Scheduling Classes
- Scheduling Considerations
As you plan your schedule for each quarter, consider these issues:
Why are you taking the course you are scheduling? (If you don't know, find out!)
- Does this course help clarify your choice of major?
- Is the course required for your pre-major or major you are considering? Is it a prerequisite to a required pre-major or major course?
- Does the course meet a GEC requirement? Talk to your Exploration Academic Counselor about the GEC requirements for specific majors.
- Is the course an elective? (Electives can be used to explore possible majors or minors, to complement a major or minor, to pursue a personal interest in a subject, to enhance job or life skills, to do internships, to study abroad, etc.)
- Is the course part of a sequence, and will you be able to proceed through the sequence in a timely way? (Many students make the mistake of taking one or two quarters of a foreign language, then waiting a year or more before taking the next course in the language. This puts them at a great disadvantage and requires extra work in order to catch up. Avoid these situations—plan how you will proceed through sequenced courses.)
Are you eligible to take the course?
- Check prerequisites and restrictions in the Course Offerings Bulletin. Buckeyelink does not always check for prerequisites or restrictions; you are responsible for making sure you are eligible to take a course.
- Do you need instructor permission? If so, obtain it before your window opens, or you will not be able to add the course. If you wait until after your window opens, you have lost the advantage of your scheduling priority. Obtaining permission requires getting a Course Enrollment Permission Form from the Exploration Program Office in 352 Denney Hall or at On-line Forms and having it signed by the instructor. After getting the appropriate signature, you must have the form processed in 352 Denney Hall.
Course-specific issues
- Content: What is the focus of the course? Is this an easy or difficult subject matter for you?
- How is course content presented?—large lecture? small discussion groups?
- How will your work be evaluated?—midterms and final only? papers? projects? group work? You can get this information by obtaining a copy of the syllabus from the department offering the course or by checking the department's web site to see if the syllabus is on the Web.
What are your time commitments for the upcoming quarter?
- How much time will you be able to devote to class preparation and attendance?
- What are your other obligations—employment, extracurricular activities, family responsibilities, internships, sports and recreation, social activities?
How will you balance your schedule?
- Balance the types of courses—does the course require a great deal of reading and/or writing, memorization of material, frequent homework, laboratory work?
- Try to take a variety of courses each quarter
- Balance courses that you know will be difficult with courses that will be easier for you.
- Balance courses in which you have great interest with those in which you're not as interested.
Other considerations
- Do you need to raise your GPA? Plan to take courses in which you expect to do well.
- You may have a special window for waitlisted courses. If you want to take advantage of the special priority for these courses, you should schedule them during this special window.
- Check to see whether there are any holds on your account. Resolve them before your window opens. If you do not have your holds removed, you cannot schedule any classes. The Registrar's web site contains a list of offices imposing holds and their contact information:
- Planning Your Schedule - Steps to Take before Your Scheduling Window Opens
- Consult your academic advisor(s) for guidance in selecting courses.
- Note: Plan to see your academic counselor well before your scheduling window: if you wait, you may not be able to get an appointment until after your scheduling window opens, and you will lose valuable scheduling priority. The planning process for scheduling for future quarters is ongoing, and much of the work can be done well in advance. The longer you wait to plan and to see your academic advisor, the more likely you will have fewer courses to choose from when you're finally ready to schedule.
- Consult the Course Offerings Bulletin.
- Consult the Schedule of Classes to find out:
- Which courses are offered in the upcoming quarter?
- When are courses offered?
- What are the call numbers of the courses you would like to take?
- Review the "Considerations in Planning a Schedule" section in this handbook.
- Plan a tentative schedule. Make sure you have backup choices in case your first-choice courses are no longer available when your scheduling window opens. If you plan on taking three courses, select three primary choices and three backup choices.
- Note your window opening time. To maximize your chances of getting the courses you want, be prepared to schedule as soon as your scheduling window opens.
