Dual degrees may not mean two separate diplomas for the next Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduating class if faculty members pass a proposal to replace the rigorous double degree program with a less demanding double major program.

They will vote on the Committee on the Undergraduate Program’s proposal at the next faculty meeting April 16, Dean for Curriculum and Faculty Support Diana Henderson said in a March 21 MIT Tech article.

The move to double majors would level the playing field for students who might enter MIT with many Advanced Placement credits, she said. MIT requires the highest AP score, a five, to gain credit for most courses.

The change involves completing the requirements of two department programs, not two separate undergraduate degrees, said Martin Holmes, a MIT junior and the Undergraduate Association president.

Holmes said under the current double degree program, students must complete requirements for both fields of study and seven to eight classes beyond general institute requirements.

Students with few transfer credits generally do not have the option of pursuing a dual degree because it requires such a heavy course load, he said, and the move to the double major program would remove the seven additional courses.

Holmes said students’ feedback about the double major program is mixed, but faculty and the administration are supportive of the proposal.

“Some people think the change will weaken the MIT curriculum, watering down one of the most challenging schools in the nation,” he said.

MIT junior Reginald Edwards said despite initial student resistance, those he has talked to view the changes positively.

“The seven to eight extra classes needed to pursue two degrees was an arbitrary and unnecessary hurdle,” Edwards said.

Edwards said awarding two separate degrees implies students go through the curriculum twice. The rest of the world “doesn’t know or care” about the distinction between double degrees and double majors, he said.

Boston University offers double majors for different concentrations within a single school, and dual degrees for different concentrations in separate schools.

Matt Seidel, a Boston University College of Arts and Sciences sophomore and the chairman of the Student Union Academic Affairs Committee, said the problem with the Boston University Collaborative Degree Program process is not a lack resources, but the wide variety, which may make it seem more difficult or complex than it is, he said.

He said the committee plans to create a website to help students navigate the process because “there is no single resource right now for BUCOP.”

“A lot of times, the number of classes you have to take aren’t actually that many, and I think it’s more that people just get overwhelmed by the idea,” Seidel said.

Christy Angell, a BUCOP junior concentrating in film in the College of Communication and linguistics in the College of Arts and Sciences, said she prefers getting two degrees.

“They are not connected, and I’m glad that I can choose to present one or the other,” she said. “It’s hard, but doable. . . And it’s worth it. I can say I did eight years’ worth of work in four years.”

Adam Soliman, a BUCOP junior concentrating in economics in CAS and health sciences in Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitative Sciences, said he is happy to receive two bachelor’s degrees.

“I feel like I’m getting my money’s worth,” he said. “It’s still expensive but at least it’s a little more bang for your buck.”