The Registration Process
Registration at Penn occurs at two distinct times: Advance Registration and the Course Selection Period. Each period functions differently.
Advance Registration
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 requested courses 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 wished to take.
Course Selection Period
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.
Drop
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.
Withdrawal
Students may withdraw from a course between the 5th and the 10th week of the semester. Read more