- Consult your academic advisor(s) for guidance in selecting courses.
- Scheduling Resources
- Academic Advisors
- help you explore academic options and choose courses accordingly
- provide advice based on your individual needs and goals
- Course Bulletin
- course descriptions, course content
- prerequisites, restrictions
- the Course Offerings Bulletin is not always reliable when it comes to the quarters when courses will be offered; always check with the appropriate department if you need to know which quarters a particular class will be offered
- Master Schedule of Classes
- course offerings for the specific quarter
- dates and deadlines
- information on live registration, using the Web registration system, blocking out free time, waitlisting, clearing holds
- GEC Sheets and Major Information Sheets
- GEC & Curriculum Sheets can be obtained from your Exploration advisor.
- Degree Audits and Advising Reports (unofficial transcript)
- Department and College Offices and Web Sites
- information about requirements, opportunities
- course syllabi may be available
- Academic Advisors
- Online Services: Class Search
To see the available course offerings for a particular quarter, visit My Student Center. You can search by department name and course number to obtain information not only about what courses are offered, but also about the number of seats that remain open in the course. Courses offered in multiple sections will provide that information for all sections of the course.
In My Student Center, click on the Class Search tab and use the pull-down menu to select the term (quarter and year) for which you would like to schedule. Select the preferred Term and click Go.
Next, select the department name (Course Subject), and type in the course number for which you want to search. Click Search.
The result is an up-to-date listing of the sections, times, and room locations for the course you have searched. It also provides current information about whether or not the course is still open. Don't forget to expand the "View All Sections" area to see ALL of the available sections for a course.
You can also search for classes using additional criteria, so if you are looking for a particular day, time, or mode of instruction, you can limit your search. Leave the Course Subject box empty and click on Additional Search Criteria.
- Registering for Classes
- See your academic advisor before your window opens if you have questions about your schedule.
- If you need permission to take a class, you must get that permission posted prior to when your window opens (this may require visiting both a professor and your academic advisor.)
- If you have a hold on your account (overdue library book, parking ticket, etc.), you must have it cleared before your window opens. Contact the office that has placed the hold on your account. It generally takes at least 24 hours to remove a hold once the reason behind it has been resolved.
- Your priority is built into your window time. Thus, in order to secure your scheduling priority, you must schedule when your window opens.
- Every minute you wait to schedule after your window opens, someone who has lower priority than you have gets a chance to register for the course(s) you wanted.
- Before you register via the Web, plan to schedule all of your classes.
- Since registration is in real time, you will know immediately whether or not you are in a class. Be prepared with backup times for the classes that you are interested in taking, in case the section you want is filled. You should also have alternate course choices ready in case the course is completely filled.
- If you have prior wait list requests, you will be assigned a separate window during which you may request only the waitlisted course(s.)
- Steps to Take When Your Scheduling Appointment Begins
Ohio State students register for classes using the Buckeyelink web site. With a list of your preferred classes at hand, click the link for "My Student Center."
You will need to log on to the Web registration facility by entering your Ohio State username and password and then clicking the "Login" button.
In the Student Center, click on the Academics tab and then choose the quarter and year for which you want to register, and then click the Continue button.
Next, you will see when your registration appointment begins, and from that screen, you will be able to add classes.
Next, you can either enter the Class Number (Four- or Five-digit code) for the desired course, or you can search for a class if you do not know the Class Number.
Once you find the available dates and times that you prefer, click the green Select Class button. Once you click the Select Class button, your class will be put into your "Shopping Cart."
After you select your preferred section, you need to confirm the selection that is in your "Shopping Cart."
You will know that your attempt to add the course was successful because you will get a confirmation in the Message box below.
You can adjust your schedule by dropping courses you have already added and, if you wish, adding others.
