Course Registration

Changes to Registration

Traditional undergraduate students may drop or add courses during a standard ten week term without approval or penalty during the first seven days of a quarter (Monday-Sunday, summer session excluded). Schedule changes can be made online via MyDU. Students may also make schedule changes by contacting their college's registration office. See www.du.edu/registrar for specific dates and procedures regarding registration and drop/add deadlines.

Section Changes

Students may change from one section of a course to another with the instructor’s approval for the section being added. The section being dropped is deleted from the student’s record.

Adding Courses

Traditional students may add open courses through the first week of a standard ten week quarter without approval unless course-specific permissions are required (i.e., instructor, department, independent study/research form). University College courses must have instructor approval to add once they have begun. 

After the first week of the quarter, students must add classes through their college's registration office. Instructor approval is required.

Students must be registered in courses they are attending. Students may not attend classes for which they are not enrolled. It is at the instructor’s discretion to allow a stu­dent to enroll in a course after the first week of the term. Students are responsible for making up assignments for missed class meetings.

Under no circumstances may courses be added after the eighth week of the quarter (during the last 10 business days of the quarter). Refer to the Important Dates link under Calendars and Deadlines on the registrar's website for specific dates. 

Variable Credit Hours

Some courses can be taken for variable credit hours (e.g., a course can be taken for either 2 or 3 credits). If appropriate, students can select the desired credit hours during Web registration. When registering for a course with variable credit hours via the Web, by default a student is registered for the minimum number of credit hours. The student is responsible for changing the credit hours. This is accomplished once the course is added by clicking on the Schedule and Options tab in the top left corner of the registration screen. In the Schedule and Options tab, click on the underlined number in the Hours field. A drop down will become visible. Select the appropriate credits you wish to be registered for. Hit submit in the lower right hand corner. The credit hours for the course should change to the desired number.

Registration Approvals

Courses requiring special permission or forms, such as independent study, directed study or independent research, may require registration in the appropriate registration office. Students are expected to identify prerequisites and course restrictions prior to attempting to register. Up-to-date prerequisite and restriction information is available on the online schedule of classes. Courses that have been transferred in from other institutions may not be recognized as meeting prerequisites and could result in a registration error message (due to missing prerequisites).

To prevent registration errors that block a student’s ability to enroll in a course, the student should contact the appropriate office before the registration time assignment for required approvals or with requests for exceptions to restrictions. Proactive actions are particularly important for students participating in a study abroad program. When an academic unit deems it appropriate to grant approvals or permissions to override restrictions, or to enroll in closed courses, the approval can be given via the Faculty or Advisor granting a permit override or a signed drop/add form.

When a form is required or a registration error results at the time enrollment is attempted, the student should register for all other courses via the Web. The student can then procure the appropriate forms, signatures or electronic approvals without compromising his or her course schedule. Students who feel they are blocked from a course in error should contact their registration office immediately.

Maximum Credit Hours and Full-Time Status

A full-time traditional undergraduate student may enroll for 12–19 quarter hours of credit each quarter. However, the tuition flat rate is set at 12–18 quarter hours (i.e., upon enrollment in 12 quarter hours, tuition remains the same through 18 quarter hours). Each quarter hour taken in excess of 18 hours, therefore, is charged at the current hourly tuition rate. University College students are not eligible for the flat-rate fee.

A quarter-hour load of more than 19 hours requires approval from Academic Resources; students in the Daniels College of Business may also need approval from Daniels College of Business Student Services. The total study load includes all courses taken at the University of Denver and at other institutions concurrently.

Courses taken for no credit (NC) are applied toward the total study load and tuition fee assessment. Approval for an overload status depends on a student’s grade point average (minimum 3.0 the preceding quarter), the reason for requesting the overload and the student’s work schedule. The maximum enrollment for any quarter is 20 quarter hours.

Dropping Courses

Administrative Withdrawal from Cancelled Courses

Students are administratively withdrawn from courses that are cancelled by the University. Cancelled courses are deleted from the student’s record and tuition charges are reversed if appropriate. Students are notified of the cancel­lation by the department, college or school responsible for offering and cancelling the course.

Student Responsibility

With the exception of administrative withdrawals, a student must officially drop a course or a failing (“F”) grade is assigned. For example, if a student ceases to attend a course, the student remains enrolled in the course unless the student officially drops the course online or through their registration office. University College students must contact their registration office to officially withdraw from a course. Courses dropped after the end of the sixth week of the quarter require instructor’s approval. The instruc­tor’s signature is required on an add/drop form.

