The majors listed below are those in which early choices are particularly important. If you are considering one of these majors, the recommended courses will help you get started.
Other majors have not been listed because those majors do not require that you begin study during your first semester at Wheaton. In those cases, we suggest beginning with an appropriate 100 or 200-level course.
Please note that not all courses are offered every semester.
Browse all courses and descriptions on our Course Catalog.
| Major | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Anthropology | ANTH 102 |
| History of Art | ARTH 111 or 211 |
| Biology | BIO 111 or 112; CHEM 153 |
| Biochemistry | BIO 112; CHEM 153 |
| Bioinformatics | one or both of BIO 112 and COMP 115 |
| Business and Management | ECON 101 or ECON 102/ECON 112; MGMT 111 |
| Chemistry | CHEM 153 |
| Computer Science | COMP 115 (offered both semesters) |
| Education Major (Early Childhood) Attend an informational meeting. |
MATH 133; PSY 203 |
| Education Major (Elementary) Attend an informational meeting. | MATH 133; PSY 203 |
| Education Major (Secondary) Attend an informational meeting. | This major is only granted in conjunction with the relevant subject area major. |
| Engineering Meet with the Physics Department chair. | PHYS 170 or 180 (Enhanced); appropriate MATH course |
| Environmental Science | BIO 111; CHEM 153 |
| English | ENG 101 (Wheaton College requirement); ENG 201 |
| Film and New Media Studies | one of the following: ENG 231, ENG 258, ARTS 260, COMP 115 |
| French | French 236 or 245 |
| German | German 101, 102, 201, 202 or any English-taught German culture course |
| Hispanic Studies | Please consult department. |
| Italian Studies | Please consult department. |
| Mathematics | MATH 101 or MATH 104 |
| Mathematics/Economics Meet with the department chair. | ECON 101 or 102; appropriate MATH course |
| Music | Please see recommendations here. |
| Neuroscience | BIO 111 or 112; CHEM 153 (fall); BIO 111 or 112; PSY 225 (spring) |
| Philosophy | a 100-level course |
| Physics | PHYS 170 or 180 (Enhanced); appropriate MATH course |
| Pre-Health, Pre-Med | Please see discussion here. |
| Religion | REL 102 |
| Russian Studies | RUSS 110 or 210, and/or any RUSS culture course in English, such as RUSS 284 and RUSS 298 |
| Visual Art | ART 111, 112, and 116; ARTH 111 or 211 |
| Theatre & Dance Studies | THEA 101,THEA 103; THEA 205; THEA 275 |
| Women’s and Gender Studies | WGS 101 |