Explanation of Course Enrollment Numbers

Course enrollments are shown on this page: Course Enrollments

When a course has a provisional limit that is lower than the final limit, the difference between the two limits represents the number of spaces in the course reserved for first-year students. (When a course is open only to first-year students, there is no need to hold spaces for them.) 

In this example, although the course is already full of upper-class students (13), there are 37 spaces (50-13) reserved for first-year students. The first-year spaces will become available during first-year registration.
Example of course with openings for first years

In this example, there are still 14 spaces open to any student (25-11) and there are an additional 10 spaces (35-25) that will become available to first-year students during first-year registration.
Example of course with openings for any student

The following two courses have spaces reserved for first-year students that will become available during first-year registration (MUS 138, 25 spaces; PSYC 101A, 50 spaces). An upper-class student who has an interest in one of these courses and is not already registered for it may contact the instructor about being added to a waiting list.
Example of otherwise-full courses that have openings for first years

The following is an example of a course that is completely full until the add/drop period. Students interested in this course may email the instructor about the possibility of being added to a waiting list.
Example of closed/full course

Do you have questions about enrollment numbers or course registration?
Contact us:
registrar@bowdoin.edu
207-725-3521