Carnegie Mellon University

Scheduling Support

Implications

Undergraduate students must hold at least 36 units in order to be considered full-time. Anything below 36 units is considered part-time. Dropping below full-time may affect financial aid eligibility, housing, loan repayment status and Visa status.

Undergraduate students who wish to drop below full-time during the semester must fill out the Petition to drop below full-time. This form should be submitted to the Academic Advisory Center. From there, the Associate Dean will have to approve the request. It is best for students to meet with their AAC Advisor when considering to drop below full-time.

International Students

International students who wish to drop below full-time should also contact the Office of International Education in addition to filling out the petition to drop below full-time.

Having trouble finding a course to complete your schedule? Below is a list of options to find a course that best suits you:

  • Look for a course that can fulfill a General Education requirement. 
  • Not sure if you need a general education requirement? Run an academic audit to see what requirements you have remaining.
  • You may also want to look into the schedule of classes page. This website will allow you to search by department, instructor or time.
  • Try browsing the undergraduate catalog for potential options. Remember, 100 and 200 level courses (e.g. 85-102, 88-221, etc.) are the most appropriate for first-year and sophomores in terms of the level of difficulty.
  • Students can also consider signing up for music lessons. See your primary advisor for more information.
  • Students interested in research should consider taking a research training course.

Some courses, sections, or seats within courses are reserved for students who are declared in a certain major or department, so your ability to register may be limited.

Students should connect with their Academic Advisor to check whether or not a particular course has any specific reservations.

Students will find that there are instances in which courses have prerequisites, which means a student will first have to take course "A" in order to take "B".

Prerequisites are listed in the undergraduate catalog next to each individual course. When searching for courses through Student Information Online (SIO), students will also be able to view whether a course has a prerequisite by clicking on the course.

When having trouble finding out if a course has a prerequisite, students are encouraged to contact their Academic Advisor.

Academic

If you are placed on a "hold" for academic reasons, contact your Academic Advisor.

Financial

Some students are placed on a "hold" for financial reasons and will want to contact The HUB to find out what needs to be done in order to have the hold removed.

Normal Load

A normal load consists of 5 courses (45 units), but this will vary depending upon how many units each course is. If taking 45 units each semester, students will be on pace for graduation within 4 years.

Graduation

Students must have a total of 360 units to graduate with a minimum Q.P.A. of 2.0. The 360 must not consist of more than 9 units of 69-xxx physical education courses, pass/no pass ROTC courses (30-xxx, 31-xxx, 32-xxx) and 98-xxx student-taught courses combined.

Undeclared, first-year students who have been waitlisted for a course that is required for a particular major should not panic. All majors within Dietrich College are designed to be completed in no more than two years. Students are not considered behind for a particular major despite being waitlisted for one of the core classes in their first year. Most of the courses required for each major are reserved for students who have already declared the major.

Every department has different procedures regarding waitlists. If waitlisted for a course, students are encouraged to find a backup course. If admitted into the waitlisted course at a later date, then the backup course can always be dropped.