Rules and Procedures

The information provided below addresses specific topics on registration. Additional information can be found in the Academic Procedures & Regulations section of the current course catalog.

Students are responsible for maintaining an accurate registration record with the Registrar’s Office. Students may view their schedules for accuracy at any time through the Voyager information system and should contact the Registrar’s Office if there are problems. Students are to arrange to meet with their academic advisors, to check and comply with course prerequisites, to review their schedules for time conflicts, and to obtain any required instructor approvals or other pertinent permissions.

Please Note: Failure to maintain an accurate registration record can result in receiving no credit for a completed course; receiving an ‘F’ in a course not completed; not being certified as a full-time student for insurance, financial aid, sports eligibility, and other purposes; and being assessed a late registration fee.

Registration Process & Voyager Pages

Students register for classes using the Voyager Information System for most courses. To access Voyager use the link from the main Lawrence web page or the link from the Registrar's Office. Students can acess the registration pages in Voyager using the following path:

Student Services
- Academic Information
  - Registration
    - Instructions
    - Worksheet
    - Class
    - Schedule
    - Registration Forms
    - REGISTER FOR CLASSES
    1. SELECT A TERM
    2. Check Registration Times & Status
    3. Add/Drop Classes
    4. Change Class Options
    5. View Your Schedule & Waiting List Information

Faculty advisors release advising holds through their List of Advisees in the Advising Menu. Instructors give approval to register through the Instructor Menu. See Hints for Students and Hints for Faculty for additional information on working with and navigating the system.

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Registration Deadlines & Late Fees

Important term dates and deadlines are published on the Web by the Registrar's Office. Information about assigned registration times for individual students is available to students on their Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager. Registration times are assigned by term.

Class changes for the current term are allowed through the first ten class days. After the tenth day of classes, students must petition the Faculty Subcommittee on Administration to correct registration problems for the current term and may be assessed a late registration fee of $25 per class addition or cancellation approved from the third week of the term through the last day of classes. The fee increases to $50 per class addition or cancellation made after the last day of classes of the term. The Faculty Subcommittee on Administration may waive these fees when a class change was delayed due to exceptional circumstances such as illness, family emergencies, a curricular decision that could not be made by the registration deadline, etc.

IMPORTANT: Petitions to correct registration problems must be submitted no later than the last day of classes of the academic term immediately following the term for which the registration change is being requested. Petitions received after this deadline will not be approved.

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Registration Holds

A ‘hold’ on a student’s record prevents some type of action from taking place (release of a transcript, registration, etc.). Holds that prevent registration are displayed on the student's Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager. Until all registration holds are released, a student will be prevented from adding and dropping classes even if the assigned registration time is current.

Advising registration holds are set before each registration period begins. Students are required to meet with their academic advisors before they may make registration changes. See Academic Advising for more information.

Students who have other types of registration holds should contact the appropriate administrative office (Student Accounts, Financial Aid, Health Center, Student Academic Services, Registrar’s Office) about releasing the hold.

Note: All administrative holds (registration, transcript, as well as other holds) can be seen on the student's View Administrative Holds page (Student Services Menu) in Voyager.

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Academic Sessions & Registration Periods

Lawrence operates on a three-term calendar. Each term is ten weeks long. These terms are identified in various drop-down lists within Voyager by the season and the calendar year. For example, the academic year 2010-11 would be represented by Fall Term 2010, Winter Term 2011, and Spring Term 2011.

Lawrence offers students the opportunity to participate in a variety of off-campus programs programs, most of which are held in semester sessions. The student-teaching courses required for teacher certification are offered under a semester session as well. Students attending programs in a semester session are not eligible to register for overlapping terms.

There are nine registration periods in each academic year. See the registration schedule for a complete list. Important term dates and deadlines by term are published on the Web by the Registrar's Office. Registration dates for which a student is eligible can be viewed on the student's Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager. Assigned registration times may be several hours or many days in duration. Most students will have multiple opportunites to register for each academic term. Assigned times are listed in Central Standard Time. The Lawrence network server time is displayed at the bottom of every Voyager page.

