Learn more about how to explore courses, build a schedule, request courses, and adjust your schedule.
Students request courses for the upcoming semester during the Advance Registration period. For incoming first-year students, Advance Registration takes place over a three-week period in the summer before they arrive.
Path@Penn is the main hub you will use for many of these steps. Watch this short video to orient yourself.
As you think about building your schedule, explore our advice on selecting first semester courses.
If there are majors you are interested in learning more about, visit our curated list of entry courses to the major.
Read our step-by-step instructions on how to search for courses in Path@Penn.
Follow the steps in this guide (interactive quick reference guide or accessible PDF) to use the Explore Programs feature of Path@Penn to learn about the requirements for any majors you are interested in. Or see our Using Explore Programs in Path@Penn video tutorial.
Path Plans is a new course planning tool where you will be able to add potential courses you are considering taking in future semester. You can access the tool using the “Primary Plan” button just below the “Primary Cart” button in Path@Penn.
As with any new tool, there may be some areas for improvement. Please keep the following in mind as you explore this new function:
Here is a Quick Reference Guide (QRG) developed by the Office of the University Registrar that may help you navigate Path Plans.
As always, for questions about your degree audit, visit College Office Drop-ins, which are offered during the academic year Monday-Friday from 12-4pm in 120 Cohen Hall.
Learn how to create and interpret Primary and Alternative Carts.
The courses in your Primary Cart at the end of Advance Registration will automatically be requested. You can edit your Primary Cart requests and designate Alternatives any time before the end of Advance Registration. All course requests are processed at the conclusion of Advance Registration, so there is no advantage to requesting early and no guarantee that you will be enrolled in all your requested courses. You will receive your schedule in a few weeks and be able to make adjustments then.
Learn how to identify if a course has an enrollment restriction or requires a permission (interactive quick reference guide or accessible PDF).
You will receive your schedule a couple of weeks after the Advance Registration period ends. Once you receive your schedule, you may want to make adjustments, and your pre-major advisor is an excellent resource for discussing your options.
You can view your schedule in your Primary Cart in Path@Penn. You will see a black check mark next to the courses for which you have a confirmed seat. A blue cart icon indicates that you are not enrolled in the course (refer to the "Interpreting Your Carts" portion of this guide to see what other icons mean).
Follow these steps to Add/Drop/Swap open courses in real-time through the end of the Course Selection Period.
*Keep in mind, in-person learning starts on the first day of class, so you should try to have a full schedule by the first day of the semester. Once classes start, if you are considering adjustments to your schedule, your pre-major advisor is an excellent resource to discuss options.
Learn how to identify if a course has an enrollment restriction or requires a permission (interactive quick reference guide or accessible PDF).