Minor Programmes

A Minor programme is an additional area of study outside of the Major. Doing a Minor programme contributes to the breadth of learning envisaged for an NUS undergraduate education.

For students admitted prior to AY2019/2020, the unit requirement for a Minor is at least 24 units, of which:

  • Up to 8 units may be used to meet the requirements for both the Minor and the Faculty, Major, Second Major, or another Minor requirements, subject to the agreement of the particular department(s), programme(s) or Faculty/School hosting the Minor.
  • At least 12 units for any Minor must be taken from outside the entire set of courses that are listed for the major(s)/another minor that the student is taking/has taken.
  • A minimum of 16 units of the Minor requirements must be earned from courses read at NUS, unless indicated otherwise by Faculties/Departments for specific minors. Courses read at NUS include all courses taught, co-taught, supervised or co-supervised by NUS faculty member(s). These consist of graded courses or courses with an 'S' or 'CS' grade. The remaining units may be earned through credit transfers, advanced placement and exemptions, from courses deemed relevant to the particular Minor.

For students admitted from AY2019/2020 onwards, the unit requirement for a Minor is at least 20 units, of which:

  • Up to 8 units (40% of the unit requirements for a Minor) may be double counted and used to meet (i) the Minor requirement and (ii) another requirement, e.g., General Education (only for students admitted from AY2021/2022 onwards), College (e.g., Common Curriculum), Faculty, Major, Second Major, Minor, Specialisation or other requirement, i.e., at least 12 units of the Minor must be distinct and not overlapping

  • At least 12 units for any Minor must be taken from outside the entire set of courses that are listed for the major(s)/another minor that the student is taking/ has taken.

  • A minimum of 60% of the Minor requirements must be earned from courses read at NUS. Courses read at NUS include all courses taught, co-taught, supervised or co-supervised by NUS faculty member(s). These consist of graded courses or courses with an ‘S' or ‘CS' grade. The remaining units may be earned through credit transfers, advanced placement and exemptions, from courses deemed relevant to the particular Minor.

For students admitted prior to AY2015/16: Relevant General Education (GE) Courses may be included in the list of courses approved for a Minor. Students who read such a (GE) course may count it towards both the General Education and Minor requirements. The units under the Breadth and Unrestricted Elective course requirements can also be used to satisfy the Minor programme requirements.

For students admitted from AY2015/2016 to AY2020/2021: Students who read General Education (GE) Courses to fulfil requirements for a Minor are not allowed to count these courses towards fulfilling both the General Education and the Minor requirements. For example, if a student had taken a GEH course for his/her Minor, he/she would have to take another GEH course to fulfil the Human Cultures pillar of the GE requirement. The units under the Unrestricted Elective course requirements may be used to satisfy Minor requirements.

The Minor will be reflected in the student's transcript upon successful completion.

Students can be admitted to Minor programmes at the point of admission to NUS, or by applying/declaring to the relevant Faculties/Schools no later than the end of the fifth semester of study. For the combinations of Minor programmes with specific single degree programmes available at the point of admission, please refer to the website of the Office of Admissions.

The Minor programmes that are currently on offer at NUS are listed below. For details on the requirements of each Minor, please refer each Faculty/School’s website.

Minor Host Faculty/Department Type
(see 'Note' below)
Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences
Disciplinary Minors    
Anthropology
(Offered to Cohort 2022 onwards)		 Department of Sociology and Anthropology Open
Chinese Language Department of Chinese Studies Open
Chinese Studies Department of Chinese Studies Open
Chinese Translation Department of Chinese Studies
(with effect from AY2014/15)		 Open
Communications and New Media Department of Communications and New Media Open
Economics Department of Economics Open
English Language Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
English Literature Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
European Studies
(Only offered up to cohort 2019)		 Department of History Open
History Department of History Open
Human Services Department of Social Work Open
India Studies South Asian Studies Programme Open
Interpreting
(effective from Semester 1, AY2022/23 for Cohort 2021 Onwards)		 Department of Chinese Studies Open
Japanese Studies Department of Japanese Studies Open
Language Science
(With effect from Semester 1, AY2023/24 for Cohort 2022 Onwards)		 Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
Malay Studies Department of Malay Studies Open
Philosophy Department of Philosophy Open
Political Science Department of Political Science Open
Psychology Department of Psychology Open
Sociology Department of Sociology and Anthropology Open
Southeast Asian Studies Department of Southeast Asian Studies Open
Theatre Studies Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
Visual Cultures Department of Communications and New Media Open
Multidisciplinary Minors    
Aquatic Ecology Department of Geography and Department of Biological Sciences Open
Art History Department of History Open
Asian Studies

Departments of Chinese Studies, Japanese Studies, Malay Studies, Southeast Asian Studies and South Asian Studies Programme

