REGISTRATION AND COURSE ENROLLMENT

Registration

Students are required to register on-line at the opening of each term by the date designated in the calendar for the academic year. A student who fails to register on campus by the prescribed date is subject to disciplinary action and will incur a $50 charge. Registration information is available at www.registrar.fas.harvard.edu two weeks before registration. Ordinarily, no students, including those who have not been able to register for financial reasons, will be allowed to register after 5 pm on the Monday following the date prescribed for submission of that term's study card. (For additional registration information, see the Academic Calendar on page 7 and "Study Cards" on the next page.)

Any person who has previously received a bachelor's degree may not enroll or reenroll in Harvard College.

Choice of Courses

Every student is required to select courses from those listed in Courses of Instruction, the course catalog for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, with the guidance of the freshman adviser or concentration adviser or tutor. (For enrollment in non-FAS courses, see "Cross-Registration" on page 51.) Selection should be made with a view toward satisfying concentration and Core Curriculum requirements and other degree requirements not already met. Students must qualify for each selected course according to the guidelines and prerequisites stated in Courses of Instruction or otherwise satisfy the instructor that they are properly prepared to enroll in it.

Courses in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences are numbered according to the following scheme:

1-99 or 910-999: Primarily for Undergraduates
100-199 or 1000-1999: For Undergraduates and Graduates
200-299 or 2000-2999: Primarily for Graduates
300-399 or 3000-3999: Graduate Courses of Reading and Research

Courses numbered in the 100s or 1000s or below and courses designated by capital letters ordinarily are open to all students who have met the prerequisites unless the instructor's permission is required (indicated by an asterisk), or unless enrollment is restricted by the size of the room or by similar limitations of resources. Starred (*) courses and courses numbered in the 200s or 2000s (Primarily for Graduates) may be taken by undergraduates only with the consent of the instructor, who must sign the study card of each undergraduate admitted to the course. Undergraduates may not enroll in courses numbered in the 300s or 3000s. Exceptions are Advanced Standing students in their fourth year of residence who are candidates for the master's degree. They may enroll in such courses with the instructor's permission and signature.

It is inappropriate for a student to receive course credit for the same work for which he or she is financially compensated. Thus, an undergraduate course assistant may not receive academic credit in any form, including Independent Study and Supervised Reading and Research course credit, for courses with which he or she is assisting. Research for which a student receives a grant may inform their academic work. Research performed for other financial compensation may inform academic work in subsequent semesters only, and only with the express permission of the employer, including a laboratory head.

Study Cards

Students officially enroll in courses for credit by including the course name and four-digit catalog number of each selected course on the study card. In addition, the instructor's signature must appear on the study card for any course that requires the instructor's permission for enrollment. Students must obtain the signature of their freshman or concentration advisers on the study card, signifying that the student and adviser have discussed the course program. Registration is not complete until the study card is filed and any required petitions for cross-registration or Independent Study have been approved. A student who is denied admission for any reason to a course listed on the study card must drop that course by petition no later than the fifth Monday of the term.

The date for filing study cards appears in the Academic Calendar. A student who fails to hand in the study card on time, ordinarily in person, will incur a charge of $40 for each week until the study card is properly filed. An overdue study card also makes the student liable for disciplinary action, including requirement to withdraw. Late study cards require the signature of the instructor for each course listed on the student's program. After the fifth Monday of a term, the Allston Burr Resident Dean's or Resident Dean for Freshmen's approval is also required. No study card handed in after the fifth Monday may add a Pass/Fail course to the student's schedule.

Beginning the day after study card day and continuing throughout the term, the student may check the course report, which lists every course in which the student is enrolled on the student's portal page at my.harvard.edu or at www.registrar.fas.harvard.edu (select "View Course and Grade Report"). It is the student's responsibility to confirm his or her program for that term. The student should check the course report carefully, as on occasion the courses listed will not agree with those on the study card because of errors in reporting or entering data. A student is considered registered only for those courses listed on the course report. He or she should report any errors to the Registrar and make any necessary changes by filing an appropriate change-of-course petition (see also page 53). Students must have a PIN to access their web-based course reports (see page 384 for information on the PIN).

A student may not sign any other person's name or initials on a study card, Plan of Study, change-of-course petition, registration form, or on any other official form or petition. Violation of this rule makes the student subject to disciplinary action, including requirement to withdraw.