A request for withdrawal submitted without required approvals will not be processed, and the student receives a failing (“F”) grade for the course. The student is liable for payment of all tuition and charges related to the course.

Mandated Withdrawal Resulting from Non-Attendance

The attendance policy for a course is left to each instructor’s discretion. Traditional students who have not attended the first week of classes (or equivalent) and who have not made arrangements with instructors for excused absences prior to the first class meeting can be required to drop the course. Once the instructor notifies a student that she or he cannot attend the course, the student is expected to initiate the drop in their program's registration office. Students who are not allowed to continue in a course but who do not officially drop the course will earn a failing grade (“F”) for the course. Students subject to mandated withdrawal due to non­attendance will be responsible for tuition and fees associated with the course at the time of withdrawal. Students who do not officially withdraw from the course will be responsible for all tuition and fees associated with the course.

Official Drop Periods

Courses dropped through the first seven days of a traditional ten week quarter (Monday–Sunday, summer session excluded) are deleted from the student’s record. Tuition will be reversed through this time period (first 10 percent of the term), if applicable.

A notation designating a withdrawal (“W”) is assigned for courses officially dropped after the first week of the traditional ten week quarter. The course appears on the student’s record with a withdrawal (“W”) grade notation. Credit hours for the withdrawn course are not earned and the “W” grade notation is not calculated in the GPA. A course may be dropped without instructor approval through the published date for auto­matic withdrawal (generally the end of the sixth week of a quarter, 60 percent of the term). Withdrawal deadlines and tuition refund schedules are available at www.du.edu/registrar.

Withdrawal Restrictions

Academic Integrity

The University of Denver creates an academic learning environment grounded in Academic Integrity. Students are expected to engage honestly and demonstrate responsibility in research and academic assignments. Therefore, all work and grades should result from the Student's own understanding of the materials and their effort. 

When evidence/information indicates that a Student may have violated an Academic Integrity Policy, Academic Actions, Educational Outcomes, and Status Outcomes are possibilities. Academic Actions include, but are not limited to required re-do of an assignment, grade reduction, failure of an assignment, and/or failure of a course. Status Outcomes include written warning, probation, elevated probation, suspension, or dismissal. Students may appeal these decisions.

A student can be prevented from dropping a course when it is alleged they have engaged in academic dishonesty. A course can be reinstated if the student has dropped the course during the automatic withdrawal (“W”) period. In cases of suspected academic dishonesty, the Office of the Registrar can reinstate a previously dropped course. The Office of the Registrar is not required to notify the student of reinstate­ment. Once the case is heard by the Office of Student Rights & Responsibilities and academic dishonesty is determined, an instructor may assign a failing (“F”) grade for the course in question. A withdrawal notation (“W”) for the course, even if processed during the automatic withdrawal period, is not honored. If the Student is found not responsible for violating an academic integrity policy, and there has been an attempt to drop during the automatic withdrawal period, the drop is processed and a notation of withdrawn (“W”) assigned. Refer to www.du.edu/studentlife/studentconduct for policies and procedures concerning academic integrity and the University of Denver Honor Code.

Drops with Approval

An instructor may refuse permission to drop a course when a student is failing the course. After the sixth week of the quarter, approval from the instructor is required to drop a course. See www.du.edu/registrar for these and other important dates. Note: Five-week courses, interterms and summer sessions may have different deadlines. Please consult the Registrar’s website for up-to-date information about add/drop and refund deadlines.

Drop Deadlines

Withdrawals during the two weeks (10 business days, Monday–Friday) before the scheduled final exam period are not permitted. Exceptional approval: Students who have extenuating circumstances that make it necessary to drop classes after the drop deadline may contact Academic Resources to file a Petition for Exception to Academic Policy. If granted, approval to drop courses after the drop deadline does not automatically grant a tuition refund. See the process for Tuition Refund Appeal.

Repeating Courses

Students must receive approval from their major department or college to repeat a nonrepeatable course. Credits in the major and the minor must be earned at the level of “C-” or better. Some degree programs require a “C-” or better for other requirements. A student may, if required by the program, repeat a nonrepeatable course. The highest grade received, if “C–” or better, fulfills requirements. However, hours earned toward graduation are counted only once. The course is counted as part of the regular class load, and the cumulative GPA includes all grades for the course.

Regular tuition is charged for the repeated course. However, only one repetition of a previously-passed course may count in a student’s enrollment status for federal financial aid purposes. In other words, the third repetition may not be counted for federal financial aid such as student loans or grants.