Please note: This is NOT the most current catalog.

Registering for Courses

REGISTRAR’S OFFICE

The Registrar’s Office is located on the main level of the Administration Building. Student hours are 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Monday-Friday except on “deadline days” (last day to add/drop or change a course grade designation) when the window is open 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. In the summer, the office closes daily at 4:30p.m. Monday-Thursday and is closed after 12 p.m. (noon) on Friday. The Registrar's Office is closed during the daily chapel service.

During the regular academic year, students may make appointments with staff members. Student inquiries relating to private/personal academic matters should be made in person, or via St. Olaf e-mail, not by telephone. Forms and papers relating to adding and dropping courses, S/U changes, faculty advisors, academic programs, regulations, off-campus courses, transcripts, registrations, transfer work, petitions, and other daily matters are available at the registrar’s window or on the registrar’s website.

Contact information :

(507) 786-3015
(507) 786-3014
(507) 786-3210 fax
e-mail: registrar@stolaf.edu

REGISTRATION

Course credits cannot be earned unless a student is officially registered with the college for courses actually taken. Registration for courses and sections is made only through the Registrar’s Office. Informal arrangements, including section change, between a student and an instructor do not constitute official registration. The presence of a student’s name on a class list in Moodle (the college’s course managment tool) does not constitute in and of itself official registration in the course. Registration does not go into effect until the student has made arrangements for financial charges with the Business Office.

College-wide registrations are held three times each year: September (new students) for Fall Semester, October-November for Interim and Spring Semester, and March-April (currently enrolled students) for Fall Semester and Summer School. New students, students not enrolled during the previous semester, and students returning from off-campus programs may register in the opening days of each term. Specific registration dates are posted on the academic calendar and on the Registrar's website. Note that students must have settled their tuition bills with the Business Office to be able to register for a term.

Students must register via the Student Information System (SIS). Appointments are rotated via a planned random algorithm from registration to registration so no one group of students is consistently first, last, or in the middle of the registration schedule. Special arrangements are made for students with disabilities. Failure to register during the registration period may result in a limited selection of courses. Part-time students, high school honors students, and other “special status” students register on the first day of classes at the registrar’s window.

Students should consult the Student Information System (SIS) to verify the courses for which they are registered and to inspect their degree audits. Schedule errors and/or corrections to the record should be made immediately at the registrar’s window. Students are also responsible for reading and understanding the academic regulations in this catalog and are urged to consult the catalog regularly.

Procedure:

Registration is completed via the Student Information System (SIS). Advisors notify students or post appointment times for discussion and must electronically authorize students to register.

Students participating in off-campus programs are registered for the program by the Office International and Off-Campus Studies. If the program includes an Interim, registration must be made at both the semester and the Interim registrations.

Class and Lab Schedules

The fully updated Class and Lab Schedule is posted and maintained on the Registrar’s Office web page. The schedule lists the titles and times of all courses offered during the next academic term.

The schedule indicates amounts of credit and the general education requirements that a particular course fulfills. Should a schedule be found in error with regard to course credit, the registrar maintains a master course file for reference and inspection.

Meeting places of all courses and dates for final exams are posted on the Registrar’s Office website.

DEADLINES

The registrar posts deadlines pertaining to courses and academic procedures on the registrar’s calendar. The policy governing these academic deadlines is set by the St. Olaf faculty upon recommendation of the Curriculum Committee. 

Changes in Registration

Students may drop, add, or make S/U changes to their courses up until the deadline published on the registrar’s calendar posted on the registrar’s web page. Registration changes are processed with drop/add slips available from, and returnable to, the Registrar’s Office. The date the signed slip is returned to the Registrar’s Office, not the date it was signed, determines whether the change meets the deadline. An unreported drop or withdrawal results in an F in the course. Being on a closed-course waiting list does not negate the deadline for adding a course.

Performance studies (music lessons) must be added and dropped through the Music Department office. This drop/add slip must be processed by the Music Department academic administrative assistant before it will be accepted at the Registrar’s Office. If a student drops a performance studies course after the fifth day of class, no refund of music lesson fees is made.

Changes to registration after the posted deadline must be by petition.The form may be picked up from and returned to the Registrar’s Office. Such petitions, including assigning handling fees, are acted on by the registrar. The student may appeal a decision on a petition to the Curriculum Committee, whose decisions are final. Students are notified of the decision by e-mail, usually the day the decision is made.

A petition to add or drop a course or to make a change in the grading option (graded to S/U) is not entertained beyond one year following the end of the relevant term. This practice is consistent with the statute of limitations on notification of a grade error; see GRADE CHANGES. A course taken on an S/U basis may not be assigned another type of grade at a later date.

