Course Registration

Looking for first-year registration information? Reference this PDF. 

All students at Bowdoin participate equally in course registration, regardless of class standing. For that reason, course registration happens in rounds so that all students, in consultation with a faculty advisor, have ample opportunity to create their optimal schedule and maintain progress to the degree.

Course Schedule

Available in the Class Finder Monday, April 4. PDF versions of the schedule available on the Course Information page of the Registrar's website beginning Tuesday, April 5. 

RETURNING STUDENTS ONLY

Round 1 

Begins at 9:00 am on Thursday, April 7. Ends at 5:00 pm on Thursday, April 14. Round 1 is used to submit top-choice course requests. Advisor Hold must be released for course requests to be processed. Round 1 Results in Polaris: by 5:00 pm on Monday, April 18.

Round 2 

Begins at 9:00 am on Wednesday, April 20. Ends at 5:00 pm on Friday, April 22. Round 2 is used to submit alternate/additional course choices; no courses may be dropped during Round 2. Round 2 Results in Polaris: by 5:00 pm on Monday, April 25.

Add/Drop 1 

Begins at 9:00 am on Wednesday, April 27. Ends at 5:00 pm on Wednesday, May 11. Instructor permission required to add any course during Add/Drop rounds. Results in Polaris: immediately.

RE-ENROLLED STUDENTS ONLY

Begins at 9:00 am on Monday, August 15. Ends at 5:00 pm on Friday, August 19. Results in Polaris: by 5:00 pm on Monday, August 22.

TRANSFER STUDENTS ONLY

Sunday, August 28 by appointment from 12:00 - 5:00pm in the Baldwin Center for Learning and Teaching located in the H&L library.

FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS ONLY

FY Round 1 

Begins at 12:00 pm on Monday, August 29. Ends at 5:00 pm on Monday, August 29. Round 1 is used to submit top-choice course requests. Advisor Hold must be released for course requests to be processed. Round 1 Results in Polaris: by 7:30 am on Tuesday, August 30.

FY Round 2 

Begins at 8:00 am on Tuesday, August 30. Ends at 12:00 pm on Tuesday, August 30. Round 2 is used to submit alternate/additional course choices; no courses may be dropped during Round 2. Round 2 Results in Polaris: by 5:00 pm on Tuesday, August 30.

FY Add/Drop 

Begins at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, August 30. Ends at 10:30 pm on Tuesday, August 30. This is Bowdoin's only first-come, first-served round of registration. Results in Polaris: immediately. Faculty advisors available for consultation in Moulton Union>Lancaster Lounge from 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm.

ALL STUDENTS

Add/Drop II 

Begins at 9:00 am on Wednesday, August 31. Ends at 5:00 pm on Wednesday, September 14.  Instructor permission required to add any course during Add/Drop rounds. Add/Drop II Results in Polaris: immediately.

Credit/D/Fail 

Extended Drop 

Begins at 5:01 pm on Wednesday, September 14. Ends at 5:00 pm on Wednesday, October 19. With the permission of their academic advisor, students may use an extended drop twice in their Bowdoin career. Note: new students may use an extended drop, with the permission of their pre-major academic advisor and student dean, and it does not count toward the limit of two. Extended Drop Results in Polaris: 2-3 business days after request submitted and eligibility confirmed. Students notified via email. More information and link to the form (submitted by the advisor) here. 

After Wednesday, October 19, students with extenuating circumstances may request to adjust their course schedules by petitioning the Recording Committee. More information about the Recording Committee and link to the petition form (submitted by the student) here.

Students ON campus MUST connect to the Bowdoin Wi-Fi (not Bowdoin guest) to access Polaris registration. 

Students OFF campus MUST connect to VPN to access Polaris registration. (VPN instructions here)

• Log in to Polaris (polaris.bowdoin.edu)
• What is Polaris?
• Registration Guide to Polaris
• How to Register for Classes in Polaris (video)

Class Finder, accessible directly or from within Polaris, details the classes on offer each semester. 

• How to Navigate the Classfinder (video)
• Keep checking Class Finder throughout each round of registration as class information is continuously updated. There is also a live count of pending requests. 

Independent Studies/Honors Projects

Registration for Independent Studies and Honors Projects is not done through Polaris. Instead, students submit an Independent Study/Honors Project Request Form after discussing their plans with their project advisor. Note that students must submit a new form each semester even if it is a continuation from a previous semester. 

All students with an enrollment status of "Here/Matric" and who have no registration holds, other than the Advisor Hold, are eligible to participate.

How do I find out what my enrollment status is?

• Log in to Polaris and navigate to the Status section,
• Click "Show All" to expand the chart,
• In the term column of the chart, find Fall 2022
• The enrollment status needs to say Here/Matric.

What do I do if my enrollment status is something other than Here/Matric?

Your status needs to be corrected through the Office of the Dean of Students or the Office of Off-Campus Study. As soon as possible, directly contact the respective office to begin the process.,Note: If you will be studying off campus next semester, you will not be allowed to register for courses.

