Skip to content
ADVERTISEMENT
Sign In
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
  • More
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
    Upcoming Events:
    College Advising
    Serving Higher Ed
    Chronicle Festival 2025
Sign In
Weekly Briefing icon_b.jpg

Weekly Briefing

Press pause and catch up on the week’s biggest stories. Delivered on Saturdays. To read this newsletter as soon as it sends, sign up to receive it in your email inbox.

September 30, 2023
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email

From: Fernanda Zamudio-Suarez

Subject: Weekly Briefing: University tells low-enrollment majors to change

Low-enrollment majors need to change, university says

Photo-based graphic with a quote that says “Tragically, we no longer have the resources to support the current portfolio of academic programs, particularly our lowest-enrolled degree programs or majors.”
Illustration by The Chronicle; image from 636Buster, Wikimedia Commons

Reinvent yourselves and potentially merge with other programs. That’s the message that the leaders of 18 low-enrollment undergraduate majors at Miami University, in Ohio, got this semester.

To continue reading for FREE, please sign in.

Sign In

Or subscribe now to read with unlimited access for as low as $10/month.

Don’t have an account? Sign up now.

A free account provides you access to a limited number of free articles each month, plus newsletters, job postings, salary data, and exclusive store discounts.

Sign Up

Low-enrollment majors need to change, university says

Photo-based graphic with a quote that says “Tragically, we no longer have the resources to support the current portfolio of academic programs, particularly our lowest-enrolled degree programs or majors.”
Illustration by The Chronicle; image from 636Buster, Wikimedia Commons

Reinvent yourselves and potentially merge with other programs. That’s the message that the leaders of 18 low-enrollment undergraduate majors at Miami University, in Ohio, got this semester.

In a document shared with affected department chairs, the provost’s office wrote that the university cannot afford its current academic programs, and that the “unprecedented fiscal, societal, and political challenges” that the university is facing are part of a “larger troubling higher education landscape.”

Miami, like other institutions, is dealing with a difficult situation. For example, at a recent Faculty Assembly meeting, university leaders discussed a drop in college applications in Ohio, along with reduced state appropriations, The Miami Student reported.

But these issues and the university’s subsequent financial woes are not professors’ fault, the office of the provost wrote in its document. Still, departments must work with one another to develop interdisciplinary, cross-departmental collaborations.

What are the low-enrolled programs?
Seventy-two percent of students are enrolled in 30 majors, Elizabeth Reitz Mullenix, the provost, said in an interview on Tuesday.

Mullenix met recently with chairs of departments that have programs with fewer than 35 students enrolled, to discuss how to “reimagine the curriculum.”

Some of those low-enrollment programs include art history; French; health communication; religion; and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies, among others (read the full list here).

During the meeting, Mullenix added that the Board of Trustees didn’t mandate the reinvention, but that board members were paying attention to trends at the university and that majors in higher demand needed more resources. Still, she reassured department chairs that if they were involved in their department’s transformation, their own departments wouldn’t be drastically gutted.

How will the programs adjust?
This past summer, a steering committee — assembled by Mullenix — put together a document about the future of the humanities. There the group outlined options for the majors. They could consider:

  1. Developing, revising, or focusing energy on a minor or certificate program
  2. Proposing “creative and exciting” new courses or other learning opportunities, like workshops or winter-term offerings
  3. Combining stand-alone majors into a singular major with many concentrations
  4. Collaborating with other departments on a “super” major or degree program

For some professors, the call for change is still concerning. Elena Jackson Albarrán, an associate professor of history and global and intercultural studies, said that the target programs are part of the university’s identity, and cutting them would be a “big identity shift.”

Mila Ganeva, a professor who heads the department of German, Russian, Asian and Middle Eastern languages and cultures, said that her unit was asked to come up with “innovative ways to move forward” without losing permanent faculty members. She said professors are working on that plan, but it is not finalized yet.

Read our Emma Pettit’s full story here.

Lagniappe

  • Read. This is a reading recommendation about reading. It’s a tour of the author Jennifer Egan’s home library. (The Washington Post)
  • Read, again. Most school-library book challenges in the 2021-22 school year came from a small group of people. Meet one of them. She’s challenged 71 books in a Virginia public-school district. (The Washington Post)
  • Listen. While the podcast host Ezra Klein is on book leave, Tressie McMillan Cottom, author and associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, hosted this episode about boundaries and self-care. (The New York Times)

—Fernanda

Chronicle Top Reads

Illustration of Sigmund Freud. A word balloon contains the words "Sprechen sie mit mir..." - German for "Speak to me."
The Review | Essay
What’s Behind the Freud Resurgence?
By Hannah Zeavin September 26, 2023
What should we make of the return of Sigmund Freud?
Baker College investigation photo illustration
An Uncertain Future
Federal Scrutiny and Plunging Revenue Plague a Private College’s Attempt at a Turnaround
By David Jesse, Anna Clark September 28, 2023
Baker College once was Michigan’s largest private nonprofit college, built on questionable promises of employment and cost. But now it faces a fresh host of financial and reputational problems.
illustration of a hand attempting to move things around on a campus, while another hand stops it
The Review | Essay
Higher Ed’s Ruinous Resistance to Change
By Brian Rosenberg September 25, 2023
The academy excels at preserving the status quo. It’s time to evolve.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

More News

Protesters attend a demonstration in support of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, March 10, 2025, in New York.
First-Amendment Rights
Noncitizen Professors Testify About Chilling Effect of Others’ Detentions
Photo-based illustration of a rock preciously suspended by a rope over three beakers.
Broken Promise
U.S. Policy Made America’s Research Engine the Envy of the World. One President Could End That.
lab-costs-promo.jpg
Research Expenses
What Does It Cost to Run a Lab?
Research illustration Microscope
Dreams Deferred
How Trump’s Cuts to Science Funding Are Derailing Young Scholars’ Careers

From The Review

Vector illustration of a suited man with a pair of scissors for a tie and an American flag button on his lapel.
The Review | Opinion
A Damaging Endowment Tax Crosses the Finish Line
By Phillip Levine
University of Virginia President Jim Ryan keeps his emotions in check during a news conference, Monday, Nov. 14, 2022 in Charlottesville. Va. Authorities say three people have been killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at the University of Virginia and a student is in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
The Review | Opinion
Jim Ryan’s Resignation Is a Warning
By Robert Zaretsky
Photo-based illustration depicting a close-up image of a mouth of a young woman with the letter A over the lips and grades in the background
The Review | Opinion
When Students Want You to Change Their Grades
By James K. Beggan

Upcoming Events

07-31-Turbulent-Workday_assets v2_Plain.png
Keeping Your Institution Moving Forward in Turbulent Times
Ascendium_Housing_Plain.png
What It Really Takes to Serve Students’ Basic Needs: Housing
Lead With Insight
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Jobs in Higher Education
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Vision, Mission, Values
    • DEI at The Chronicle
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Group and Institutional Access
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is academe’s most trusted resource for independent journalism, career development, and forward-looking intelligence. Our readers lead, teach, learn, and innovate with insights from The Chronicle.
Follow Us
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin