Other requirements may be satisfied by courses from lists of guided electives within the major and related courses. Electives The degree requirements of every major include the opportunity for elective courses, that is, courses exploring subjects not directly related to the student's major. The minimum number of elective hours is 18. Specific exceptions have been granted to Electrical Engineering and Accounting, where the minimum number is 12. All students are encouraged to use their electives to explore fields beyond their major.
Some academic units designate a set of classes that constitute a minor in that academic unit.
The requirements of the minor are set by the faculty of the academic unit offering the minor, not by the academic unit of the student's major field of study. When an academic unit offers a minor in a field of study, it is open to all students in the university regardless of school of origin. Students who take a minor will be expected to meet the normal prerequisites in courses making up the minor. Minors consist of a minimum of 18 credit hours, of which at least 12 must be upper-division hours, although individual academic units may require more hours at their sole discretion. At least one-third of the hours for a minor must be taken at U.T. Dallas.