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Course Petitions

Because Cognitive Science is one of the the fastest growing majors on campus, new courses are often added to the curriculum lists. Additionally, many cognitive science students use study abroad and/or transfer courses to fulfill Cognitive Science requirements. If a student finds a course that they believe would be relevant for their track of study, they should petition it via the process outlined below. 

1.  

Check if the course has been petitioned previously, using the list(s) below. 

If you enroll in a course listed as previously approved, and the class does not appear in your unofficial Audit Checklist by the end of the semester in which you have taken the class, please contact Weinberg-Institute@umich.edu to have your unofficial audit checklist updated.

 

2.  

Review the Undergraduate Committee’s course petition criteria:

  • Does at least 50% of the class look at...
    • internal mental processing? OR
    • applications of cognitive science to a question or issue? OR
    • formal theoretical methods used in cognitive science?
  • Keep in mind that the inclusion of certain words in a course description—such as decision, motivation, thinking, language philosophy, computation or belief—is not enough. Similarly, the dedication of just a subsection of a course to such topics is insufficient.
     

3.  

Submit Course Petitions (U-M, Study Abroad, Transfer)

If, in reviewing these criteria, the course seems promising, submit a course petition via the link below. The course petition forms will ask for both a class description and a syllabus. Historical syllabi are acceptable if the course is being taught by the same professor and/or the class structure will not change from previous semesters. Syllabi should include a list of weekly topics and/or a list of required readings. The Undergraduate Committee will consider course petitions without a syllabus, however, a final decision is not guaranteed without a syllabus.

  

4.  

Petition Review Process and Notification

  • The Undergraduate Committee will review the course petition and issue a response in 7-10 business days (petitions submitted over the Spring and Summer terms may take longer).
  • Student is notified about course petition via email.
    • If approved, the course will be approved for a specific Cognitive Science track. Be sure to check your progress on your unofficial Audit Checklist to verify if the course will count as an on- or off-track elective, as students may only take up to two off-track electives. Course petition decision emails will have details about adding approved courses to a student’s unofficial audit checklist. If your course is approved but it does not appear in your unofficial Audit Checklist by the end of the semester in which you have taken the class, please contact Weinberg-Institute@umich.edu to have your unofficial audit checklist updated.

If not approved, course petition decision emails will have further details.