Here's a video of our 1L Elective Information Session on September 21, 2022
Before you register, read Registration Eligibility for All Students. If you have not met all these requirements by stated deadlines, you will not be eligible to participate in registration.
You have been pre-registered for three spring courses: Contracts and/or Criminal Law and/or Torts (4 credits), Legislation and Regulatory State (4 credits) and Lawyering (2.5 credits). You will be registered for the same section and group as your Fall section and group. You may not change your section or group; you may not drop these classes. You may view your pre-registered spring courses in COURSES by September 20.
Remember, you will not bid for the three spring classes for which we have pre-registered you. You will be selecting one elective class for the Spring. For that and going forward, you will use COURSES, the Law School course bidding system, to view your registration status, bid on classes (i.e. register), and see your schedule.
To register, access COURSES. See Using COURSES for step-by-step guide to registering. Have questions? Check out our COURSES FAQ.
Registration Cycles in September and October
First Cycle
The first cycle will take place from 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 20, to 9:30 a.m. on Friday, September 22. Please keep in mind that bidding is a holding pen. Your requests will not be processed until after the end of the bidding cycle.
Second Cycle
The second cycle is daily and will take place from 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27 to 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 4. During daily cycles, COURSES is available from 1:30 p.m. each day, until 9:30 a.m. the following morning. COURSES is not available between 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. while COURSES is processing registration requests.
You will have another chance to change your elective class and bid again when spring registration resumes in mid-October and January. (See more below regarding Modifying & Deleting Bids.)
Bidding and Registration
For the spring semester, you must register for one first-year elective (“Elective”) class. There are seven courses available, Constitutional Law, Corporations, Criminal Procedure: the 4th and 5th Amendments and Policies, Income Taxation, International Law, Property, and Survey of Intellectual Property. Some courses will have multiple sections. There are more than enough spaces in all of the elective classes collectively for the entire first-year class. You should review the online course descriptions for the Electives.
These seven courses are designated with an “L” footnote on the schedule of classes. Please keep in mind that although Constitutional Law and Property are required courses, they may be taken any semester prior to graduation beginning with Spring semester of the 1L year. Please familiarize yourself with all graduation requirements.
You should note that we have scheduled Elective classes to meet in various time blocks. Please see the schedule of classes for each specific course meeting pattern. None of these sections will conflict with the courses for which you were pre-registered. Since you only have space in your schedule for one elective, COURSES will only assign you to one class. Review your schedule before commencing add/drop or before the semester begins and during the first week of classes in case of classroom changes. Remember you may sign up for an Elective with your reading group professor. This is the only overlap of faculty permitted between your reading group faculty and first year courses.
You have 1000 points to bid on your elective classes. You should bid on all elective classes.
Keep in mind that you have the option of selecting, as alternates to your primary choices, one course or section that you would like to take only if you do not get your first choice of a course or section. (For example, you want course “A” at 500 bid points only if you do not get course “B” at 500 bid points).
Once you win an elective course COURSES will not schedule you for another elective as the system will not schedule you for more than the maximum permitted credit load. Additionally, COURSES will not place you into a closed class. If your bid was not high enough to allow you entry into a particular elective class during the bidding cycle, you can try to obtain a seat in the class by staying on a waitlist during add/drop.
We cannot tell you how much to bid on each class, but we have sent you a helpful memo about selecting your elective class. The Vice Deans have also created a course advising site. You may also find more specific advice on the Areas of Study website. Finally, you can also view faculty course evaluations.
Modifying and Deleting Bids
If you are happy with your schedule after the first cycle, there is nothing else for you to do. You will have two opportunities if you wish to make a change to your Elective registration. (For details, see Modifying & Deleting Bids in the COURSES system.) During the registration cycle from September 27 - October 4, bids will be processed on a daily basis. The following opportunities for spring registration for all students runs from October 11-18 and January 8-25. Please check the registration calendar for posted add/drop cycle dates during October through January. During December and early January, there will be a break in registration. We do not want to interfere with exam preparation, exams, and the winter break.
If you did not participate in the September cycles, you must select your course during a subsequent cycle. You may not change your Elective class after January 25, the last day of the spring registration period. In rare cases when there are compelling personal circumstances (e.g. grave illness, family emergency) a student may submit a petition to the Office of Academic Services for review by the Vice Dean to add late. Please do not submit petitions for reasons other those described above.
Faculty Permission: Faculty members may not grant permission for students to add into full courses nor may they grant permission for students to late add after January 25. Please do not seek such permission as it will not be considered. The only way to register is via COURSES.
COURSES Add/Drop Functions
- Your bids will carry over between the longer and daily cycles.