Course Credit Without Letter Grades

Students enrolling in courses without letter grades are reminded of the following requirements:

1. Each term students must take for credit at least one letter-graded course offered by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Courses taken in the Graduate School of Education under the UTEP Program constitute an exception to this rule.
2. Of the sixteen full courses students must pass to receive the degree, at least 10.5 courses (12.0 courses for a degree with honors) must be letter-graded C- or higher and be given by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. The only non-letter grade that counts towards these requirements is Satisfactory (SAT) when given in certain tutorial courses, with the exception that only one full senior tutorial course graded Satisfactory may be so counted. Courses taken either by cross-registration or out of residence for degree credit will not be counted toward the letter-graded course requirement unless they are applied toward concentration requirements or the requirements for the Undergraduate Teacher Education Program (UTEP).
3. The Core Curriculum, writing, foreign language, and certain concentration requirements can only be satisfied by letter-graded courses.
4. Ordinarily, no freshman or sophomore may take fewer than three letter-graded courses in any term.

Freshman Seminars (Graded SAT/UNS)

Freshmen admitted to Freshman Seminars may be granted non-letter-graded credit up to a maximum of one full course. Freshmen may not ordinarily enroll in both a Freshman Seminar and another non-letter-graded course in any one term.

Courses Taken by Cross-Registration

(See "Cross-Registration" on page 51.)

Courses Graded Pass/Fail

Any undergraduate may, with the permission of the instructor, enroll in a course on a Pass/Fail basis. There is no limit on the number of courses a student may take Pass/Fail as long as the student satisfies his or her requirements for letter-graded courses as outlined above. To enroll in a course on this basis, a student must designate Pass/Fail on the study card and obtain the signature of the course instructor. After the study card is filed, a student may change the grading status of a letter-graded or Pass/Fail course by filing a special change-of-course petition by the fifth Monday of the term. No course may be added Pass/Fail nor may the grading status of a course be changed after the fifth Monday of the term. A late study card filed after this date may not add a Pass/Fail course to the student's schedule (see "Change of Course" on page 53).

Courses Graded SAT/UNS

Certain tutorial courses (see listing on page 60), and Freshman Seminars are graded SAT/UNS. In addition, House Seminars may be graded SAT/UNS at the option of the course instructor and with the approval of the Committee on Freshman Seminars. When so graded, House Seminars will not count toward the 10.5 satisfactory letter-graded course requirement.

Independent Study (Graded Pass/Fail)

Independent Study is designed to provide credit for field research, academic study not available in regular course work, or practice or performance in the arts. It is not suitable for group instruction, paid work, or activities outside the competence or concern of one of Harvard's departments. Studying the financial accounting system of a business firm might be an appropriate project, but working in an accounting office to gain business experience would not by itself merit academic credit. Investigating child development through observation in a day care center could qualify, but simply tutoring a child would not. Analyzing the organization of a political group might be a suitable subject, whereas organizing a political campaign would not alone suffice. In each case what distinguishes the suitable project is the application of analytical skills to the object of the Independent Study, not the intrinsic worthiness or instructiveness of the experience itself.

Any sophomore, junior, or senior whose previous record is satisfactory may petition to undertake Independent Study for non-letter-graded credit. A student may petition to take up to a total of four half-courses of Independent Study. Independent Study courses are subject to the same rules for dropping and withdrawing as any other course.

A petition to undertake Independent Study, obtained from the Allston Burr Resident Dean, requires two signatures:

1. That of a qualified adviser (ordinarily a member of a Harvard Faculty) who must be an officer of the University, and whose professional competence is appropriate for the subject area of the Independent Study. In those exceptional cases where the adviser is not a Faculty member-for example, a teaching fellow-the petition must also be supported by an appropriate academic department or unit.
2. That of the Allston Burr Resident Dean which signifies that the proposal satisfies the guidelines and has been signed by the adviser.

The petition also requires an outline of the student's proposed project. It must be submitted to the Allston Burr Resident Dean for approval, ordinarily in the first week of the term. In addition, the Allston Burr Resident Dean must sign the appropriate space on the study card. Any change-of-course petition that is filed to add, drop, or withdraw from Independent Study also requires the signature of the Allston Burr Resident Dean. A separate petition, properly completed, must be filed for each half-course of Independent Study.

The adviser will assist the student in the development of a plan for Independent Study and provide guidance but not regular instruction. Independent Study does not imply regular formal instruction and should not be confused with tutorials or House Seminars or with directed or Supervised Reading and Research courses offered by several academic departments and committees. A student enrolled in Independent Study must undertake to work independently. Classroom work and regular instruction are inadmissible.

The adviser will submit a midterm grade based on a preliminary written report by the student of his or her activities. At the beginning of the Reading Period, the student must submit to the adviser an analytical paper concerning the term's work. A simple description or report of the term's activities is not by itself adequate. In the case of artistic practice or performance, evidence of substantial accomplishment should be supplied in lieu of written work.