ADDING COURSES

A student may add a course until the deadline specified on the registrar’s calendar by submitting to the Registrar’s Office an appropriately signed drop/add slip. No course addition that creates an overload for the term will be permitted.

A student who has been placed on an instructor’s waiting list, and who subsequently gains entry into a previously closed course, must officially add the course at the Registrar’s Office by the posted add deadline. If a student wishes to add a course that creates a course overload, he/she must drop a course to make room for the addition by the add deadline posted on the college calendar.

Note that first-half and second-half semester courses have posted deadlines different from those for semester-length courses. Consult the registrar’s calendar.

DROPPING COURSES

With the exception of cases involving possible honor code violations (see below), a student may drop (withdraw from) any course for which he/she is registered until the deadline for dropping a course posted on the registrar’s calendar.

A drop/add slip, which is available from and must be returned to the registrar’s window, must be properly signed by the instructor whose course is being dropped. An unreported drop results in an F in the course.

Note that first-half and second-half semester courses have deadlines different from those deadlines for courses that last the entire semester.

If a student drops a performance studies course after the first day of class, no refund of music lesson fees is made.

A student must be registered for at least 3.00 credits in order to retain full-time status, and to receive veteran’s benefits. Four full courses are required to maintain certain forms of State of Minnesota financial aid. Degree candidate students dropping below the three-full-course minimum during a semester may lose housing (residence hall) privileges and financial aid. In this situation, students who are considering dropping a course should consult with the Dean of Students Office before taking final action.

Students dropping a Carleton College course for which they are registered should consult CARLETON INTER-REGISTRATION in this catalog.

Honor Code/Plagiarism Exceptions
A student under review for an honor code violation may not drop the course in question unless a withdrawal is authorized by the student honor council. A student who is assessed a penalty of failure in a course as a result of an honor system violation or a plagiarism offense is not permitted to drop the course in question.

For more information about the St. Olaf honor system and its procedures and about plagiarism, see The Book. Questions about the honor system should be directed to the Office of the Dean of Students.

LATE ADD (COURSES)

Deadlines for adding a course are designated on the registrar's calendar. A course may be added after the posted deadline via a petition form available from and to be returned in person to the Registrar’s Office window. The petition form must be signed by the instructor of the added course, the advisor, and the student. The date the add slip or a subsequent petition is submitted to the registrar, rather than the date it was signed, determines if the request meets the deadline.

A student who mistakenly attends a different section of a course from the section registered must petition for a change in registration. The instructor for both sections must verify the error.

Note that petitioning to add a course late without previous attendance may make taking the course more difficult; the instructor, therefore, must verify that the student has sufficient time to make up the work missed. A student may not subsequently request an incomplete grade for a course added late because of insufficient time to complete the assigned work.

Note that a handling fee will be assigned for accepted petitions.

The registrar will deny any petition to add a course after the scheduled final exam period for that course. The student may appeal to the Curriculum Committee by resubmitting the original petition to the registrar. Decisions of the committee are final.

A petition to add a course is not entertained beyond one year following the end of the relevant term. (This practice is consistent with the statute of limitations on notification of a grade error; see GRADE CHANGES.)

LATE DROP (COURSES)

Deadlines for dropping a course are designated on the registrar’s calendar. A course may be dropped after the posted deadline via a petition form available from and to be returned in person to the Registrar’s Office window. The petition form must be signed by the instructor of the dropped course, the advisor, and the student. . The date the drop slip or a subsequent petition is submitted to the registrar, rather than the date it was signed, determines if the request meets the deadline.

If a student is dropping a course he/she never attended, the instructor must verify the absence from the class.

An unreported withdrawal results in an F in the course. If the petition is granted, a notation of WP or WF will be made on the student's transcript to indicate whether the student was doing passing or failing work at the time that the course was dropped.

Note that a handling fee will be assigned for accepted petitions.

The registrar will deny any petition to drop a course after the scheduled final exam period for that course. The student may appeal to the Curriculum Committee by resubmitting the original petition to the registrar.  Decisions of the committee are final.

A petition to drop a course is not entertained beyond one year following the end of the relevant term. (This practice is consistent with the statute of limitations on notification of a grade error; see GRADE CHANGES.)

REPEATING A COURSE

Most courses may be repeated only once, only at St. Olaf, and only when the grade is C- or below, U or N. A course cannot be repeated after satisfactory completion of any course in the same department or program for which the repeated course is considered a prerequisite. A repeated course may be taken S/U only if the course was originally taken S/U and a U was received. If a course receives an S credit, it may not be repeated regardless of the actual reported grade. A course earns only one credit once completed with a passing grade of D- or higher; the credit value of the first attempt does not count among the total credits earned toward graduation. Each course attempt remains part of the permanent record, but only the second grade and credit are computed into the grade point average and into the total number of credits earned.

