Registration Rules & Procedures Table of Contents
Registration for Classes
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 registration portal 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.
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.
Registration Process Overview
Students register for most classes using the Registration Portal. The Registration Portal is accessible under MyLU apps. In the Registration Portal you will see options to plan, prepare, view registration information, browse classes, and register. Academic Advising has put together training tutorials on how to use the Registration Portal.
View Registration Portal Training Tutorials
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.
Registration Deadlines & Late Fees
Registration dates and deadlines are listed on the main Registration page. Information about assigned registration times for individual students is available to students on their View Registration Information page in the Registration Portal. Assigned registration times vary by term.
Academic Sessions & Registration Periods
Lawrence operates on a three-term calendar. Each standard 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 2024-25 would be represented by Fall Term 2024, Winter Term 2025, and Spring Term 2025.
Lawrence offers students the opportunity to participate in a variety of off-campus programs. Most of these are held in semester sessions. The student-teaching courses required for teacher certification are offered under a semester session as well. Students attending a program in a semester session are not eligible to register for the overlapping terms.
Lawrence also offers a two-week, optional December Term (D-Term). Students may elect to take one 3-unit course for the session.
See the registration schedule for a complete list of open registration dates. 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 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. After the initial opening of advance registration, priority registration does not apply.
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.
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 or in the Registration Portal in the View Registration Information section. Until all registration holds are released, a student will be prevented from adding and dropping classes even if the assigned registration time is current.
Students are required to meet with their academic advisors before they advance register for their courses in spring prior to next academic year. Students should consult with advisors prior to making any changes to the agreed upon schedule. 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, Center for Academic Success, 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.
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 best to utilize Lawrence resources, and complying with university academic procedures and regulations.
New students are assigned academic advisors on entry. Once a student declares their major they are required to have an advisor in their major. If they have multiple majors they must have an advisor in each major department. 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 Change of Advisor Form online, and may consult any member of the faculty as appropriate for advice with a particular issue or concern.
Students are expected to meet with their academic advisors prior to making changes in their registration for classes. Advising registration holds are set before advance registration in spring prior to next academic year. Students with more than one advisor will have more than one advisor hold. All advising holds must be released before student can advance register for next academic year.
Academic advisors release advising holds through Voyager 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 or in the Registration Portal it is under View Registration Information. 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 Director of Academic Advising at advising@lawrence.edu for assistance with course selection questions.
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 and obtaining any required instructor approvals, and checking for time conflicts for odd-time/arranged courses. 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.
Class Overloads & Underloads
Students are expected to take a normal class load each term. Student will not be allowed to overload (register for more than 22 units, exclusive of music ensembles) until academic standing for the prior term is complete. Overload permission forms for the current term will be accepted from the through the fifth day of classes. The add/drop deadline of 5:00 pm on the 5th day of the term still applies.
The normal class load for a term session is 18 units; the normal load for a semester session (off-campus programs and student teaching) 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.
Most students will be allowed to register for a maximum of 22 units per term session. High school students in the Early College Credit Program (ECCP) 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. Music ensembles are not included in determining a student's overload status.
Students who wish to overload (23-27 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 27 units in a single term, exclusive of music ensembles. Permission to overload may be obtained at the beginning of each term for that term only. An Overload Request Form must be submitted online no later than the fourth day of classes of the term.
Students considering an overload should be sure to review the information about overload fees in the course catalog. An additional per unit tuition charge will be applied for course loads exceeding 22 units.
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, international student visas, and time to the completion of a degree. If a student desires to underload, they may want to consult with their advisor, registrar's office, financial aid, International Student Services, and/or Center for Academic Success. A specific form is not required to underload, but documentation might be requested by one of the departments mentioned in this paragraph.
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.
Limited Enrollment Classes
Classes with limited enrollment are marked in the Class Schedule. If a class is full, a student will be able to select the waiting list option. Students registered or waitlisted for a limited enrollment class who no longer wish to take it should drop the class.
