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Adding, Dropping, and Repeating Courses

Adding and Dropping Courses

You are able to change your class schedule via Tele-BEARS up to the deadlines listed on the next page. It is your responsibility to change your schedule on your own; exceptions to these deadlines are rarely made and any petitions for late or retroactive adds or drops must be accompanied by proof of the reason stated (ie, if there has been a death in your family, the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs would need to receive appropriate documentation).

Fees

There are fees associated with adding and dropping classes - please be aware that the earlier you make changes to your schedule, the less expensive it will be! See the Summary of Policy for a full description.

Check BearFacts!

You should be sure to check BearFacts frequently to verify your current semester enrollment. Your schedule may change as a result of instructors automatically adding you from the waiting list or dropping you from a course without notifying you of the change. Do not assume that you will be automatically dropped from a class for non-attendance or added because the instructor has said so.

Early Drop Deadline for Select Courses

Severely impacted courses have an early drop deadline of 5:00 pm on the Friday of the second week of classes. Check out the Office of the Registrar's Website to see a list of the current semester’s impacted classes. After this deadline, you will have to obtain special permission from the Dean of Instruction and Student Affairs to drop this type of course.

Regular Add/Drop Deadline

The drop deadline and add deadline for most courses is the end of the fifth week of the semester. It is your responsibility as a student to adhere to these deadlines.

Deadline to Change Your Grading Option

The deadline to change from the Passed/Not Passed option to a letter grade is the end of the fifth week of classes. The deadline to change from a letter grade to the Passed/Not Passed option is the end of the tenth week of classes.

Adding or Dropping a Class After the Deadlines

After the end of the fifth week of instruction, you will have to file a “Late or Retroactive Petition to Change Class Schedule” which can be obtained from the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs if you are undeclared. These forms are NOT available online because you need to meet with your advisor to obtain one.

Follow the instructions on the back of the petition and then submit your completed form to the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs, 260 Mulford Hall. The Dean will not approve requests based on lack of knowledge of course registration status.

  • Submitting Petitions: It is your responsibility as a student to submit any petitions personally to the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs in 260 Mulford Hall. We will not accept petitions from any other student. If you are unable to submit the petition during regular office hours (10 am - 12pm and 1 pm - 4 pm), you may contact us to make special arrangements, (510) 642-0542.
  • Final Decision:A Dean's representative evaluates each student's petition and makes the final decision to approve or deny the student's petition.
  • Status Check: It is your responsibility to check on the status of your petition in person. The status of your petition will not be given over the phone; it will be emailed to you.
  • Appeal Procedure:If you would like to appeal the denial of a petition, you must submit a one page, typed appeal to the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs, 260 Mulford Hall, for the Associate Dean to re-evaluate the petition.

Summary of Add/Drop Policy

Regular Add/Drop Deadlines

Week Fee Forms Needed
1-3 None to add or drop None – Use Tele-BEARS
4-5 $5/course to add
$10/course to drop		 None – Use Tele-BEARS
6-15 $5/course to add
$10/course to drop		 "Late or Retroactive Petition to Change Class Schedule" (see your advisor)

Changing your Grading Option

To change a Passed/Not Passed to a letter grade:

  • Weeks 1-5, use Tele-BEARS.
  • Weeks 6-15, complete a “Late or Retroactive Petition to Change Class Schedule.”

To change a letter grade to a Passed/Not Passed:

  • Weeks 1-10, use Tele-BEARS.
  • Weeks 11-15, complete a “Late or Retroactive Petition to Change Class Schedule.”

Repeating Courses

You may want to consider repeating a course if you received a deficient (NP, F, D-, D+ or D) grade in it. There are some limitations on this measure:

  • The course must be the same UC Berkeley course you originally took.
  • If you took the course for a letter grade the first time, you must take if for a letter grade the second time.
  • If you took the course P/NP the first time, you may take it P/NP or for a letter grade the second time.
  • Your new course grade will replace the original grade, although the original grade will remain on your transcript. The original grade will not factor into your GPA.

If you repeat more than 12 units of repeatable courses, both the new and the original grades will factor into your GPA. Some professional and graduate schools factor in repeated course grades when calculating undergraduate GPAs.