Important notes about the IS minor: 

  • The IS minor is self-guided. See the links below for requirements based on college and major.
  • The very large demand for our courses among CIS majors (CS, IS, Stats) means that we cannot guarantee access to our upper-level courses for students pursuing the IS minor.
  • No class enrollment priority is given to students pursuing the IS minor.
  • No class substitutions are allowed in the IS minor.
  • No transfer or study abroad credits are accepted for the IS minor.
  • Limited advising is available for students pursuing the IS minor
  • Please note that a letter grade of C or better is required for all classes counting toward the minor; S/U courses are not allowed. (For Spring 2020 only: a letter grade of C- or better is required, or an S*)
  • Please see the Information Science Enrollment & Waitlist page for additional details regarding course enrollment.

Overview and Eligibility

Information Science is an interdisciplinary field covering (or concerned with) the interaction of people and technology. This minor will serve students of the humanities, social, and natural sciences who are interested in the interaction of people and technology.

Students will specialize in a particular area of interest in Information Science by choosing classes from one concentration that will provide in-depth study in that area. Courses under each concentration come from within and outside the department. Read the information on each concentration to determine which one best suits your interests and career goals.

The minor in Information Science is available to all students, in every undergraduate college at Cornell except those majoring in Information Science (IS) or Information Science, Systems, and Technology (ISST). Because of small differences in regulations between the colleges, there are sometimes slight variations in the requirements depending on your college and, in a few cases, your major.

All courses must be chosen from the list. No substitutions are allowed. Some courses in the minor count toward college distribution requirements. Use Cornell's Courses of Study search page to verify whether a course fulfills a distribution in your college.

* The Information Science department cannot know how graduate schools, employers, and so on, will evaluate S grades. 

Steps to the IS minor

Step 1: review the requirements for your college and major and choose a concentration

CALS, AAP, A&S, HE, Brooks, ILR Requirements and minor concentrations
College of Engineering Requirements and minor concentrations
Hotel School Requirements and minor concentrations

Step 2: To start the minor, send an email with your name, college, year of study (e.g. 2nd semester sophomore), expected graduation date, major, and minor concentration selection, to ISadvising@cornell.edu.  

Step 3: When you have finished all courses for the minor, complete and file the appropriate certification form

CALS, AAP, A&S, HE, Brooks, ILR IS minor certification form
College of Engineering IS minor certification form
Hotel School IS minor certification form

Questions about the IS minor? You can reach us at ISadvising@cornell.edu