About 50 BYU majors don't let you simply declare them. They're limited enrollment programs, or LEPs: majors that cap how many students they take and require a separate application, usually after prerequisite courses. They include nursing, accounting, finance, animation, graphic design and mechanical engineering.
The list and rules below are from BYU's catalog and BYU Marriott's advisement pages, read Nov. 7, 2026, with admit rates as reported by The Daily Universe.
What makes a program "limited"
BYU's catalog says simply: "Some university programs host only limited enrollments due to resource constraints." Each has a cap, an application and its own deadlines. Some deadlines are tied to finishing a specific class; Art Education's, for example, is completion of ArtEd 276. Music shares one combined cap of 650 across all its Bachelor of Music programs.
The catalog page also publishes each program's recent acceptance rates, so check it for the major you want before you plan a semester around it.
The full list
| College | Limited enrollment programs |
|---|---|
| Business (BYU Marriott) | Accounting, Business Management, Entrepreneurial Management, Experience Design and Management, Finance, Global Supply Chain Management, Human Resource Management, Information Systems, Marketing, Strategic Management (all BS); Strategy minor |
| Nursing | Nursing (BS) |
| Education | Communication Disorders (BS) |
| Engineering | Mechanical Engineering (BS), Mechanical Engineering: Aerospace (BS) |
| Life Sciences | Dietetics (BS), Medical Laboratory Science (BS) |
| Computational, Mathematical & Physical Sciences | Computer Science: Animation and Games (BS) |
| Fine Arts and Communications: design and art | Animation (BFA), Art (BFA), Graphic Design (BFA), Illustration (BFA), Interdisciplinary Design (BA), Photo- and Lens-Based Design (BFA), Product and User Experience Design (BFA), Art Education K-12 (BA), Art Education minor |
| Fine Arts and Communications: communications and media | Advertising, Communication Studies, Journalism, Public Relations (all BA in Communications), Media Arts Studies (BA) |
| Fine Arts and Communications: theater and dance | Acting (BFA), the BFA combining music, dance and theater, Dance (BFA), Dance Education K-12 (BA) |
| Fine Arts and Communications: music | Music (BA), Commercial Music, Music Composition, Music Education K-12 General Music, and Music Performance in brass, organ, combined piano and organ, percussion, piano, string, vocal and woodwind (all BM) |
BYU Marriott: the biggest group
BYU Marriott runs 10 limited-enrollment undergraduate programs. Its rules:
- Deadline: "Applications are due on the last business day of June at 4:30 p.m. MDT."
- Prerequisites: each program requires three prerequisite courses.
- GPA: at least a 3.0 prerequisite GPA for accounting, information systems and finance; for the rest, a 3.0 is "preferred but not required." Admitted students for Fall 2026 averaged prerequisite GPAs from 3.4 to 3.92, depending on the program.
- Retakes: prerequisites "may not be retaken more than once," and university policy bars more than three total attempts in any non-repeatable course. Withdrawing is allowed as long as graded attempts don't exceed two.
The Daily Universe reported in June 2025 that 80% of Marriott students who applied to two or more majors got into at least one, and an undergraduate adviser there recommended applying to several.
How competitive it gets
The Daily Universe's June 2025 reporting gave some sense of the range:
- Nursing admitted about 37% of applicants. Associate dean Blaine Winters told the paper, "It's not uncommon to turn people down who have great GPAs," pointing to limited space and clinical placements.
- Experience Design and Management admitted about 62%.
- Graphic design applicants can apply only twice, with a required year-long break between attempts.
Planning around an LEP
- Find your program on the catalog's LEP page and read its prerequisites, deadline and recent acceptance rate.
- Map the prerequisites into your first semesters. BYU's registration rules and dates are in our class registration guide.
- Have a second major in mind. A BYU Marriott adviser told The Daily Universe she recommends applying to several majors, and graphic design's department manager pointed applicants to the Fine Arts and Communications advisement center.
- Remember the clock. Credits pile up while you wait on an application, and BYU's admissions page says applicants with 90 or more graded credits are rarely admitted to the university, a separate rule that matters mostly for transfers.
If an LEP doesn't work out, UVU's open-admission majors are one alternative; see how to get into UVU and our BYU and Utah transfer guide.
Related guides
- BYU student guide
- How class registration works at BYU and UVU
- Applying to BYU for Fall 2027
- BYU and UVU scholarships for 2027-28
- BYU and Utah transfer guide
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a limited enrollment program at BYU?
Which BYU majors are limited enrollment?
When is the BYU Marriott application deadline?
What GPA do you need for BYU accounting, finance or information systems?
How competitive is BYU nursing?
Can I retake a prerequisite to improve my BYU Marriott application?
Is computer science limited enrollment at BYU?
Sources
The facts in this guide were checked against these sources. Hours, fees and rules change, so confirm anything time-sensitive with the source before you go. How we make Provo.com.
- Limited Enrollment Programs, Brigham Young University Catalog. Checked November 7, 2026.
- Application Information, BYU Marriott School of Business Advisement. Checked November 7, 2026.
- Students navigate limited enrollment programs as application deadlines loom, The Daily Universe. Checked November 7, 2026.
