Registration

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Students should refer to the academic calendar on the registrar’s website (registrar.colorado.edu) for specific dates and deadlines that apply to the registration process. Students should also consult individual college and school sections of this catalog and their dean’s office for additional information on special requirements and procedures. The following registration policies are intended to serve as general guidelines.

Registration generally involves three steps: registering for courses, obtaining a bill before classes begin, and dropping and adding classes during drop/add periods, if needed.

Students who require accommodations because of a disability should notify the Office of the Registrar, University of Colorado Boulder, 20 UCB, Boulder, CO, 80309-0020, or call 303-492-6970.

Confirmation Deposit

All degree students pay a one-time-only $200 confirmation deposit that allows them to enroll without paying a registration deposit each term.

Confirmation deposits are refunded to students upon graduation or official withdrawal from CU-Boulder within established dates and guidelines. All refunds are reduced by any outstanding financial obli-gations. Interest earned from confirmation deposits is used for student financial aid.

The $200 deposit is required of all degree students. New students are required to pay the deposit when they first confirm their intent to enroll at CU-Boulder and are not permitted to register until the confirmation deposit is paid.

All questions regarding the confirmation deposit policy should be directed to the Office of Admissions, Regent Administrative Center 125, 303-492-6301.

Registering for Courses

All CU-Boulder students register for courses via the student portal, MyCUInfo.colorado.edu

Registration information is sent to new freshmen as well as new transfer, new graduate, and readmitted students when they have confirmed their intent to enroll, with the exception of new freshmen and transfer students in arts and sciences, who receive their registration information at orientation. Continuing students are notified each semester of times, places, and requirements for registration.

Bill Distribution

Bills are online on CUBill&Pay before each semester begins, depending on when students have registered. Bill distribution information is at www.colorado.edu/bursar and in the Summer Session Catalog. Students access their online bill on MyCUInfo.colorado.edu.

Drop/Add

Students can adjust their schedules by dropping and adding classes via the student portal, MyCUInfo.colorado.edu. For fall and spring semesters, drop/add activity takes place by time assignment during the Friday prior to the first day of the semester. After that, the system is available to all students through the drop and add deadlines.

For more information, visit the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu.

Drop/Add Deadlines

Specific drop and add deadlines for each fall and spring semester are listed on the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu. Summer deadlines appear in the Summer Session Catalog.

  1. Students are allowed to add courses through the add deadline with no authorization signatures required (second Wednesday of instruction in the fall or spring semester; the deadline varies in the summer). After the add deadline in fall and spring semesters, the instructor’s approval is required to add a course through the “deadline to add a course without petitioning the dean” (third Friday of instruction), unless enrollment levels are reached earlier. Courses cannot be added after this deadline. In summer, courses cannot be added after the add deadline. 
  2. Students can drop courses through the drop deadline with no authorization signatures required (third Wednesday of instruction in the fall or spring semester; the deadline varies in the summer). Tuition and fees are not assessed for courses dropped by this deadline. After the drop deadline, the instructor’s signature is required to drop a course through the “deadline to drop a course without petitioning the dean.” The signature indicates that the student is passing the course; students who are failing their courses are not permitted to drop. Courses dropped after the drop deadline appear on the transcript with a W grade and no tuition adjustment is made. 
  3. After the “deadline to drop a course without petitioning the dean” (six weeks after classes begin in the fall or spring semester; the deadline varies in the summer), courses may not be drop-ped unless there are documented circumstances clearly beyond the student’s control (e.g., accident or illness). In addition to obtaining the instructor’s signature, students must petition their dean’s office for approval to drop the course. Petitions normally are not approved after this date.
  4. Students dropping all of their courses should refer to the Withdrawal Procedures section for more information.

Credit/No Credit

Students who wish to take course work for no credit should indicate this at the time they register for courses or during the final drop/add period; changes in credit registration are not permitted after the drop/add deadline in the summer or after the third Friday of the semester in the fall and spring. Tuition is the same whether or not credit is received in a course.

Pass/Fail (P/F)

Students should refer to the college and school sections of this catalog to determine the number of pass/fail credit hours that may be taken in a given semester or credited toward a bachelor’s degree. Exceptions to the pass/fail regulations are permitted for certain courses that are offered only on a pass/fail basis. Procedures for requesting pass/fail enrollment can be found on the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu or in the Summer Session Catalog.

