Baylor University Majors: The Complete Guide to Programs and Degrees
Whether you're a high school senior researching where to apply or an admitted student mapping out your academic path, one of the first questions you're asking is: what can I actually study at Baylor? The answer is broader than most people expect. Baylor University offers more than 125 undergraduate majors and programs across 12 colleges and schools — from nursing and aerospace engineering to church music and social work. Here's the complete breakdown, organized by school, so you can figure out exactly where your interests fit.
Baylor's Academic Structure: 12 Schools and Colleges
Understanding how Baylor is organized matters before you pick a major. Each school has its own faculty, advising team, admission requirements, and degree structure. Some schools admit students directly as freshmen; others require a separate application after your first year.
The student-to-faculty ratio is 14:1, and average class size is 26 students — smaller than most large state universities. That means you'll actually know your professors, which becomes useful fast when you need a research recommendation or career connection.
College of Arts & Sciences
The largest school at Baylor, Arts & Sciences houses more than 50 majors spanning humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences. Most students land here by default — it's the broadest school and the one with the most flexibility.
Popular majors: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English, History, Psychology, Political Science, Sociology, Spanish, Philosophy, Communication Studies, Mathematics, Neuroscience.
What makes it distinctive: Arts & Sciences is home to the Great Texts of the Western Tradition program — a rigorous honors-style track where students read primary sources from Plato through modernity in small discussion seminars. It's one of the more genuinely distinctive academic experiences available at any research university. Students in Great Texts typically double-major in a more career-directed field alongside it.
Hankamer School of Business
Hankamer offers 13 unique majors under the BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration) degree — and admission isn't guaranteed at enrollment. Students apply for formal admission to the BBA program at the end of freshman year, so your grades during that first year matter.
Available majors: Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Management, Entrepreneurship, International Business, Real Estate, Management Information Systems, Supply Chain Management, and more.
The Business Fellows Program is Hankamer's most selective offering — an elite cohort track with advanced coursework, real consulting projects, and professional mentorship. Getting in is competitive; it functions like an accelerated MBA pipeline starting at 18.
School of Engineering & Computer Science
Baylor's engineering school has grown substantially in recent years, now offering eight engineering specializations plus dedicated degrees in computer science, data science, and cybersecurity.
Available majors: Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Bioinformatics, Data Science, Cybersecurity.
Engineering and CS students spend significant time in evening lab sections and project sessions — which makes where you live more consequential than it might seem. The walk from Centre Apartments to Baylor's engineering complex takes about 10 minutes. Driving from complexes farther from campus means hunting for parking and easily losing 30 extra minutes per lab session.
Louise Herrington School of Nursing
Baylor's nursing program is nationally recognized and consistently ranked among the top programs in Texas. Admission is competitive — students apply for formal admission during their freshman year.
Degree offered: BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing)
Nursing students face clinical rotations with early morning and irregular schedule blocks that vary by week. The flexibility of being able to walk home between a 6am clinical and a later afternoon seminar is something nursing students mention constantly when they wish they'd chosen housing differently.
Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences
This college covers health-related fields that sit outside nursing and traditional medicine.
Available majors: Kinesiology, Health Science Studies, Nutrition Sciences, Exercise Physiology, Public Health, Interior Design, Family and Consumer Sciences, Communication Sciences and Disorders.
Worth knowing: Kinesiology is one of Baylor's largest majors overall, and it's the most common pre-med feeder major alongside Biology — especially for students who want more flexibility in their coursework before medical school applications.
Moody School of Education
Baylor's education school prepares classroom teachers and school administrators. Most education students double-major in a content area for teacher certification — a Biology/Education double-major is one of the most practical combinations.
Degrees available: Teacher certification tracks in elementary, middle school, and secondary education across all major content areas. Educational administration tracks at the graduate level.
School of Music
One of Baylor's oldest schools, Music offers conservatory-level training within a research university context — which means you get serious musical instruction while still having access to a full academic campus.
Degrees offered: BM (Bachelor of Music) in Performance, Composition, Piano Pedagogy, and Church Music. BME (Bachelor of Music Education) for future K-12 teachers.
Diana R. Garland School of Social Work
A smaller, specialized school — Baylor's social work program is CSWE-accredited and well-regarded for its integration of Christian values with professional social work practice.