 Open
China Studies Office of Programmes Open
Cultural Studies Department of Communications and New Media Open
English Studies
(Open to students from all faculties except students majoring in English Language and/or English Literature)		 Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
Film Studies Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre Studies Open
Gender Studies Office of Programmes Open
Geographical Information Systems Department of Geography Open
Geosciences Department of Geography and Faculty of Science Open
Global Studies Department of Political Science Open
Health and Social Sciences Office of Programmes Open
Interactive Media Development Department of Communications and New Media & Department of Computer Science Open
Language Studies Centre for Language Studies Open
Religious Studies Office of Programmes Open
Science, Technology and Society Office of Programmes Open
Urban Studies Department of Geography and Department of Real Estate Open
School of Business
Disciplinary Minors    
Management
  
  • Cohort 2016 & Before
    •   
  • Cohort 2017 & After
    		•  School of Business Restricted
      
  • Entrepreneurship (Cohort 2017 & After)
    •   
  • Technopreneurship (Cohort 2016 & Before)

    • (Minor in Entrepreneurship was formerly known as Minor in Technopreneurship, i.e., prior AY2017/18)    		 Department of Business Policy Open
    Real Estate Department of Real Estate Restricted
    Multidisciplinary Minors    
    Management of Technology School of Business and College of Design and Engineering Restricted
    School of Computing
    Disciplinary Minors    
    Artificial Intelligence School of Computing Restricted
    Business Analytics School of Computing Restricted
    Computer Science School of Computing Restricted
    Information Security School of Computing Restricted
    Information Systems
    		 School of Computing Restricted
    Multidisciplinary Minors    
    Data Engineering School of Computing and College of Design and Engineering Restricted
    Interactive Media Development Department of Computer Science & Department of Communications and New Media Open
    College of Design and Engineering
    Disciplinary Minors    
    Architectural Studies Department of Architecture Restricted
    Biomedical Engineering (for Cohort AY2019/20 onwards) Department of Biomedical Engineering Open
    Cities College of Design and Engineering Open
    Computing (Design and Engineering) Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering  Restricted 
    Landscape Architectural Studies Department of Architecture Restricted
    Project Management Department of the Built Environment Restricted
    Systems Engineering Department of Industrial Systems Engineering & Management Restricted
    Visual Communication Design  Division of Industrial Design  Restricted 
    Multidisciplinary Minors    
    Data Engineering College of Design and Engineering and School of Computing Restricted
    Engineering Materials College of Design and Engineering and Faculty of Science Restricted
    Infrastructure Management and Finance College of Design and Engineering and School of Business Open
    Innovation and Design College of Design and Engineering Restricted
    Management of Technology College of Design and Engineering and School of Business Restricted
    Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine    
    Disciplinary Minors    
    Biomedical Informatics
    (With effect from Semester 1, AY2023/24)    		 Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine Open
    Integrative Health
    (With effect from Semester 1, AY2023/24)    		 Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine Open
    Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music    
    Music and Society Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music Restricted
    Performing Arts Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music  Restricted 
    Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health  
    Public Health Department of Public Health - Undergraduate Programme Open
    Faculty of Science
    Disciplinary Minors    
    Analytical Chemistry Department of Chemistry Open
    Astronomy Department of Physics Open
    Bioinformatics Department of Biological Sciences Open
    Biophysics Department of Physics and Life Sciences Programme Open
    Botany

    (With effect from Semester 1, AY2023/24 for Cohort AY2020/21 onwards)

    		 Department of Biological Sciences Open
    Chemistry
    		 Department of Chemistry Open
    Data Analytics Department of Statistics & Data Science Open
    Forensic Science Department of Biological Sciences and Department of Chemistry Restricted
    Geosciences Department of Geography and Faculty of Science Open
    Life Sciences Department of Biological Sciences Open
    Mathematics Department of Mathematics Open
    Meteorology and Climate Science Department of Physics Open
    Environmental Sustainability
    (with effect from Semester 1, AY2024/25 for Cohort AY2021/22 onwards)     		 Department of Biological Sciences  Open
    Nanoscience Department of Physics and Department of Chemistry Open
    Nutrition Department of Food Science and Technology Restricted
    Pharmaceutical Science Department of Pharmacy Restricted
    Physics Department of Physics Open
    Physics in Technology Department of Physics Open
    Statistics Department of Statistics & Data Science Open
    Quantitative Finance Department of Mathematics Open
    Multidisciplinary Minors    
    Aquatic Ecology Department of Biological Sciences and Department of Geography Open
    Engineering Materials Faculty of Science and College of Design and Engineering Restricted
    Medical Physics Department of Physics Restricted
    NUS College (NUSC)  
    China Studies* NUSC – Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS)  
    Chua Thian Poh Community Leadership Centre    
    Community Development and Leadership Chua Thian Poh Community Leadership Centre Open

    For students who are interested to do a Minor programme during the course of their candidature, please note:

    'Open' Minor - students can declare their intention to do an open minor via the Academic Plan Declaration without any prior approval from the Host Faculty/Department. 

    'Restricted' Minor - students are required to apply to the Host Faculty/Department and obtain approval to read a restricted minor.

    * These programmes allow for up to 16 units of ungraded substitutable courses to be accepted from the partner university.