For further information about the registration process, consult the University Registrar's "Registration Instructions"
- Waitlist Instructions
- You are placed on a waitlist if you are unable to schedule a course during registration due to time conflicts, closed sections, or canceled sections. You must meet all prerequisites for the course (or have instructor's permission to waive the prerequisites, posted by the Exploration Program office) before you can be waitlisted for the course.
- You are added into a course from the waitlist on a "first-on, first-off" basis as space becomes available that fits your schedule.
- The waitlist is not section-specific. The system will add you into the first available section that fits your schedule (for this reason, you may want to schedule "free time" if you cannot take classes at a certain time.)
- Check the waitlist weekly before the quarter starts.
- Check the waitlist daily during the entire first week of classes.
- The waitlist will be active through the first Friday of the quarter.
- You should attend the first week of class if your waitlist number is low.
- It is your responsibility to know whether or not you have been put into a class.
- Adding and Dropping Courses
Adding Classes
After your window opens, you are can add classes (if seats are available) online until 8:00 p.m. of the first Friday of the quarter.
After the first Friday and through the second Friday, you must have the permission of the instructor (on a Permission to Enroll form) to enter a class. This requires getting the form from the front desk of 352 Denney Hall and having it signed by the instructor. After getting the appropriate signature, you must have the form processed in 352 Denney Hall.
After the second Friday and through the third Friday, you must have the permission of the instructor and the permission of the department chair of the course you want to take (on a Course Enrollment Permission form) to enter a class. This requires getting the form from the front desk of 352 Denney Hall and having it signed by the instructor and the department chair. After getting the appropriate signatures, you must have the form processed in 352 Denney Hall.
Courses added after the third Friday of the quarter generally require a petition. More information about the petition process, and petition forms, are available in 352 Denney Hall. To support your petition, you must have the above two signatures, as well as valid reasons for failure to timely enroll in the course.
Dropping Classes
You can drop classes on-line during the first three weeks of each quarter. You may drop classes in the Exploration Program office through the seventh Friday of the quarter. Before dropping classes, consider how this will affect both your progress toward your degree and your financial aid status (if applicable.) Please view the list below to contact the appropriate office before dropping below full-time status.
A reduction in hours due to a course drop may affect:
- Financial aid (including scholarships, grants, loans, Consortium Agreements) (292-0300)
- Benefits received under the G.I. Bill (292-3453)
- A tuition reduction received when parents work for the University (292-1050) 4. Automobile insurance—if you receive discounts for being a full time student
- Health insurance—if you need to be a full time student to be covered on a parent's policy.
- Your residence hall contract (292-8266)
- Your tuition waiver, if you are a university employee (292-1050)
- Your eligibility if you are a varsity athlete - you must see your Exploration academic advisor in Denney Hall (292-0646)
- Your visa, if you are an international student - you must see an advisor in the Office of International Education for approval (292-6101)
If you drop on or before the third Friday, no record of your enrollment will be recorded on your transcript. If you drop after the third Friday of the quarter, you will receive a "W" on your transcript, indicating that you withdrew. If you have a significant number of W's on your record, it may suggest a pattern of careless enrollment.
You cannot drop classes after the seventh Friday except by petition filed in the Exploration Program office. If, because of extreme extenuating circumstances, you wish to drop a class after the seventh Friday, see an Exploration academic advisor to help you with the petition form. You will need supporting evidence (for example, proof of medical complications that will prevent you from finishing the course.) You cannot drop after the seventh week simply because you are doing poorly in a class.
Withdrawal from the University
Whenever you drop the last course from your schedule, you are considered to be withdrawing from the university for that quarter (not just dropping a course). You must come to the Exploration Program office to complete the withdrawal request. All withdrawals from the university are noted on the permanent record with the phrase "Withdrew" and the date of the withdrawal. If the withdrawal occurs before the third Friday, no W's will appear on the record. W's will appear on the record for withdrawals after the third Friday. You must file a petition to request withdrawal after the seventh Friday, as discussed in the preceding paragraph.
