Advanced Fall 2008 Registration for Re-admitted Students

You may register for Fall 2008 courses using this process ONLY IF YOU ARE A RE-ADMITTED STUDENT FOR FALL 2008. (All other students must wait until the Fall 2008 semester begins to register for courses or to adjust their schedules.)

Important Dates
Advanced Registration Process
     Online Resources
     Preventing Registration Problems
Viewing & Adjusting Your Fall 2008 Schedule

Important Dates:

Wednesday, 13 August 2008: Advanced Registration begins
Friday, 29 August 2008: Advanced Registration ends at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time

Advanced Registration Process:

  • Begins Wednesday, 13 August 2008 (9:00 a.m. EST), and continues until 5:00 p.m. on Friday, 29 August 2008. If you miss the deadline, you will have to register for courses at the start of the semester by picking up an add/drop card at the Office of the Registrar and having the instructor of each course and your advisor sign the card. If we receive your initial course registration after 10 September 2008 at 5:00 p.m., you will be billed a $20 late fee. You may still adjust your course schedule during the add/drop period, which begins on the first day of classes and ends Wednesday, 17 September 2008.
  • Choose Fall 2008 courses. Use the online resources (below) to find courses with openings and to create a schedule that will work for you.
  • Submit your registration choices: The best and recommended way is to submit your requests through our online Course Registration Form. The first row of the registration form is for your top four full-credit courses. Enter alternate courses (1A and 1B are alternates for 1, 2A and 2B are alternates for 2, etc.) in case your top-choice courses fill. Enter half-credit courses at the bottom of the form in the spaces labeled "Additional Course." Students are limited to four full-credit courses prior to the start of the semester. Additional full-credit courses may be added during the add/drop period only.
  • If you have fewer than eight credits, you may register for a course that has spaces available for first-year students. A course with a lower provisional enrollment limit than final enrollment limit has spaces reserved for first years.
  • If you have trouble with the online registration form, you may print the form, fill it out, and fax it to us at 207-725-3338. You may also email registrar@bowdoin.edu your course requests; be sure to indicate those courses that are your top-choice picks and those that are your alternates. If you have any trouble with these methods, call the Office of the Registrar at 207-725-3521.

Online Resources:

Schedule of Course Offerings
Bearings
Weekly Planning Calendar [PDF version; Word version]
Online Registration Form

Preventing problems with registration:

  • Begin the registration process early. This will give us time to resolve any issues that come up. If you wait until the deadline to submit your registration requests, issues that arise may have to wait until the add/drop period for resolution.
  • Be sure the meeting times of your top-choice courses do not conflict with one another. Remember to include the meeting times of labs, film screenings, etc., in your plans. Every semester we receive course registrations from students who list two or more top-choice courses that meet at the same time! Use a weekly calendar [PDF version; Word version] to help you plan.
  • Check Bearings for course prerequisites (under the Rules link for each course). If you do not have the prerequisite for a course, you will not be allowed to register for it. You may see if the instructor will waive the prerequisite by emailing the instructor with your reason for your request and, if you are allowed to take the course, asking the instructor to notify us by email. If you believe you meet a prerequisite with a course that you took during off-campus study, you will need to get the instructor's permission to override the prerequisite. We have no way of determining if a course you took elsewhere is equivalent to a Bowdoin course. (This will continue to be true in future semesters as well because any faculty permission you receive is good for only one course and one semester. Any time you want a course you took off campus to count for a prerequisite, you will need the instructor's permission to register for a course that requires it.)
  • Check the current enrollment for your course choices on the Course Enrollments page online. You may not register at this time for courses that are full or closed until the add/drop period (unless you are eligible for a space reserved for first years--explained above). You may wish to email the instructor of a full or closed course, however, and ask to be added to a waiting list.
  • If a course has enrollment restrictions (such as first years only, declared majors/minors only, etc.) they are listed in the course comments in Bearings and in the far-right column of the Schedule of Course Offerings.
  • Exclusions restrict a student from taking a course if s/he has previously taken a specific course. Exclusions appear in Bearings; click on the Rules link for the course.
  • If you wish to register for an independent study or a permission-only course, you must have the permission of the instructor. Ask the instructor to send his/her approval to registrar@bowdoin.edu.
  • If a course you've chosen has labs, include your first-choice, second-choice, and third-choice lab numbers on the registration form. You will only be registered for a lab course if you can also be registered for one of its labs. Lab assignments cannot be guaranteed; instructors may need to adjust lab assignments at the start of the semester.
  • If you wish to take a course with the Credit/D/Fail grading option, click the yes bullet for that course on the form. Ensure that you are eligible to take a course Credit/D/Fail; view the Credit/D/Fail policy online. You have six weeks into the semester to choose this grading option for a course.
  • An instructor's signature will grant enrollment permission for permission-only courses and in cases where the instructor is willing to waive a course prerequisite. An instructor signature will not override enrollment limits or enrollment restrictions until the add/drop period.
  • It is recommended that you complete your division and distribution requirements by the end of your sophomore year. Remember that you may not meet these requirements with transfer credit from another institution.
  • Proofread the registration form before you submit it. If you enter in the wrong course or lab number, we have no way of knowing what you really intended.
  • Be sure to include your name, Bowdoin student ID number, and email address on all faxes and emails.

Viewing and Adjusting Your Fall 2008 Schedule...

Check your course schedule in Bearings. It can take up to 48 hours after we receive a registration form for Bearings to be updated. We will work with you to adjust your schedule up through 29 August 2008. (Simply email us at registrar@bowdoin.edu with the changes you would like us to try to make to your schedule.) After 5:00 p.m. on 29 August 2008, you may make further adjustments to your schedule during the add/drop period at the beginning of the semester.

If you have any questions, please let us know.

Jan Brackett, Associate Registrar
registrar@bowdoin.edu
207-725-3521