Students who wish to register for a course on a pass/fail basis should do so when first registering for their courses. The pass/fail option is only available for courses that allow a pass/fail option. If a student decides to change from graded to pass/fail, this can be done using the Edit button in the student portal in the "Add Deadline" feature. Changes to or from a pass/fail basis are not permitted after the third Friday of the semester in the fall and spring or after the drop/add deadline in the summer.

All students who register on a pass/fail basis appear on the class roster, and a letter grade is assigned by the instructor. When grades are received in the Office of the Registrar, those courses that have a pass/fail designation are automatically converted from letter grades to P or F. Grades of D- and above are considered passing grades. A P grade does not affect a student's GPA. An F grade does not affect a student's GPA.

Variable Credit

All independent study courses, and occasionally regular courses, are offered on a variable-credit basis. Students must designate the number of credit hours they wish to receive for the course at the time of registration. Consult the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu or the Summer Session Catalog for variable-credit hour ranges for particular courses. 

Time Off Program (TOP) 
(for Graduate Students Only)

The Time Off Program (TOP) is a planned-leave program for  degree-seeking CU-Boulder graduate students who wish to take a leave of absence from the university. Students must be in  good ethical and academic standing with the university. Students on TOP will be allowed three inactive semesters, including summer, to pursue academic or nonacademic interests, and they do not need to reapply to the university to return.

TOP guarantees participating students a place in their current college or school and in their current major when they return to the university. 

Additional information and a TOP application can be obtained from the Office of the Registrar, Regent Administrative Center 105, or at the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu. A nonrefundable $50 program fee is required at the time of application to TOP. 

Note: Graduate students registered for the semester they plan to begin TOP must formally withdraw. See the withdrawal section below. Call 303-492-6970 for more information, or visit the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu, or e-mail timeoff@colorado.edu.

StayConnected 
(Optional for Undergraduate Students Only)

The optional StayConnected program is a benefits-only program. This program gives certain advantages to eligible degree-seeking undergraduate students who are taking leave from the university for the 3-4 semesters they are not registered for courses. 

Some of the benefits offered through the program are only available for an additional fee. A StayConnected application and a nonrefundable $50 administrative fee is required. For an application and more information, visit the Office of the Registrar, Regent Administrative Center 105, call 303-492-6970, visit the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu, or e-mail stayconnected@colorado.edu.

Withdrawal Procedures

Students may officially withdraw from the university by filling out a withdrawal form in the Office of the Registrar, Regent Administrative Center 105, by scanning and e-mailing a withdrawal form to withdraw@colorado.edu, by mailing a withdrawal form to the Office of the Registrar, University of Colorado Boulder, 20 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0020, or by faxing a withdrawal form to 303-492-8748. Using ONLY the student's official colorado.edu e-mail account, they may e-mail a request to withdraw (no need for the form). Students should include the full name and identifying information (student ID number), semester or semesters for which they are withdrawing, reason for withdrawal (without a reason, refunds may be denied), permanent address, and telephone number. If providing this information in a letter, they should also include the date and student signature.

In all terms, students are not permitted to withdraw after the last day of classes.

Failure to withdraw will result in a failing grade being recorded for every course taken in a term and makes a student liable for the full amount of tuition and fees for that term. For refund stipulations, see the withdrawal policy in this catalog regarding tuition and fees.

Rules for withdrawing may vary with each college and school. Students anticipating a withdrawal should consult with their dean’s office and read the withdrawal information on the registrar’s website at registrar.colorado.edu/students/withdraw.html or in the Summer Session Catalog for specific withdrawal procedures. More information is available in the Office of the Registrar, Regent Administrative Center 105, 303-492-6970, on the Web at registrar.colorado.edu, or by e-mailing withdraw@colorado.edu.

Withdrawing students (including students applying for the Time Off Program) with Federal Perkins/NDSL loans must complete a loan exit interview before leaving the university. Failure to do so will result in a “hold” on the student’s record. This hold will prevent the student from receiving a diploma or an academic transcript from the university and from registering for future terms. In order to complete a loan exit interview, contact the university Student Loans department in the Bursar’s Office at 303-492-5571, or 1-800-925-9844.

