2017-02

Arizona State University
University Senate

Senate Motion #2017-02

Motion Introduced by: Curriculum and Academic Programs Committee, Caroline Harrison, Chair

Date of First Reading: August 29, 2016

Date of Second Reading: September 26, 2016

Title of Motion: Request from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences –- School of Earth and Space Exploration – for the name change of a graduate degree – from Astrophysics – to Astrophysics and Astronomy

Action Requested: This curricular proposal has received all college, school, unit and university administrative approvals, and is being presented to the Senate for review and voting decision.   

Rationale: While astronomy and astrophysics are strongly overlapping, astronomy is more often used to refer to the observational aspects of the field, while astrophysics most often refers to its theoretical aspects.  The requested name change will therefore help the MS program to both appeal to students interested in observations and theoretical work.  As such it will broaden the applicant pool.