The requirements listed below pertain to all students matriculating in August 2023 and January 2024.

All of the following sections are required to be completed to graduate.

Courses in areas 1-13 must be taken for a letter grade.

Students must receive a C- or above in course work in Areas 1-6 and 10 to complete the major requirements.

Overall Required Credits (120 credits)

  • Total: 120 Credits
  • Human Ecology: 43 credits - courses from DEA, FSAD, HD, NS, PUBPOL at any level or HE at the 3000/4000 level.
  • Human Ecology, outside the major: 9 credits from DEA, FSAD, NS, PUBPOL at any level or HE at the 3000/4000 level

1. HD Introductory Course (3 credits)

  • HD 1130 Introduction to Human Development

2. Developmental Psychology (6-7 credits)

Choose two courses from the list:

  • HD 2090 Mechanisms in Developmental Psychology
  • HD 2150 Infancy and Childhood
  • HD 2170 Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood
  • HD 2180 Adulthood and Aging
  • HD 2510 Social Gerontology: Aging and the Life Course
  • HD 2610 Development of Social Behavior

3. HD Depth Coursework (6-8 credits)

Take one HD 3000-level course and one HD 4000-level course. HD 4000, 4010, 4020, 4030, 4980, and 4990 cannot count for this requirement.

4. HD Breadth Course (2-4 credits)

Students must take one course from one of the five areas (Translational Research, Social and Environmental Influences, Cross-Cultural Perspectives, The Person in Context, or Engaged Learning). 

Breadth courses can be found in the Degree Requirements section of the Human Development page.

5. Additional HD Coursework (14-19 credits)

In addition to completing the above required coursework, students must complete the remaining credits, totaling up to 36 HD credits. Up to 12 credits from HD 4000, 4010, 4020, and 4990 can count toward this requirement.

HD 1111 cannot count for this requirement. HD coursework used for Research Methods/Scientific Literacy cannot be used here also.

6. Research Methods/Scientific Literacy (2-4 credits)

Choose one of the following:

  • BIOG 1500 Investigative Biology Laboratory
  • COMM 2820 Research Methods in Communication Studies
  • GOVT 3999 How Do You Know That?
  • HD 2830 Research Methods in Human Development
  • HD 2930/PSYCH 2930 Data Science for Social Scientist I
  • HD 4765 How to Think Like a Scientist
  • STS 2011 What is Science?

7. First-Year Writing Seminars (6 credits)

The two required first-year writing seminar courses must be completed during the first two semesters at Cornell.

8. Social Science (6 credits)

Any two courses with the Course Distribution SBA or KCM

Courses cross-listed with Human Development cannot be used to fulfill this requirement.

9. Humanities (3-4 credits)

Choose any course with the Course Distribution Historical Analysis (HA), Literature and the Arts (LA), or Cultural Analysis (CA).

10. Statistics (3-4 credits)

Must be taken at Cornell. AP Statistics is not accepted

Choose one of the following:

  • AEM 2100 Introductory Statistics
  • BTRY 3010 Biological Statistics I
  • ILRST/STSCI 2100 Introductory Statistics
  • PUBPOL 2100 Introduction to Statistics (PUBPOL formerly PAM)
  • PSYCH 2500 Statistics and Research Design*

*PSYCH 2500 is strongly recommended for HD majors. Students planning to do honors in HD must take the additional fourth credit in PSYCH 2500.

11. Natural Science I (3-4 credits)

Choose one of the following:

  • BIOG 1140 Foundations of Biology
  • BIOMG 1350 Introductory Biology: Cell and Developmental Biology
  • BIOG 1440 Introductory Biology: Comparative Physiology or BIOG 1445 Introduction to Comparative Anatomy and Physiology, Individualized Instruction
  • AP Biology score of 5

If AP isn’t used to satisfy the requirement, then the course must be taken at Cornell.

No lab is required.

12. Natural Science II (3-4 credits)

Any 3-4 credit course with a Course Distribution PBS, BIOLS-AG, or BIONLS-AG (HD courses with Course Distribution PBS-HE courses cannot be used)

No AP credit allowed. Course must be taken at Cornell.

13. Additional Distribution Coursework (12 credits)

Any course with the Course Distribution PBS, BIOLS-AG, BIONLS-AG, SBA, KCM, MQR, LA, CA, or HA. Language courses may count here.

14. Electives (Variable)

Any courses that are not taken in areas 1-13 count as electives.

15. Physical Education Requirement (2 courses)

Physical Education must be completed in order to graduate. However, physical education does not count toward college and university minimum credit requirements for full-time status, nor does it count towards the 120 credits required for graduation.

16. Swim Test Requirement

A successful swim test must be completed in order to graduate.

Honors Program (optional)

HD majors have the option to complete the Human Development Honors Program, a two-year program where students are expected to defend an original research thesis. You must have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher and complete your first statistics class before applying in the fall of your junior year.

 

College Polices

120 Overall Credits 

  • Students must complete 120 credits toward graduation.
  • A maximum of 15 credits of AP credit and in absentia credit can count toward the 120 total credits.
  • 15 credits of study abroad/exchange or Cornell in Washington, or 12 credits of Capital Semester, can count toward total electives. 

43 HE Credits 

  • Students must complete a minimum of 43 HE credits.
  • HE non-departmental courses at the 2000 level and below do not count toward the 43 HE credits.
  • Students must complete 5 HE credits by the end of the first year and 12 HE credits by the end of the sophomore year. 

9 HE Credits Outside the Major 

Students must complete a minimum of 9 HE credits outside of the major. These credits are given for any Human Ecology course outside your major (except 4030). These can be taken S/U only if course is not used to fulfill a curriculum requirement. 

Pass/Fail Courses (S/U)

  • S/U grading option may not be used for any required course unless it is the only grade option offered for that course.
  • S/U may be used for the 9 HE credits outside the major and for electives.
  • Students may apply no more than 12 credits of S/U toward graduation requirements. If a required course is only offered S/U, it will not count toward this limit. Students may take more S/U courses if they choose, but the additional credit will not be applied toward graduation.
  • The deadline for changing grade options is the 57th calendar day of the semester, the same as the “drop” deadline. 

Special Study Courses (4000, 4010, 4020, 4030)

  • A maximum of 12 credits of special study course work from Human Ecology or other colleges will count toward the 120 overall credits. Courses will be indicated on the class roster with a Component of either IND or RSC. (Additional credits can be taken but will not be applied.)
  • A maximum of 12 credits of 4000-4030 may count toward the 43 HE credit requirement.
  • A maximum of 3 credits of 4000-4020 (not including 4030) may count toward the 9 credits outside the major requirement as long as the special study is in a department outside the student’s major.
  • Students cannot TA (4030) the same course for credit more than once or take and TA the same course simultaneously. 4030 does not fulfill any requirements toward the major. Registration for 4030 may not exceed 5 credit hours per semester. 
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