• Log in to Polaris and navigate to the Academic Profile section,
• Click on the "Holds" tab,
• All active holds are listed there along with the office that placed the hold.

All students eligible to participate in course registration have an Advisor Hold on their record. The hold is in place to help ensure that students are consulting with their faculty advisors about their curricular plans and potential class schedule.

All students should reach out to their faculty advisor early in the registration cycle to arrange to meet with them to begin that conversation. These meetings may occur in-person or virtually but should be more than just an email. In addition to the classes you'll take next semester, make sure to discuss your degree progress, outstanding requirements, possible shift in major/minor, research interests, etc...

Students may submit course requests before the Advisor Hold is lifted. However, in order for Round 1 course requests to be processed, every student's faculty advisor must release the Advisor Hold in Polaris before the deadline. The times which each round of registration open and close are final and normally no exceptions are made. Students are strongly encouraged to check the "My Courses" section of Polaris before the close of each round of registration to make sure their course selections are displaying correctly and all holds are resolved. 

What should I do if I have a registration hold other than the Advisor Hold?

• Identify the Office who placed the hold, listed in the Holds tab in Polaris, and contact them directly as soon as possible to clear it up, e.g., missing paperwork. 
• Note that you will not be able to participate in registration until the hold is lifted

1. Confirm eligibility to participate (see above). 
2. Mark calendar with registration dates and deadlines.
3. Reach out to faculty advisor to schedule a time to meet (in-person or virtually). 
4. Prepare for that meeting by:
   • Checking Degree Progress to identify requirements yet to be fulfilled, 
   • Reviewing the schedule of course offerings in the Class Finder, 
   • Drafting a potential schedule with 4 top-choices and 4 alternate choices.
     • Utilize the Schedule Planning Sheet or the Weekly Planning Calendar.
5. Meet with faculty advisor to discuss a potential schedule. 
6. After the faculty advisor approves the selections, request that they release the Advisor Hold.
7. Submit the approved course requests via Polaris.
8. Before the close of Round 1, check the "My Courses" section of Polaris to confirm course selections are displaying correctly and the Advisor Hold has been lifted. 
   • Course requests may be submitted before the Advisor Hold is lifted, but those requests will not be processed if the Advisor Hold is not lifted by the end of the registration round.

During the first two rounds of registration, where students enter requests and do not directly register, Polaris will allow more students to request a class than there are seats available. When there are more requests than seats, the registration preference order of the course is activated. The preference order is determined by the faculty at the time the course is officially added to the curriculum and represents the order in which the seats should be distributed by class standing. This information is available in the Class Finder, click the down arrow to expand the course details.

Students are encouraged to check their class standing in advance of registration and to pay close attention to a course's preference order as well as the number of pending requests during Rounds 1 and 2.

When registration preferences are activated, some students are shut out and do not receive a seat in the class as there were not enough for all students requesting the class. When a student is shut out of a class, they receive a bump up in the registration preference order for that specific course in a future semester's registration cycle. Students should bear in mind that "priority for being shut out" does not guarantee a seat in the class in a future semester. Instead, it moves the student to the top of the group they fall under in the registration preference order.

Students interested in changing their major or minor in time for it to be reflected for Round 1 processing need to have approvals sent to the Registrar by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, April 13. 

Students interested in changing their major or minor in time for it to be reflected for Round 2 processing need to have approvals sent to the Registrar by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, April 20. 

Some courses have registration restrictions based on a student's class standing or major/minor during the semester in which the course is taught. However, because registration occurs before the start of the semester, Polaris presumes that students will advance in class standing and applies the restrictions accordingly. Students whose class standing does not advance, e.g., they are on a leave currently, should read through the following guidelines to understand which courses they can take in the fall: 

Fall 2022 Courses with Class Standing Restrictions

Read Bowdoin's Time Conflict Override Policy for more information and instructions for obtaining permission for qualifying situations.

There are limits to how many credits may be requested/added during each round of registration:

• Rounds 1 and 2: may request up to four, 1.0 credit classes and two additional 0.5 credit classes.
• Add/Drop I and II: may add a fifth, 1.0 credit class, but may not go over 5.0 total credits. 

At no point may a student be registered for fewer than 3.0 or more than 5.0 credits without the permission of their faculty advisor and student dean. First-year students may not take fewer than 4.0 credits without permission of their faculty advisor and student dean.

In order to maintain timely progress to the degree, students are expected to take 4.0 credits per semester. The maximum amount of credits students can register for in one semester is 5.0 credits. In rare occasions, it is appropriate for a student to take more than 5.0 credits.

To obtain an override to the 5.0 total credit limit, the following is required:

• Course instructors provide instructor permission, and any other applicable overrides in Polaris, 
• Academic advisor(s) email registrar@bowdoin.edu approving the overload, 
• Student dean emails registrar@bowdoin.edu approving the overload, 
• Student emails registrar@bowdoin.edu requesting that the class/lab be added to their schedule, 
• and The Office of the Registrar processes the override and notifies the student when complete.
• Please note that this option is only available during Add/Drop rounds of registration. 