During the spring of each year all continuing, degree-seeking students may advance register for classes for all terms in the next academic year. For the first round of advance registration, all eligible students will be assigned to priority groups based on degree units earned by February 1. Each group will be assigned to a registration period that includes hours during a regular business day. The students with the most earned units will register first. Students with an identical number of earned units will be assigned to the same priority group. Students who attended off-campus programs in the fall will be awarded additional units equivalent to a minimum full-time course load if a grade report of their work has not been received by February 1.

Priority groups are not used during other registration periods (10-day class change period at the beginning of each term, continuing advance registration period at the end of each term). All students eligible to register at these times will have the same time registration days and times.

Lawrence offers a limited number of programs at the graduate level for high school teachers during the summer. These students are registered through the program application procedures.

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Academic Advising

At Lawrence academic advising is done by regular members of the teaching faculty. Students are required to meet with their academic advisors at regular intervals to discuss their academic program plans. While each student is responsible for planning and pursuing a course of study to meet program requirements, academic advisors can provide assistance with setting goals, developing an understanding of the student's strengths and weaknesses, determining how to best utilize Lawrence resources, and complying with university academic procedures and regulations.

New students are assigned academic advisors on entry. Junior and senior students are required to have advisors in their majors. Students in the five-year double-degree program must have an advisor for each degree (one from the college and one from the conservatory). Students may change advisors as needed by submitting a completed "Change of Advisor" form at the Registrar's Office, and may consult any member of the faculty as appropriate for advice with a particular issue or concern.

Students are required to meet with their academic advisors prior to making changes in their registration for classes. Advising registration holds are set before each registration period. Students with more than one advisor will have more than one advisor hold. All advising holds must be released before any registration changes can be made.

Academic advisors release advising holds through the Voyager information system and can review advising hold history for their students by using the Advisor Menu. Students can see the presence or absence of an advising hold on their Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager. When an advisor is ill or absent, students should contact the appropriate department chair regarding advising meetings and release of advising holds. Students may also contact the Office of Student Academic Services for assistance with course selection questions.

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The Class Schedule

The Lawrence University Class Schedule is published on the Web by the Registrar's Office. A key is available for assistance in interpreting the display. The class schedule contains listings of classes offered by academic session. A class listing contains the course description and information on prerequisites, instructor approvals required, any limit on enrollment, cross listings, instructors, meeting times and locations, current enrollment and waiting list counts, and any competency requirements fulfilled by the class.

Students use the CRN (class reference number) to register on their Add/Drop Classes page in Voyager. The CRN is created when a particular course is scheduled in a particular term. A CRN is unique to a particular term and will not refer to the same course in a different term. The CRN can be found as part of the schedule display, both the brief and detailed displays.

Students are responsible for checking and complying with prerequisites, obtaining any required instructor approvals, and checking for time conflicts. Students with questions not addressed by the information published in the schedule, should consult the course catalog, their academic advisor, or the appropriate academic department.

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Class Overloads & Underloads

Students are expected to take a normal class load each term. Prior to the beginning of the term no student will be allowed to register for more than 23 units. Overload permission forms for the current term will be accepted in the Registrar's Office from the first through the eighth day of classes.

The normal class load for a term session is 18 units; the normal load for a semester session is 27 units. To be considered a full-time student (for insurance, visa status, scholarships, loans, sports eligibility, etc.) a minimum load of 15 units for the term and 21 units for the semester is required. The Veteran’s Administration and the Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) do not count a class graded with a ‘WP’ towards course load.

Most students will be allowed to register for a maximum of 23 units per term session. Students in the Lawrence Academy (high school students) may take only 6 units per term session. The maximum units allowed for a given term can be viewed on the Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager.

Students who wish to overload (24-30 units in a term session) must obtain the permission of their academic advisor. In general, a student must be in good academic standing, have attended Lawrence for at least three terms, and have earned a 'B' average for the preceding three terms to overload. Students not in good academic standing may not overload. No student will be approved for more than 30 units in a single term. Permission to overload may be obtained at the beginning of each term for that term only. A completed overload form must be submitted at the Registrar's Office no later than the eighth day of classes of the term.