The granting of credit will be determined by the adviser. In those cases where the adviser is not a voting member of a Harvard Faculty, the Chair or Head Tutor/Director of Undergraduate Studies of the department, or equivalent officer with voting membership in a Harvard Faculty, must review and approve the petition and the grade assigned by the adviser. Independent Study is graded "Pass" or "Fail." The adviser will submit a copy of the student's paper and a brief statement about his or her work for inclusion in the student's folder in the Allston Burr Resident Dean's office, ordinarily by the first day of the Examination Period.

Independent Study is not counted toward Core Curriculum requirements and is not normally counted toward concentration requirements.

Simultaneous Enrollment

The Faculty believes that full participation in a classroom setting is essential. Therefore, a student may not enroll in courses that meet at the same time or overlapping times. It is the student's responsibility to ensure that there is no overlap in the meeting times of his or her courses. Exceptions to this rule may be granted only by the Administrative Board and will be considered only if the instructors in both overlapping courses agree and only in one or more of the following circumstances:

1. When the head of the course where class time is being missed and the person(s) providing the instruction during the regular class meeting agree to provide hour-for-hour direct and personal compensatory instruction. Availability during regular office hours or time with a different person does not satisfy the requirement for direct and personal contact.
2. When instruction in one of the courses is available on videotape, provided that (1) the course head agrees that the videotapes may be used for this purpose; (2) the lectures that are videotaped ordinarily do not provide opportunities for classroom discussion; (3) the videotapes will be available in a timely fashion so that they can be viewed before the next class period; (4) the student will miss attending part or all of no more than 1/3 of the instructional periods in the course (not including sections or labs) [N.B. if a student will miss any part of a day's lecture, it is as though he or she will miss all of it]; and (5) the instructor in the course in which the lectures are videotaped agrees to offer any hour examinations or other in-class exercises at a time that will not preclude the student from attending the second course. In those courses that do not use the blackboard or other visual aids, course-provided audiotapes may be substituted for videotapes.
3. When a senior can meet degree requirements only by taking the two particular courses in question and will have no other opportunity to enroll in the courses before graduation. In such circumstances, the Administrative Board may approve reasonable accommodations in consultation with the instructors of the courses involved.

Cross-Registration

Sophomores, juniors, and seniors wishing to enroll in courses given by other faculties of the University or by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (including the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology), can do so only by filing a petition for cross-registration. However, students may not enroll for degree credit in Harvard Extension School courses, Radcliffe Seminars, or in courses not given by one of the Faculties of Harvard University and MIT. Under special conditions it may be possible for a student to earn degree credit for courses taken at another local institution provided that those courses contribute to a compelling academic plan tied to his or her concentration; see "Study at Other Boston-Area Institutions" on page 46. The Harvard Business School does not ordinarily allow undergraduates to cross-register in its courses. Students are also reminded that courses taken by cross-registration should NOT be listed on the study card. In order to cross-register, a student's immediately previous academic record ordinarily must be satisfactory. Exceptions must be approved by the Allston Burr Resident Dean (see "Harvard Summer School" on page 58 for information on registration in the Harvard Summer School).

Before cross-registering, students are advised to consult the other faculties' course catalogs in order to be certain that the course or courses in which they are interested are given for regular half-course degree credit (not for less), are not jointly offered with the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and do not cover subjects available in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. If there is any doubt, consult the FAS Registrar.

Filing a cross-registration petition

Cross-registration petitions can be obtained from the Allston Burr Resident Dean. The signatures of the instructor and the Registrar of the other school are required before the petition is returned to the Allston Burr Resident Dean for his or her signature and approval. If the course is to count for concentration, the Head Tutor or Director of Undergraduate Studies of the student's field of concentration must also sign the petition. Retroactive requests for concentration credit are not ordinarily approved. Cross-registration petitions lacking the appropriate signatures or filled out incompletely will not be accepted. Students are officially enrolled in cross-registered courses after the completed petition is submitted to and accepted by the FAS Registrar.

Regulations

All undergraduate regulations, including those regarding the deadlines for dropping and withdrawing, makeups, and extensions of time apply to cross-registration courses, even though other faculties may use a different calendar. These regulations also apply to undergraduates cross-registered in courses that may be applicable to graduate degree requirements. Harvard College students are expected to follow the deadlines and procedures of both the College and the other faculty or university. When two deadlines conflict, the earlier one applies.

Students must complete all course work by the last day of FAS examinations unless they receive approval from the Administrative Board for an extension of time (see page 71). Students must bring examination conflicts caused by cross-registration to the attention of the appropriate registrars as soon as possible. Students requesting a makeup examination in a cross-registration course must report this to their Allston Burr Resident Dean, as usual, and must also petition the Registrar of the Faculty offering the course to arrange the makeup, which, if approved, will be given under the rules of that Faculty.

