Auditors
The opportunity to audit courses has been reinstated for the 2023-2024 academic year. Anyone interested in auditing a course is required to submit the Course Audit Request Form to obtain the permission of the instructor before attending class. Before submitting the form, please review the guide to better understand the process and email registrar@bowdoin.edu with any questions.
Courses are intended for Bowdoin students, but the College is normally happy to extend, as a privilege, the opportunity for community members to attend courses. Auditors must obtain permission from the course instructor before attending the first class and follow their guidelines regarding in-class participation. Auditors are generally not permitted in full courses and are not allowed to attend First-Year Writing Seminars (courses numbered 1000-1049). The College reserves the right to restrict the number of courses audited by any one person and to limit the total number of auditors on campus at a particular time. The College also reserves the right to change or amend this policy.
People wishing to audit a class should be aware of the following:
- Requests to audit are not accepted until the first day of classes.
- There is no official record kept and no grade given for an audited class.
- Auditors are not officially registered for a class.
- Auditors are not officially registered for a class.
- Auditors may elect to receive electronic services from the College. These services include things such as access to e-reserves, electronic course materials, and inclusion on the class email list.
- Electronic services will cease after a term ends.
- A fee of $50 per course is normally charged for this service.
- Friends of Bowdoin pay a reduced fee of $30.
- There is no fee to audit for the following constituents:
- Bowdoin alumni, students, employees or employee spouses
- Bates, Colby, MECA, USM, or local High School students
- A high school student may audit a Bowdoin class when permission is granted by the course instructor in consultation with the student's high school guidance department.