On the first day of classes for the term students on the waiting list should plan to 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 open seats to students on the waiting list.
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.
Instructor Approvals
An instructor’s approval to register is required
- for any class marked "approval required" (APR) in the class schedule
- some limited enrollment classes 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 limited enrollment classes that had a waitlist prior to the first day of the term. Limited enrollment classes that did not have a waitlist on the first day, will not require instructor approval.
- 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 ECCP (high school students), 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.
Repeating Courses
A course may be repeated under certain circumstances:
NOTE: When a course is repeated, both original and repeated courses remain on the record but only one course (if credit is earned) will be counted toward the degree.
- Students may repeat courses in which they have a grade of F.
- Students are permitted to repeat up to 18 units in which a grade of D+ or lower* (U if graded on an S/U basis) is received.
- For "topics" courses, the repeated course must be the same topic as the original course, or a topic
- approved by the home department.
- First Year Studies 100, 101, and 201, cannot be repeated once credit is earned for these courses.
- When a course is repeated, the second grade is recorded on the academic record and the original grade is replaced by R. Only the second grade is counted in the degree GPA and major or minor GPA. Both the original grade and repeat grade are counted in the composite GPA (see "Grade Point Averages").
*VA eligible students should consult with their advisor and the Registrar's office before deciding to repeat a course in which a D+, D, or D- has been earned.
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 for the appropriate year.
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. Crosslisted classes are indicated in the Class Schedule (use the title link to view detailed information). Students are able to register for the parent or child listing (department that offers the course). After the registration period has ended students may request to have it listed on their transcripts under one of the alternate departments by completing the online Crosslist Request Form. The class may be applied to different requirements depending on the listing used. Students should discuss this choice with their academic advisors.
See Repeating Courses for rules regarding repeating a course. A Repeated Course Form is only needed if the repeated course differs in course number or title due to changes in course catalogs.
S/U Guidelines for all years/terms with the exception of Spring 2020- 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. An online S/U Option Form must be submitted before the end of class change period at the beginning of the term. Forms submitted after the deadline will be denied.
The option to audit a class is NOT available to degree-seeking students, Waseda/Pathways students, or high school ECCP participants. Classes taken on an audit basis do not count towards course load. Non-degree students can request Audit on their application or Reinstatement form. If a non-degree seeking student decides after they are registered but before the end of the add/drop period, they may complete the online Audit Form. Non-degree seeking students cannot choose to audit a class after the end of the add/drop period.
Directed Study, Tutorials, IS, Internships, & Supervised Accompanying
Class sections for directed study, tutorials, independent study, and internships are built upon request via the Student Initiated Course Form. The DS/IS/IN/TU courses cannot be added through the Voyager registration system. These classes are unique to each student-instructor combination. To register for these classes the student must complete the online Student Initiated Course Form within the regular registration period. If the addition of the student initiated course (DS/IS/IN/TU) brings the student to more than 22 units, an overload form is also required before the Student Initiated Course can be added to the student's schedule. The student initiated course addition will not be processed unless all registration holds have been released.
Supervised Accompanying courses can be added during the open registration period using the Supervised Accompanying Form. Once it is complete, it can be emailed to registrar@lawrence.edu.
Music Ensembles
Registration for music ensembles must be approved by the ensemble directors. Students may request registration in Voyager for a music ensemble (excluding supervised accompanying) before and during the regular class change period of the term in which the ensemble is offered. Only ensembles requested by the end of the class change period and approved by faculty in Voyager will be added to student schedules. 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.
Off-Campus Programs
Students apply to attend Lawrence and Lawrence-affiliated off-campus programs through the Off-Campus Programs Office. The application 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.
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 registered 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.
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, Early College Credit Program-ECCP (high school students), General Non-Degree, and Audit Only Programs may register in advance of the term only if approved by the instructor. ECCP 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 classes and may not be given a class seat until degree-seeking students have been accommodated.