To meet graduation deadlines, second-term seniors should notify the instructor that grades for degree candidates must be received by the FAS Registrar at least ten days prior to Commencement.

Grading

When cross-registration courses taken by undergraduates are evaluated in terms not equivalent to grades used by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Registrar will translate these evaluations into "Credit" or "No Credit," as appropriate. Since "Incomplete" cannot be accepted as a grade for an undergraduate, such grades will be converted to "No Credit" (a failing grade) unless an extension of time is voted by the Administrative Board. Students may take cross-registered courses for a letter grade or Pass/Fail unless a specific grading option is required for the course. Questions about the grading options in a cross-registered course should be directed to the Registrar of the Faculty offering the course.

Courses taken by cross-registration that are not counted toward concentration or UTEP requirements will normally be equated to FAS courses for the purpose of calculating rate of work (see page 56) but will not be counted toward the letter-graded course requirement or any honors degree requirements. A failing grade or the equivalent earned in a cross-registered course will be included in honors degree calculations. Harvard will not count toward the undergraduate degree any courses that have been credited toward other degrees already conferred.

ROTC

ROTC courses may be taken only on a non-credit basis and only by cross-registration at MIT. Freshmen may also cross-register in ROTC courses. Specific naval seminar courses can be taken by cross-registration and count toward the undergraduate degree.

Current federal policy of excluding known lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals from admission to ROTC or of discharging them from service is inconsistent with Harvard's values as stated in its policy on discrimination. (See Harvard's policy on discrimination on page 296.) Although the University respects the right of undergraduates to choose to participate in ROTC, the University does not provide any financial or other direct support for the ROTC program at MIT. Students should be aware that one or more of the military services may impose limitations on the freedom of speech of cadets and that there may be certain academic requirements for eligibility for ROTC scholarship aid. Students should also be aware that the military may require the repayment of scholarship funds if their sexual orientation results in their discharge from ROTC.

Change of Course

After the study card is filed, any change in the program, including all corrections to course reports, can be made only by filing the proper change-of-course form. It can be obtained from and must be returned to the Allston Burr Resident Dean or the Freshman Dean's Office. Any change in the program requires the signature of the student's concentration or Freshman Adviser, as well as the signature of the Allston Burr Resident Dean or Resident Dean for Freshmen. In addition, petitions to add a course or to change the grading status of a course to Pass/Fail, or to change the grading status of a full course at midyear, or to divide, suspend, or combine a full course require the signature of the instructor (see "Full Courses-Divisible and Indivisible" on page 54). Students may make one course change (or one combination of drop and add) per form.

Each term, the Registrar makes available to each student course reports, listing the courses in which the student is enrolled. The reports may be found from the student's portal page at my.harvard.edu or at www.registrar.fas.harvard.edu (select "View Course and Grade Report"). It is the student's responsibility to review the course report carefully, and to file the appropriate change-of-course petition if corrections are necessary. If a course was listed properly on the study card originally, there is no charge for the correction. Corrections (as opposed to changes) to course reports made after the established deadlines of the fifth or seventh Monday of the term must be approved by the Administrative Board and will incur a charge of $25 in addition to the charge of $10 for correction of student errors made on the study card. The student can confirm the recording of drop/add petitions by checking the course report on-line.

Dropping/Adding Courses

Students may add a course until the fifth Monday of the term with the permission of the instructor. Students may drop a course from their record only until the fifth Monday of the term.

Students are not charged for any drop/add petitions filed by the third Monday of the term. All students pay a $10 fee for drop/add petitions filed after the third Monday but by the fifth Monday of the term.

Withdrawing from Courses without Credit

A student may petition to withdraw from a course. Such a petition must be submitted by the seventh Monday of a term. When a petition to withdraw from a course has been approved, the student's record will carry the notation WD for the course. The transcript states: "WD indicates permission to withdraw from the course without completing requirements and credit for the course." All students pay a $10 fee for withdrawal petitions filed by the seventh Monday of the term.

A student who does not receive permission to drop or withdraw from a course by the fifth or seventh Monday, respectively, and who is absent from a regularly scheduled mid-year or final examination, during the Mid-year or Final Examination Period, will receive a grade of ABS (Absent) in the course. Such an unexcused ABS is equivalent in all respects to a failing grade.

Changing Letter-Graded or Pass/Fail Status of Courses

A course may be added Pass/Fail, changed from letter-graded to Pass/Fail (with the instructor's approval), or changed from Pass/Fail to letter-graded until the fifth Monday of the term. After that day, no changes in the grading status of any course can be made. There is no fee for changing the grading status in a course. (See "Cross-Registration" on page 51 and "Full Courses" below.)