The Registration Process

Students request courses for the upcoming semester during the Advance Registration period. For incoming freshmen, Advance Registration takes place over a four-week period in the summer before they arrive.

During Advance Registration, students submit their preferred courses, as well as alternative courses, using Penn InTouch, the online registration system. Students can submit their course requests at any time during this period. All course requests are processed at the conclusion of the Advance Registration period, regardless of when the request was submitted. There is no advantage to registering early and no guarantee that students will be enrolled in all their requested courses.

It is very important to take part in Advance Registration. Students who do not advance register may find themselves closed out of the courses they wish to take.

Students may seek to add a class until the end of the second full week of the semester (the end of the Course Selection period). Language classes under the 200 level and Writing Seminars may be added only until the end of the first full week of classes. The Course Selection period allows students to visit classes before finalizing their schedules, but students are expected to attend all classes they may wish to add in order to keep up with assignments and material. Even during this period, instructors may choose to grant admission only to students who have been attending regularly.

Unlike Advance Registration, during the Course Selection Period, courses are filled as students register for them, so timing is important and students will know immediately if they are enrolled.

Incoming transfer students are urged to enroll in fall courses during the summer prior to the processing of freshman course requests in late July. Doing so will improve their chances of getting into courses for which they might be competing with freshmen. Upperclassmen are in the add/drop phase of registration and can continue to add and drop courses until the beginning of the fall semester.

Contact the College Office if there are any problems.

Students submit requests for approval of transfer credit through XCAT (External Course Approval Tool). Incoming transfer students should begin to submit their requests through XCAT as soon as possible after admission. Students should also contact their pre-major advisor during this time to discuss their registration requests.

Note that at least of the overall course units required for the BA degree, as well as at least half of the course units required for the major, must be completed at Penn.

Students register for classes online using Penn InTouch. To access the system, students need a PennKey and password. Prior to registration, please see: Important Details about Registration.

Students may drop a class before the end of the first five weeks of the semester by using Penn InTouch. Failure to attend a course does not automatically result in being dropped from the course. Courses that are dropped will no longer appear on a student’s transcript.

Penn InTouch is the University's student registration and information system. Students can also use it to update addresses, view their bill and track progress toward fulfillment of degree requirements.

Students can use Penn InTouch to access the following:

• Course Search and Mock Schedule
• Billing information
• Financial aid application status and awards
• Student loan application status, disbursements and loan history
• Online course registration
• Course schedules and academic records
• Academic Planning Worksheet for checking progress toward graduation
• Updating selected address information
• Student Health Information
• Privacy settings for release of academic and financial info to parents and others.

Penn InTouch is available 24 hours a day except for 3:00 AM - 6:00 AM on Mondays to allow for system maintenance. In addition, some functions within Penn InTouch may be unavailable for brief periods during nightly processing.

Students may withdraw from a course with the instructor’s permission between the 5th and the 10th week of the semester. Read more >>

Students considering either a drop or a withdrawal should speak with an advisor before taking any action and should be aware of the risks of being enrolled in fewer than 4 c.u. Read more >>