Students who routinely overload should be sure to review the 12/15-term tuition requirement in the course catalog.

At times it may be appropriate for a student to underload (take less than 15 units in a term). Students who are considering this option should investigate the consequences VERY CAREFULLY. Less than full-time status can result in the loss of financial aid, scholarships, insurance, VA benefits, eligibility to play sports, student visas, and time to the completion of a degree.

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Prerequisites

Students are responsible for checking and complying with course prerequisites. It is expected that students who register for a course will meet all prerequisites by the first day of classes. Students who will not meet the prerequisites of the course, but believe they have a compelling reason to take it, should contact the instructor for permission before registration.

Students may be asked to document their completion of a prerequisite. During the first week of classes instructors may, but are not required to, cancel the registration of any student who has not met the prerequisites of the course. Please see the Academic Procedures and Regulations section of the course catalog for more information.

Prerequisites for scheduled courses are published as part of the class schedule. Prerequisites for other courses can be found in the course catalog. Students who have specific questions about course prerequisites should contact the instructor of the course, or the appropriate department chair.

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Limited Enrollment Classes

Classes with limited enrollment are clearly marked in the class schedule. If a class is full, a student will be able to select the waiting list option during the immediately preceeding term only. Students registered or waitlisted for a limited enrollment class who no longer wish to take it should drop the class using the Add/Drop Classes page.

On the first day of classes for the term students on the waiting list must attend the first class meeting to obtain a seat. At that time the instructor may cancel the registration of students who do not attend (Please note: They are not required to do so and some do not.) and offer admission to the class to students on the waiting list in order of their waiting list rank.

Instructors who offer admission to students on a waiting list or to other students who attend the first class meeting will record their approval for students to register using the Instructor Menu in Voyager. Such approvals are displayed for students on the Check Registration Times and Status page in Voyager. Students must accept the 'approval' by using the regular add/drop procedures in Voyager to add the class to their schedules.

WARNING: Instructors cannot register students.

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Instructor Approvals

An instructor’s approval to register is required

for any class marked "approval required" (APR) in the class schedule
for any limited enrollment class in the current term (applies both to students offered admission from a waiting list and to any other students seeking to enroll in the class). Instructor approval is required starting on the first day of the term regardless of whether the class meets on that day.
for any class to be added after the first week of classes (first five class days) the term in which it is offered
for any student in the Lawrence Academy, Teacher Certification, General Non-Degree, or Audit Only programs

Students requesting approval to register should provide the instructor with their complete name and Lawrence ID number, and identify the class by term, subject, number, and CRN. The instructor may ask the student to provide additional information to determine if the student is eligible to take the class. Instructors record approvals in Voyager through the Instructor Menu and will be able to review all approvals given for any of their courses. Students may view recorded approvals on their Check Registration Times & Status page in Voyager.

It is expected that instructors will record approvals for their own classes only. In the case of instructor illness or other special circumstance, students may be directed to contact the department chair for approval.

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Repeating Courses

A course may not be repeated unless a grade of 'F' was received. (Students who earned a D-, D, or D+ and used the S/U option must remove the S/U option to receive credit for the course.) Both the original 'F' and the new grade will appear on the student's permanent record and transcript. The original grade of 'F' will be removed from the computation of a student's degree, major, and minor GPAs upon submission of a repeated course form.

In a number of special cases a subject-number combination may be re-used and appear on a student's record multiple times. Music ensembles, music lessons, tutorials, internships, independent study, and topics courses (if the topic is different) may be repeated as the content and requirements change from term to term, student to student, and section to section. A very few courses are designated as repeatable up to a credit limit; again, it is assumed that the content of these will change from term to term and section to section. Please refer to the course description to find out if a course is repeatable. Course descriptions are available through the class schedule and the course catalog.