• How to register with updated registration interface in Polaris: reference the guide.

• Help with Technology: Reach out to the IT Service Desk if you experience any issues with system speed or connection. Email sts@bowdoin.edu, call 207-721-5050, utilize the student live chat feature during open hours, or visit the Tech Hub in the library. 

  • Students ON campus MUST connect to the Bowdoin Wi-Fi (not Bowdoin guest) to access Polaris registration. 

  • Students OFF campus MUST connect to VPN to access Polaris registration. (VPN instructions here)

• Switching sections: If, during Add/Drop rounds, you need to switch sections of classes or labs, we recommend submitting the drop and add simultaneously. 

• Reserved Seating: Some faculty choose to reserve seats in their courses for students new to Bowdoin in fall semesters. Reserved seats are not available to returning students. 

• Degree Requirements: details about general requirements, like Divisions and Distributions, and Major/Minor requirements are available in Degree Progress. Keep in mind that students are strongly encouraged to complete all Division and Distribution requirements by the end of the sophomore year.

• Bates-Bowdoin-Colby Cross-Registration

When students matriculate, they become part of the "Class of" the year of anticipated graduation. This designation does not change during a student's time at Bowdoin. A student's class standing, however, is based on a combination of credits earned after matriculation and number of semesters enrolled at Bowdoin, so it can shift. 

Students may email registrar@bowdoin.edu about applying for advanced class standing after registration has occurred during the semester in which they are a first-semester junior.

Equality: All students at Bowdoin participate equally in course registration. For that reason, course registration happens in rounds so that all students, in consultation with a faculty advisor, have ample opportunity to create their optimal schedule. Each round lasts for several days and no priority is given based on the timing of participation. Students may adjust their selections as many times as desired before the deadline for each round. 

Process: During the first two rounds, all students request classes for which they meet the eligibility requirements, regardless of class size. For example, an introductory course may have an enrollment limit of 50, but there might be over 100 requests for the course by the end of Round 1. At the end of those rounds, all requests are processed together and students receive seats in classes based on the registration preferences established by the faculty. That information can be found in the Class Finder along with other pertinent details, e.g. course description, prerequisites. If there are more requests than available seats, not every student who requests the class will register into it. Any student shut out of a course because there were more requests than available seats will have a bump within their priority grouped during registration for a future semester. All students are notified when the results of Rounds 1 and 2 are available and should check the "My Courses" section of Polaris to see which of their requests resulted in registrations.

Round 1: Students may request up to four 1.0 credit classes and two additional 0.5 credit classes. If, for any reason, the request does not process successfully after hitting submit, read the error message carefully. Common error messages include a time conflict or a missing requirement. Reach out to the Office of the Registrar before the deadline if you are unable to resolve an error.

Advisor Hold: The Advisor Hold is in place to help ensure that students are consulting with their faculty advisors about their curricular plans and potential class schedule. In order for Round 1 course requests to be processed, every student's faculty advisor must release the Advisor Hold in Polaris.

Round 2: This round is designed to allow all students the chance to register for a full schedule of four credits. Students only participate if they have room left in their schedule, e.g. they are registered for fewer than four credits or five credits if they chose to request two additional 0.5 credits during Round 1. No classes for which a student registered into during Round 1 can be dropped during Round 2. If a course filled to capacity during Round 1, it will be marked as "full" in the Class Finder and should not be requested in Round 2 as that will not result in a registration or a future bump in priority for being shut out. 

Add/Drop: After the close of Round 2, there are two more rounds of schedule changes: Add/Drop I and Add/Drop II. During Add/Drop rounds, students can drop classes without permission and add classes for which they have obtained permission of the instructor. Instructor Permission, given in Polaris, is required to add any class or lab even if there are seats available. Changes made during Add/Drop rounds are processed immediately. Add/Drop I happens the week following the end of Round 2. Add/Drop II occurs during the first two weeks of the semester. 

Extended Drop: During weeks three through six of the semester, students may elect to use one of two extended drops available to them over the course of their Bowdoin career. This is a serious decision which can impact progress to the degree and a student considering this option should meet with their faculty advisor. After the end of the sixth week of the semester, students must petition the Recording Committee to make any other adjustments to their course schedule.  

Overrides: At their discretion, Bowdoin faculty are able to override certain course requirements. If students receive an error message for one of the following reasons, they should reach out to the instructor to inquire about the possibility of receiving an override: instructor permission, missing a prerequisite or co-requisite, a course exclusion, a major/minor restriction, a class standing, or the class size. Not all overrides are available during all rounds of registration. An override does not guarantee registration nor grant preferential treatment; it simply forces the system to view the student as equally qualified to registration as other students who already meet those course rules. Once the faculty member submits the override you will see it in the Registration Status tab in Polaris and may then submit a request for the class. 

Deadlines: The times which each round of registration open and close are final and normally no exceptions are made. Students are strongly encouraged to check the "My Courses" section of Polaris before the close of each round of registration to make sure their selections are displaying correctly.