Degree offered: BSW (Bachelor of Social Work)
The Honors College: Baylor's Most Selective Programs
The Honors College isn't a separate school — it's a framework that layers enriched academic experience over your primary major. Honors students complete interdisciplinary seminars, a senior thesis, and cohort-based courses.
The flagship programs:
- University Scholars Program — Baylor's most selective undergraduate track. Students combine philosophy, literature, history, and theology in an intensive cohort format. Almost all UScholars double-major.
- Baylor Interdisciplinary Core (BIC) — An alternative to the standard Common Core requirements that emphasizes interdisciplinary inquiry across four years. BIC students tend to be among the most engaged intellectually on campus.
- Great Texts — Also formally housed in Arts & Sciences, but closely associated with the Honors College ethos.
The Most Popular Majors at Baylor University
Based on recent enrollment data, here are the majors Baylor students are actually studying in large numbers:
- Nursing (BSN) — one of the largest programs by enrollment
- Biology — the primary pre-med feeder major
- Accounting (Hankamer BBA)
- Finance (Hankamer BBA)
- Marketing (Hankamer BBA)
- Communication Studies
- Kinesiology — large pre-med and pre-PT pipeline
- Psychology — common pre-counseling and pre-law major
- Political Science — heavily pre-law
- Computer Science — growing faster than almost any other program nationally
Pre-Professional Programs at Baylor
Baylor doesn't offer a standalone "pre-med" major — instead, students complete science prerequisites while majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, or Kinesiology. The Health Professions Advisory Program (HPAP) coordinates medical and dental school advising, hosts MCAT prep resources, and writes committee letters for applicants.
Pre-Med: Most students major in Biology, Chemistry, or Kinesiology while completing the standard pre-med science sequence (general chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, biology, biochemistry, statistics). Baylor's pipeline to Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Temple is a genuine advantage for clinical shadowing hours.
Pre-Law: Political Science, History, Philosophy, and Communication are the most common pre-law majors. Baylor Law School is on campus — a real advantage for undergrads who want to sit in on a class, meet faculty, or start building law school relationships early.
Pre-Dental / Pre-Pharmacy: Managed through HPAP alongside pre-med. The science prerequisite sequences overlap significantly.
Pre-Business: Students who don't make the direct Hankamer BBA program can complete a general business minor or major in Economics (housed in Arts & Sciences) while reapplying.
Minors, Double Majors, and Accelerated Programs
Most baylor majors and minors are separate applications — you can add a secondary major without it counting against your Common Core hours. Some popular combinations:
- Biology + Chemistry (pre-med with strong research background)
- Finance + Accounting (Hankamer CPA/investment track)
- Political Science + Philosophy (pre-law with analytical depth)
- Computer Science + Mathematics (quantitative and software roles)
Baylor also offers accelerated BS-to-MS programs in several fields — Computer Science, Engineering, and Accounting all have options where you can complete both degrees in five years total. These are worth looking into if you're planning to go straight to graduate or professional school.
How Your Major Shapes Where You Should Live Near Campus
This isn't something Baylor's admissions materials will tell you, but it's practical: your major shapes your schedule, and your schedule shapes the value of where you live.
STEM, Engineering, and Nursing students have evening lab sections, early morning clinicals, and schedule blocks that shift week to week. Living walking distance from campus means you can return home between a 9am lecture and a 2pm lab without burning 30 minutes on parking logistics. The students who feel most burned out are often the ones commuting from farther complexes and spending an extra hour a day in their car.
Business students typically have more predictable 8am–4pm class blocks but spend their time concentrated in the Hankamer building. Some Business Fellows students complete Dallas-area internship semesters and need reliable Waco housing to return to during the academic year.
Arts, Music, and Education students have rehearsal schedules, practicum placements, and student-teaching requirements that extend well into evenings and weekends. The flexibility of living close enough to campus to say yes to last-minute things — a professor's studio hour, a last-minute rehearsal, a club meeting at 7pm — is genuinely valuable.
Centre Apartments sits at 1901 S 11th Street, about a 10-minute walk from Baylor's main academic core. No parking permit required. No circling for a spot. If your major keeps you in labs or studios until 9pm three nights a week, you want that walk, not a drive.
To understand your full housing timeline — freshman year on campus, sophomore year off — read our guide to moving off campus after freshman year or the cost comparison between dorms and apartments.
When you're ready to look at specific options, browse our available floor plans or schedule a tour to see what walking distance from Baylor actually looks like.
