Undergraduate Resources & Policies

Registering for classes is a 3-step process:

Identify courses you still need to take

• Review myPAWS/DARS Degree Audit instructions.

• We recommend that you meet with your academic advisor a few weeks before registration starts. A few tips:

Identify which of those courses are offered in the upcoming term

• Review Registration Search instructions.

• Print a blank schedule grid to plan your schedule.

Use the registration system to enroll in those courses

• Review the Office of the Registrar’s registration overview to learn about the process.

• Review Choosing Courses instructions.

• Review Waitlist instructions.

Holds are placed on student accounts to inform them of an issue that needs to be attended to, such as a financial concern or a missing signature. Some holds can stop students from registering for classes, viewing/receiving transcripts, or completing “I am Here” registration.

Students can access their holds by logging into myNortheastern and selecting Self-Service > Course Registration > View Holds. If you have a hold, please contact the department responsible for the hold as soon as possible to fix the problem. Typically, under Hold Type, you will find the department in question. Holds that often block registration include:

• Academic Advisor: Contact Academic Advisors 

• Academic Department: Contact your department

• Co-op: Contact Co-op Coordinators

• Financial: Contact Financial Aid and Accounts

• Health Center: Contact Health and Counseling Services

• International Student: Contact Office of Global Services

• Judicial Affairs/Student Conduct: Contact Judicial & Student Conduct

• Medical Leave: Contact UHCS – Medical Leave

• Student Affairs: Contact Student Life

Visit Transfer Students for information about transferring credits.

On occasion, a student may need (or elect) to register for an extra course in a semester. This is called an overload. If you need to request an overload, please contact your academic advisor.

Standard CAMD course load, covered by full-time tuition

• Fall/Spring semesters: 4 regular courses (normally 4 SH each, but some majors have 5 or 6 SH courses in their curriculum) + Mandatory co-requisite courses + No Charge courses

• Summer semesters: 2 regular courses (normally 4 SH each, but some majors have 5 or 6 SH courses in their curriculum) + Mandatory co-requisite courses + No Charge courses (if offered)

Mandatory Co-requisite Courses

Any course that is mandated to be taken along with a regular course, such as:

• 0 SH or 1 SH labs for science courses

• Recitations

• 0 SH or 1 SH Tools courses (for Art + Design courses)

No Charge Courses

• Intro to College (sometimes called “XXXX at NU” where “XXXX” is a department name)

• Intro to Co-op (names vary by major)

• 1 SH music ensembles (music lessons are not No Charge courses)

Please keep in mind:

• Overload tuition is assessed for the full credit value of the overload course.

• Full-time tuition does not cover up to 19 redits. It covers a standard course load. See above for description.

• The registration system allows you to register for up to 19 credits on your own. That is to allow students to register for the necessary labs, other co-requisites, and No Charge courses without assistance from an academic advisor.

• When you are registering for courses for a term, there are two values on the Add/Drop screen. One is “Total Credit Hours” and the other is “Billing Hours.” If Billing Hours goes above 16 for Fall/Spring, or above 8 for a summer term, you’re going to be charged foran overload.

• If you’re registering for something other than what is outlined in the “Mandatory Co-requisite Courses” or the “No Charge Courses,”please contact Student Financial Services to see if you will be charged overload tuition, and how much that charge will be.

Please read the Student Accounting Billing Policy.

A reduced load is anything fewer than 12 credits, and is generally reserved for seniors in their final semester. This needs to be approved by your academic advisor. If you wish to petition to reduce your load, download the petition form from the Registrar.

Please note this may not be an option if you have a hold on your record that prevents registration.

• Log into myNortheastern and select Self-Service > Course Registration >Add or Drop Classes

• Choose the appropriate semester

• For the course you want to drop, use the dropdown menu to choose Web Drop

• Click Submit Changes

• When the page refreshes, review the results to make sure that there were no errors and that the course was successfully dropped.

Use this option if you can’t drop a course online due to a hold.

• Visit the Registrar and print the Course Drop Form (under Forms for Undergraduate Day).

• Complete the information for the course you’re withdrawing from.

• Get it signed by your academic advisor, or an approved representative at the front deskin the Academic Advising Office in 100 Meserve.

• Submit the form to the Registrar’s Office before 4:30 p.m. on the day of the deadline.

For the full policy, review the Undergraduate Day Catalog. Look for Dropping Courses under the Registration and Taking Courses section.

Please keep in mind:

• Not attending the course does not constitute withdrawal.

• You must withdraw from the course prior to the posted deadline, which can be found on the academic calendar.

• There is no refund when you withdraw from a course.

• If you sign up for the course again in a future term, you are billed for the future course as you would for any other course.

• You will receive 0 Semester Hours (SH) for the course.

• A grade of  “W” has no impact your GPA.

• IMPORTANT: If you withdraw from enough courses to fall below 12 SH in a Fall or Spring term (or below 6 SH in a summer term) you should contact the office listed for each area PRIOR to withdrawing from a course.

To initiate a leave of absence, please contact your academic advisor in the 100 Meserve Hall. The process is quite simple, and can usually be handled by email or a phone call.

Please keep in mind:

It is common for students to ask to take classes at other institutions while on a leave of absence from Northeastern. Please review the Northeastern Transfer Credit policy FAQ for more information.

Please refer to the Academic Policies and Procedures of the Undergraduate Catalog for the complete personal leave of absence policy.

Medical leave petitions must be initiated at University Health and Counseling Services (UHCS). A medical leave is available to those Northeastern students who become seriously ill or injured during the semester. A student who develops a major medical condition that precludes class attendance, completion of requirements and/or co-op, and wishes a medical leave must first contact the UHCS Medical Leave Team right away.

Students who wish to reenter the university following a medical leave must contact the Medical Leave Team to initiate reentry no sooner than four or later than two weeks before the start of classes. The reentry process will be explained, the academic program notified, and a decision made within two weeks of receipt of all required documentation.

While the full text of the progression standards are in the Undergraduate Catalog, please keep in mind these two criteria:

Students who fail to meet either or both of these criteria are not performing academically to the standards set by Northeastern University, and will be placed on Academic Probation.

If a student earns fewer than 12 SH in one fall or spring semester and/or the student’s GPA drops below a 2.000, the student will be placed on Academic Probation by CAMD.

Students who have remained on Academic Probation for three consecutive academic fall orspring semesters willbe dismissed from the college and university. Additionally, CAMD may, atits discretion, immediately dismiss students who earn four or fewer credits in any fall or spring semester or have an overall GPA of 1.000 or less. When a CAMD student is dismissed from the university, the following standard actions apply:

For information about reinstatement after academic dismissal, visit the Course Catalogue.

If you need to take a placement exam for French, German, or Spanish, you can do that through Northeastern’s World Languages Center. If you need to take a placement exam for another language, you will need to make special arrangements. Please contact the center directly.

You may repeat a course in order to earn a better grade. In all cases, the most recent grade earned in a course is the one used in calculating the overall grade-point average. However, previous grades remain on the transcript followed by the word “Repeat.” Consult your academic advisor before repeating a course. Students are required to pay normal tuition charges for all repeated course work.