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Changing Class Options (variable credit courses, cross listings, F-repeats, S/U option, audit)

Under certain circumstances students may elect to change class options (see the Change Class Options page in Voyager on the Registration Menu). The selection of some options will require the submission of the appropriate form in the Registrar’s Office.

Variable unit classes (for example, music lessons at 3 or 6 units) are identified in the class schedule. The registration system automatically uses the smallest number of units allowed during the registration transactions. Select Set Units for Variable Unit Course to change the value.

Some classes are listed under more than one department. Cross-listed classes are indicated in the class schedule. Students must register for the parent listing (department that offers the course), but may request to have it listed on their transcripts under one of the alternate departments. The class may be applied different requirements depending on the listing used. Students should discuss this choice with their academic advisors. Select Cross-List Request Form to get a copy of the form to be completed. This form should be submitted during the class change period at the beginning of the term. The class listing will be changed after the registration period concludes.

See Repeating Courses for rules regarding repeating a course. Select F-Repeat Form to access the form to be completed. This form should be submitted during the class change period at the beginning of the term.

Students who wish to take a class on an S/U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory) basis should refer to the course catalog to determine if they qualify for this option. The S/U option is not available for all courses. If the option is not available it will be indicated in the course description section of the class schedule. Select S/U Option Form to get a copy of the form to be completed. The form must be submitted before the end of class change period at the beginning of the term. Forms submitted after the deadline will be returned unprocessed.

The option to audit a class is NOT available to degree-seeking students, Waseda visiting students, or Lawrence Academy (high school) students. Classes taken on an audit basis do not count towards course load. Non-degree students should select Audit Form to obtain a copy of the form. It must be submited to the Registrar's Office no later than the end of the term's registration and class change period.

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Directed Study, Tutorials, IS, Internships, & Supervised Accompanying

Class sections for directed study, tutorials, independent study, internships, and supervised accompanying cannot be created in advance and, thus, made available through the registration system. These classes are unique to each student-instructor combination. To register for these classes the student must complete the appropriate form (directed study, tutorial, IS, and internship title form or the supervised accompanying form) and submit it in the Registrar’s Office within the regular registration period. The forms will not be processed unless all registration holds have been released.

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Music Ensembles

Registration for music ensembles occurs through the ensemble directors. Students who have completed required auditions and been admitted to the ensemble need to sign the sheet circulated by the director. The ensemble director is to submit the registration sheet to the Registrar’s Office within the class change period at the beginning of the term. Students who have not signed the sign-up sheet will not be registered for the ensemble.

If a chamber music group forms, but cannot continue to meet after the second week of classes concludes, the instructor is to cancel the class by contacting the dean of the conservatory and the registrar.

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Off-Campus Programs

Students apply to attend Lawrence and Lawrence-affiliated off-campus programs through the Off-Campus Programs Office. The applicaton process occurs during winter term for the following academic year. Program registration for students attending off-campus programs is handled through the Registrar’s Office. When information is received that a student has committed to attending an off-campus program, the student will be dropped from any Appleton campus courses in the overlapping terms.

Students attending Lawrence programs, such as the London Centre, will be able to register for classes using the regular registration system. Students who will attend affiliated off-campus programs will be registerd for a generic off-campus program course by staff in the Registrar's Office. Registration for specific classes is handled at the particular program site. The generic course on the student's Lawrence record will be replaced by specific course titles, grades, and earned units when the Registrar's Office receives a final grade report from the program.

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Non-Degree Students

Students in the Waseda and Visiting/Exchange programs are provided advance registration materials in the summer. These students may make registration changes during all regular term registration periods. Waseda students may not audit classes. Visiting/Exchange students may audit, but the audited course will not be counted toward their course load for visa and other purposes.

Students in the Teacher Certification, Lawrence Academy, General Non-Degree, and Audit Only Programs may not register in advance of the term. Lawrence Academy students are restricted to one standard course per term and may not audit. Students in these programs must obtain the approval (as recorded in Voyager) of the instructor to register for any class and may not be given a class seat until degree-seeking students have been accommodated.

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