How Do I: Register for Courses?

The class registration process for the Spring 2015 semester has been revised from Fall 2014 with the help of feedback from Students, Faculty, and Staff.  A few important things have changed since Fall registration, so we're going to go through the process of adding some classes, seeing what (if any) problems are encountered, and what a student would need to do to fix those problems.

In This Guide:

• The Hub

• Finding Courses

• Browse Spring 2015 Courses

• Searching Directly for a Course or Section Number

• Searching by Course Name

• Explanation of Availability / Capacity / Waitlist

• Registering for Courses

• Errors, Warnings, and Course Conflicts

• What To Do If You Have Problems

Before You Begin - Use Firefox

Make sure you are using the Mozilla Firefox browser.  Although all major web browsers (Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer) should go through the process smoothly we have certified Firefox 100% problem free.

The Hub

We're going to start off by logging in to the Hub (https://hub.calarts.edu).  You'll need to use your CalArts Credentials to login (click here if you've forgotten your password).

Once you've logged in find one of the three Course Catalog links.  All three go to the same place, so pick whichever one you'd like!

When you get to the Course Catalog you will need to click Sign In.  This also uses your CalArts Credentials.

Finding Courses

Once we're signed in to the catalog we are going to build a list of courses we want to register for.  This is called your Preferred List.  You will be able to add any course that doesn't have an explicit pre-requisite in the Course Catalog.  Your Preferred List acts like a shopping cart for courses but you are not registered for a course just because it is in your Preferred List.

Again, because this is important: you are not registered for a course just because you've added it to your Preferred List.

If you've already made your Preferred List just scroll down this page and look for the Registering for Courses section.

Browse Spring 2015 Sections

You can find courses a few different ways.  If you don't know the section number or the title of the course you can click on Browse Spring 2015 Sections.  A dropdown will appear, letting you search By Subject, By School, By Academic Level, Critical Studies BFA Courses, Interim Courses, Practicum Courses, or even an Advanced Search (where you could, for instance, search by Instructor Name).

In this particular case we're looking for a class during Practicum, specifically AART-020-01.  Keep in mind this list is sorted by Section Name.

When we click on the name of the course it will load a new page with the full course details. Among these details it will show the availability/capacity/waitlist of any specific course if selected directly.

A Quick Primer on Available / Capacity / Waitlist

Available

• Reflects how many remaining slots are "available" for this course

Capacity

• Shows the maximum amount of registration slots allowed

Waitlist

• In the event that the course is entirely filled, this will reflect how many students are currently on the waitlist, if it is being used for that semester.

Now Back To Registration...

Since we want to add this course we're going to click on the blue Add to Preferred List button.  If the class is added to our Preferred List successfully we'll get an excited little confirmation message!

If a class has a pre-requisite that the system doesn't see as complete in your academic record you may get a message that this course is unable to be added.  If you think that message is in error you will need to see either the Registrar's Office or talk to the instructor during Mentor Advising and Schedule Resolution day.

Searching Directly for a Course or Section Number

If you already know the section number you want to add you can type it directly into the search box on the front page of the Catalog.  In this case we searched for ACOM-118-01.

This is obviously a faster way of adding courses to your preferred list, but it is difficult to find a course you don't already have the number for.

In the case of ACOM-118-01 we've already put it on our Preferred List previously, so the system doesn't let us add it a second time.

Searching by Course Name

In the instance that we know the course name (or a portion of it) we can search for that as well.  We are looking for a course with the name Multimedia Web in it, so we just search for that from the front page of the Catalog.

Since there are two courses that have the phrase Multimedia Web they both come up in the search results.  In this example we are a BFA student, so we need to make sure that we add the Undergraduate level course to our Preferred List.

Registering for Courses

When you have built your Preferred List and are ready to register for your courses, click on the View Your Preferred List button at the bottom of any course detail page.  You'll probably be ready to do this after adding your last course to your Preferred List.

When you click on View Your Preferred List you're brought back to the Hub, where you should click RG Register from the drop down labeled Action for ALL Pref. Sections.  This will attempt to register for every class in your Preferred List.  If you select RG Register you will not have to select Register for each individual section.

At the bottom of the page you'll see another list of courses.  This list includes any pre-loaded courses you have and your current courses for Fall 2014.  Below the course list is the Submit button.  

It is really important to leave the PART Complete only available option alone when registering!  

Errors, Warnings, and Course Conflicts

In this particular case we are trying to add MAIC-401-01, which is a course in the Music School.  As an Art School BFA we have a pre-loaded course AART-018-01 that happens to have time conflicts with the Music School course.  In this situation the time conflict prevents any other course from being registered.  In our case we're just going to remove the Music School course from the Preferred List to resolve this problem.

After removing that course and attempting to register a second time we get the following warnings and errors:

The first two messages are pretty self-explanatory:

• CSCM-315-01 - Section CSCM-315-01 is "Closed" (20/20). Enrollment not allowed.  The class is full.  the best option now is to talk with the instructor during Mentor Advising and Schedule Resolution day on January 9th.
• CSOC-345-01 - Section CSOC-345-01 is "Closed" (28/28). Enrollment not allowed.  Same thing, the class is full (but you should still speak with the instructor as students might drop from the list).

The next two both relate to the same course:

• CSCM-162-01 - Permission of Instructor is required.
• CSCM-162-01 - CSCM-162-01: Failed Section registration restriction rules.

The first error listed for CSCM-162-01 is the real problem.  This course can only be added after instructor permission is granted during Mentor Advising and Schedule Resolution day.  The second error is a bit unnecessary, as its just saying that we don't have instructor permission yet.

• ACOM-118-01 - Section is restricted to students in the Art Program.
• ACOM-118-01 - ACOM-118-01: Failed Section registration restrictions rules.

These two errors are going to have to be resolved with the help of the Registrar's Office.  This student is in the Art School and does meet all the registration restrictions.  If you get something similar please contact the Registrar's Office for assistance.

• TACT-361-01 - Course TACT-361 prerequisites have not been started.

This is a Theater School class that this student does not meet the prerequisites for.  If he or she really wanted to take this class special instructor permission (and potentially school permission) would need to be granted.

What To Do If You Have Problems

If you have problems logging in to the Hub or the Course Catalog site you will need to contact IT.  We can help reset your password or otherwise figure out why you can't login.  We are available through email at cait@calarts.edu, Twitter at @CalArtsIT, or through extension x7887.

If you have problems with the courses themselves, or have an issue preventing you from registering, you would need to go to the Registrar's Office.