Common FAQs

The Registration Access Time for all incoming students is on the New Student Registration homepage. You will not be able to register before this date and time.

Registration goes on until the end of the first week of school. Students are allowed to change their schedules with no penalties or hassles up until then.

There are several reasons that may prevent you from registering for classes. Here are a few of those reasons:

• The Registration Access Time for all incoming students has not passed. You will see "SR" next to the courses if you try to register before this date and time. You will need to wait until the mentioned registration access time to register. You can find this information in the following two ways:
  • The instructions section on the New Student Registration homepage will indicate the date and time you are able to register.
  • A temporary hold will be placed on your account that will indicated the date and time you are able to register. You can view your holds by clicking the following: Banner Self-Service (Student) on your myUSF dashboard >> Student Tab >> Student Records >> View Holds.
• You have a hold. It can be an Admission's hold, Student Accounts' hold, or a Health Promotion Services hold. You will need to clear this hold before you can register. The contact information of the office will be listed next to your hold along with the reason for the hold.
• Your account has not been activated. You will need to contact the Admission's Office at (415) 422-6563 or admission@usfca.edu.

If you are receiving this message, it means you do not have the appropriate prerequisite course and/or test score to register for the class.

If you are receiving this message in error or you really want to take the class, you need to speak to or e-mail the professor to get permission. A signature on a Registration Add/Drop form or a hard copy of instructor's approval via e-mail along with a Registration Add/Drop form will suffice. Click here for more information on the process.

Typically, no. Prerequisites are there to ensure you have the knowledge necessary to perform well in the course.

If you truly believe you are ready to take the course despite the prerequisite, then you can contact the professor. If the professor is willing to add you in the class by waiving the prerequisite or take the prerequisite concurrently, you would need to have a Registration Add/Drop form filled out with the professor’s signature. Click here for more information on the process.

You must add your lecture and lab at the same time. For example, Physics (PHYS) 120 has a co-requisite of PHYS 120L. If you do not add the lecture and lab sections simultaneously, you will not be able to register for the course.

To find both the lecture and lab for a science class, make sure you select the correct subject in the ‘Subject’ section and ALL in the ‘Attribute’ section.

NOTE: If you choose Core B2 Sciences in the ‘Attribute’ section, the lab section will not show.

Class Restriction (formerly Student Classification Restriction) means that the course offered has a set number of seats available for freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. If you are unable to register for a class due to this reason, it is because the number of seats reserved for the class standing has been filled.

Class Standing Defined:

• Freshman: 0-31
• Sophomore: 32-63
• Junior: 64-95
• Senior: 96+

Reserve Closed means that the course offered is restricted to certain majors and/or minors. This is not to say that you can't register for the class at all; you just can't register during a certain time frame. Students in that major who need that course are given priority. After a certain period of time, the restriction is lifted and you will be able to register in the class if there are still seats available.

Field of Study means that the course offered is restricted to a specific major, minor, or, concentration. You will need to have that field of study in order to register for the course.

Campus Restriction means that the course offered is at one of the additional campuses under USF. These classes are not part of the main campus (or Hilltop campus).

NOTE: You will not be able to take courses offered at a different campus if you are not enrolled in the programs offered at those different campuses.

Go to myUSF >> Dashboard >> Banner Self-Service (Student) >> Student Tab >> Registration >> Look up and Register for Classes. From there, choose the 'Term', choose "All" under 'Subject', then go down to the 'Attribute' section and choose the CORE class category you would like to see classes for.

NOTE: For some core courses (like for science and foreign language), there is a lab or practicum component attached that requires you to simultaneously register for both the lecture and lab/practicum. To do this, you will need to choose the appropriate 'Subject' and "All" in the 'Attribute' section to see all the lectures and their corresponding co-requisite.

You can tell what CORE/major/minor requirements a class counts towards by looking carefully at the class's attributes. For example, if you want to know if a class counts towards a CORE B2 Science requirement, the class's attributes will specifically list "Core B2 Science" as an attribute. If it does not explicitly list "Core B2 Science", it does not count towards that particular CORE requirement.

Typically, no. The maximum amount of units you can take is 18 credits because the flat tuition rate for USF only covers 12 to 18 credits.

If you would like to take more than 18 credits, you will need to speak with your major adviser and College Dean first. If they approve of you taking more than 18 credits, you can do so.

Keep in mind that you will have to pay for every credit over 18. Refer to https://myusf.usfca.edu/billing-tuition/tuition-fees to see what the cost per credit is.

Depending on the course you are trying to register for, please follow these steps:

1. Check to see if there is a waitlist for that class. If there is, place yourself on the waitlist to save yourself a possible seat in the class.
2. If the class is under the following College/School and there is no waitlist (or the waitlist is closed), follow the respective steps:
   • For the College of Arts and Sciences classes, you need to email the instructor of the class and see if s/he is willing to sign you into the class. You may just have to wait until the first day of class to talk to the professor.
   • For the School of Management classes, you need to find another section that is open or another class that works with your schedule. Please consult with your major adviser or Ben Bottorff, Director of Undergraduate Advising, at bbbottorff@usfca.edu if you need assistance.
3. Register for a back-up course.
4. Speak with your major adviser (for College of Arts and Science students) or Malloy Hall 113 (for School of Management students) to see what alternative classes you can take that will help you fulfill your major or degree requirements.

To change your major, please contact the following departments:

• Before the registration access time for incoming students, you can email the Admission's Office at admission@usfca.edu. Your email will act as your written consent to change your major.
• After the registration access time and before the first day of school, you can complete the Change of Academic Program form online.

For more information on the different major programs we offer, please contact us at (415) 422-4932 or newstudentregistration@usfca.edu.

NOTE: For international students, if you wish to change your major, you will need submit your request by August 1st. For more information, please contact the International Student and Scholar Services at (415) 422-2654 or isss@usfca.edu.

No, it will not. Please allow for at least 3 business days to process your major change request.

You can add a minor once the semester begins by completing the online form:

https://myusf.usfca.edu/graduation/degree-works/change-academic-program

NOTE: To ensure a timely graduation, all students who want to add a minor are encouraged to speak with the minor program before declaring the minor.

For student who have taken the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) Higher Level exams, please refer to USF's AP/IB/College Credit rubric. This rubric indicates the minimum score necessary to receive USF credit and what requirement it counts towards.

If your AP/IB credits are not appearing on your record, follow these steps:

1. Make sure you sent your scores over to USF's Office of Admission.
2. Contact the following emails to see if your scores have been received and if you have other questions:
   • For AP questions: appservices@usfca.edu
   • For IB questions: international@usfca.edu

In the meantime, it may be advisable to not register for classes you think you may receive credit for.

You would need to fill out the Transfer Credit Request form. Once the form has been submitted, the Office of the Registrar will review your request and respond back to you.

In the meantime, it may be advisable to not register for classes you think you may receive credit for.