit limit.
    • Please note that except for the above, students who cannot complete all the degree requirements for graduation within the maximum number of credit units permitted will be required to discontinue their studies.

    • In mid to late May of your first year of study.
    • Through a majors allocation exercise in May-June, you will be allocated a major, which will take effect from Semester A of your second year of study.
    • For details of the timeline and related procedures, please visit: Declaring a Home Major.

    • Bachelor’s degrees students of the following categories are eligible to apply for change of home major during the specified round(s) of applications: 
      Category of Students Majors for Selection
      Application Round
      Year One Normative 4-year degree students

      Any majors except those within the students’ home academic units
      2
      Year Two or above Normative 4-year degree students and those admitted with advanced standing Any majors except those not open for application as stipulated by individual academic units
      1 and 2
    • For details of the application periods and related procedures, please visit: Change of Home Major.

    • Eligible students can submit add/drop of second major request in AIMS within the periods specified by the University. For details of the add/drop periods and related procedures, please visit: Second Major
    • The second major can be any major offered by an academic unit, including the student’s home academic unit.

    • If you are a bachelor’s degree student with a home major and have not been granted any extra credit units above the maximum credit limit permitted by the University, you can declare a minor during the specified application periods. This also applies to students admitted with advanced standing.
    • A minor consists of a structured group of courses (15 to 18 credit units) that focuses on a particular academic discipline, allowing students to develop some depth of understanding in a subject area or topic of professional interest. Please refer to the Minor Catalogue for a full list of minors and their curriculum requirements.

    • Students who have already been granted extra credits above the maximum credit limit (i.e. 144 for normative 4-year degree / 114 for Advanced Standing I / 84 for Advanced Standing II) will not be allowed to declare a minor.

    • You can submit your add/drop of minors request in AIMS within the periods specified by the University. For details of the add/drop periods and related procedures, please visit: Minors.

    • You can add only one minor in each application round. If you wish to declare two minors, you can do so in two separate application rounds.

    • No, late requests for add/drop of minors will not be accepted. You have to submit your request for add/drop of minors in the next round of exercise.

    • No. Double counting of courses is permissible between minor and college/school requirements, as well as minor and College/School-specified courses under the Gateway Education (GE) requirement only.

    • Yes, you can. In fact your application for graduation previously submitted will be automatically withdrawn as you cannot complete the requirements for your confirmed academic curriculum. For details, please visit: Application for Graduation.

    • Yes, you can do so by submitting an “Application for Change of Academic Curriculum and Graduation” by the specified deadline, indicating your intention to drop the minor and graduate as originally planned. For details, please visit: Application for Graduation.

If there is any inconsistency or ambiguity between the page contents and the Academic Regulations (AR), rules and guidelines, the AR, rules and guidelines shall prevail.