Students projecting grade point averages where the projection involves repeating a course should consult with the Registrar’s Office. See individual department listings for policies relating to specific departments.

Seniors should be particularly careful when repeating a course. When the repeated course grade and credit is added to the transcript, the credit and grade of the first attempt are no longer included in calculations of course credit or GPA, even if the first attempt resulted in a passing grade. Seniors should contact the Registrar's Office to review the degree audit, taking into account the repeated course.

There are a few courses that are considered “allowable repeats.” Please see individual department course listing. If a course may be repeated, the course description indicates so. Topics courses may be repeated if the topic is different each time.

See also information concerning SPM courses and Exercise Science.

S/U OPTION (SATISFACTORY/UNSATISFACTORY)

The intent of this option is to allow students to explore areas in which they have an interest, without the grade counting in their G.P.A.

All graded courses are open to the S/U option as distinguished from P/N (pass/no pass) courses where the ungraded option is mandatory. Neither an S nor a U figure into the grade point average. An S is awarded for a grade of C- or higher; a U represents a grade of D+ or lower. A U does not earn course credit.

Students should exercise caution in choosing to take courses on an S/U basis. Some graduate schools, for example, assume that a grade of S replaces a C or C-.

The S/U Provisions for All Students Are:

In completing the minimum of 35 full credits required for graduation, students may take up to six full course equivalents on an S/U basis.

Of courses taken to meet general education requirements, only .25 credit courses may be taken on an S/U basis. Such courses are counted toward the six full credit course equivalents allowed. Full or .50 credit courses taken S/U do not fulfill general education requirements.

A maximum of one full course equivalent taken S/U may count toward the minimum requirements for a major or an interdisciplinary concentration. Individual departments may have stricter rules.

The 24-graded-course graduation requirement must be observed.

Students may elect to change the grading option from graded to S/U or from S/U to graded through the deadlines designated at the Registrar’s Office as posted on the registrar’s calendar.

Courses taken S/U on St. Olaf off-campus programs count toward the six full-course equivalents allowed. This use of S/U is distinguished from off-campus courses offered P/N only.

Students transferring to St. Olaf, or transferring work taken at other institutions after entering St. Olaf, may be subject to additional S/U restrictions and should consult with the registrar in advance.

A course completed on an S/U basis may not be assigned another type of grade at a later date. If a student receives an S credit in a course, that course may not be repeated regardless of the actual reported grade.

No indication of S/U registration is made on a professor’s class list.

Some courses are offered on the P/N basis only upon previous approval of the dean of the college; announcement is made in the Class and Lab Schedule.

S/U CHANGES

Deadlines for changing courses from S/U to graded or from graded to S/U are designated on the registrar’s calendar. A course may be changed from S/U to graded or from graded to S/U after the posted deadline via a petition form available from and to be returned in person to the Registrar’s Office window. The petition form must be signed by the student and the student’s advisor, but not by the course instructor. The date the S/U slip or a subsequent petition is submitted to the registrar, rather than the date it was signed, determines if the request meets the deadline.

Note that a handling fee will be assigned for accepted petitions.

A course completed on an S/U basis may not be assigned another type of grade at a later date.

The registrar will deny any petition to change a course's grading option from graded to S/U after the scheduled final exam period for that course. The student may appeal to the Curriculum Committee by resubmitting the original petition to the registrar. Decisions of the committee are final.

A petition to make a graded to S/U change is not entertained beyond one year following the end of the term in which a course was taken. (This practice is consistent with the statute of limitations on notification of a grade error; see GRADE CHANGES.)

U GRADES

Under the S/U option, a U will be assigned for any grade of D+ or lower. A student earning a grade of D+ to F in a course taken S/U receives a U, which carries no credit. A U cannot be assigned another type of grade at a later date.

CLOSED COURSES

At registration courses may be closed to additional enrollment by the department chair or interdisciplinary program director. Thereafter an instructor may add a student to a course by signing a drop/add slip returnable by the student to the registrar’s window before the posted add deadline.

PROXY REGISTRATION

Students away on St. Olaf-sponsored off-campus programs may complete their registration via the Student Information System (SIS) or have a resident student proxy register for them for the next term.

A proxy may not request another student’s transcript or degree audit from the registrar. Rather, the off-campus student should make arrangements to share academic and course information with his/her proxy.

WAIT LISTS

A wait list to enroll in a course closed at registration is an informal arrangement between a student and the instructor of the course. The arrangement does not constitute enrollment in the course or negate the college-wide deadline for adding a course or the need to submit a signed drop/add slip in order to register for it. It does not constitute a promise on the part of the college that a closed course will be open at a later date.

Departments/programs or individual instructors, not the Registrar's Office, maintain wait lists for their courses following registration.