Beginning fall semester 2010, students who withdraw and then wish to return to the university will have three semesters, including summer, to return to the university without having to reapply for admission. See information and exclusions under “Readmit Students” or visit registrar.colorado.edu/students/withdraw.html.

Other Registrations

Concurrent Registration

Boulder-campus students who are unable to obtain courses required for their degree program on the Boulder campus may be  allowed to register for up to two courses or 6 credit hours, whichever is greater, on another University of Colorado campus. (Note: Application forms and registration are done by the “home” campus.) Participating students must be enrolled for at least one course on the Boulder campus.

Note: Graduate students should check with the Office of the Registrar for exceptions to the home-campus registration requirement and limitation on credit hours at the host campus.

Students taking required courses in the Leeds School of Business or in the Graduate School of Business Administration may only exercise the concurrent registration option if they are in their graduating semester; business students who are two semesters from graduating and who cannot obtain courses necessary to complete a prerequisite sequence may also be allowed to use this option. The courses must either be required for graduation or unavailable on the Boulder campus, or the courses must conflict with another required course in which the student is enrolled. 

Boulder students exercising this option will pay tuition for their total credit hours at Boulder-campus rates. Concurrent registration forms and instructions are available at the Office of the Registrar, Regent Administrative Center 105, 9:00 a.m.– 5:00 p.m. Registration takes place only during the designated schedule-adjustment period of the host campus.

Registration on Another CU Campus

Boulder-campus students who wish to take course work on another campus of the University of Colorado and not through the concurrent registration program may be able to register on that campus independent of Boulder-campus registration. However, students must apply for admission to and follow the registration procedures established by the other campus. Students should check with their dean’s office for approval.

Late Registration

Students in certain categories may be allowed to register late for a fall or spring semester if not registered in any classes as of the third Friday of the semester. These students are assessed a $100 late registration fee, if eligible for late registration.

Graduate students registering as candidates for degree or for thesis hours must register by the third Friday of classes in a fall or spring semester or be subject to the $100 late registration fee, if late registration is held for their category. For more information, call 303-492-6970.

Registration for Faculty and Staff

All permanent faculty and staff with a 50 percent or greater appointment are eligible to use the faculty/staff tuition benefit to have up to 9 credit hours of tuition waived each year, beginning with the summer semester. The tuition benefit can also be extended to eligible dependents of faculty and staff. All participants of this program must be admitted to the university as non-degree or degree-seeking students. Faculty, staff, and their dependents who wish to enroll in courses using the tuition benefit must submit a faculty/staff tuition waiver form to Payroll and Benefits Services. Faculty and staff who are not continuing students (i.e., enrolled in one of the last three semesters) must also submit the appropriate admission application as well as the tuition benefit form. Applications and the tuition waiver forms are available at the Bursar’s Office or at bursar.colorado.edu/resources/tuition-benefit.

The tuition waiver form must be submitted by the deadline published on the Payroll and Benefits website. To take advantage of the tuition benefit, faculty, staff, and their dependents must wait until the first day of classes for the semester. For summer semester, registration starts the first day of classes for the summer session in which you plan to enroll. Additional classes that will be paid by the student may be registered for prior to the first day of class. Detailed information is available under the faculty/staff link at bursar.colorado.edu and on the Payroll and Benefits website at: https://www.cu.edu/pbs/tuition-benefit.

Commencement

Students must apply to their dean’s office for graduation at least one semester before they intend to graduate. Graduation ceremonies are held in May and December and are open to the public. No tickets are required. The May commencement is held at Folsom Stadium and the December ceremony is held in the Coors Events/Conference Center. Students receiving their degrees in August should check with their dean’s office if they wish to attend the May or December ceremony. Details concerning the ceremony are e-mailed to graduating students approximately one month before each ceremony. Students may also access the current semester’s ceremony information at www.colorado.edu/commencement.

Only doctoral and law graduates receive their diplomas at commencement. Diplomas are mailed to all other students approximately two months after the ceremony. Standard diploma size is 8 x 10 inches.

Graduating students with Federal Perkins/NDSL loans must complete a loan exit interview and clear all outstanding financial balances before leaving the university. Failure to do so will result in a “stop” on the student’s record. This stop prevents receipt of a diploma or an academic transcript of work at the university and registration for future terms. Students can complete a loan exit interview by contacting the university Student Loans department in the Bursar’s Office at 303-492-5571, TTY 303-492-3528.