Class registration and force/add

Facts about course request:

• Course request provides you the opportunity to tell VT which courses you want to take in the following semester but it is simply a request. There is no guarantee that the courses you request will end up on your schedule. 
• Course request is open for two weeks during the fall and spring terms. During course requests, you will build a schedule of courses you want to take in the subsequent semester. 
• After course request closes, the Registrar's Office runs an algorithm that creates a schedule from your course request entries.

•  Consider class standing priority when running the course request algorithm.
• Have the nuance to work around time conflicts when building the schedule.
• Allow Academic Advisors to influence the system 
• Recognize alternate prerequisites and/or course prerequisites taken outside of Virginia Tech. 
• Allow intervention and/or overriding of errors due to substitution, alternate prerequites and time conflicts during the entry period. 

It's very important that students submit their course request during the open period. This is often a requirement to request a force/add for many departments at Virginia Tech.  For help with course request, a helpful video has been created.

The add and drop period step two of the enrollment process and takes place after course request. During this period, students can refine their course schedule.

Add/drop takes place in HokieSpa and requires that students be logged in. A short, step-by-step tutorial may be helpful in successfully adding and dropping courses. You should always try to add/drop any courses missing from your schedule after course request before requesting a force/add. This is often the quickest way to get what you need, if it's available. 

CS' force/add process continues to evolve as we streamline the process to better meet the enrollment needs of our students. The process of force/adding is not a substitute for course request and enrollment via add/drop. Any student that chooses only to request force/adds in lieu of submitting course requests and adjusting their enrollment during the add/drop period are making their enrollment process that much more difficult.  Force/add request are simply a request and don't guarantee enrollment. While all efforts are made to successfully process all force/add requests, this is not always possible due to course capacities, room size restrictions and pedagogical best practices. 

• We understand that there are situations where pre-reqs are not pre-reqing, and you are unable to add CS courses on your own.  If you know now that you will have an issue enrolling in CS courses as a result of a recurring issue or other academic matter that you can't resolve, you're strongly encouraged to contact your academic advisor to discuss your options.
• We will not accept or process force add requests related to change of major or minor (not yet in CS and course is restricted), class (you don't currently have the requisite number of earned credits, or closed course (we maxed enrollment where we could and once closed can't exceed assigned room capacity).
• Each semester, we will provide a list of courses that can be requested via the force/add process. Not all courses will be available due to class capacity and pedagogy. 

The process of force/adding is not a substitute for course request and enrollment via add/drop. Any student that chooses only to request force/adds in lieu of submitting course requests and adjusting their enrollment during the add/drop period are making their enrollment process that much more difficult.  Force/add request are simply a request and don't guarantee enrollment. While all efforts are made to successfully process all force/add requests, this is not always possible due to course capacities, room size restrictions and pedagogical best practices. 

Reasons for Requesting Force/Add

Although course request and add/drop are the preferred methods of enrollment, there are circumstances when a student may need to submit a force-add request for an undergraduate CS course. These include:

• Student is unable to request a CS course (or Math 2534) during the Course Request period due to an incorrect prerequisite error.
  
• Student is using an approved alternate equivalent prerequisite course that is not recognized in drop/add (ex. ECE 3514 for CS 2114, ECE 2564 for CS 2505, etc.)
• Student did not earn a C or better in a CS course in the prior semester and needs to repeat the course.
• In the rare instance that students are receiving erroneous major/minor restrictions for CS courses and they clearly meet the restrictions (officially declared as a CS, DCC, SC major or in the CS or HCI minor). Students preparing to change their major and/or intending to declare the minor are not considered to be meeting the major/minor restriction.

Things to Keep in Mind About Force/Adds Requests

• Submitting a force-add request is not a guarantee that the student will be added to a course. There are a variety of factors that go into the decision for a force-add request that determine priority including classification, semester of graduation, and when the request was submitted.
• Requests are processed in priority order, so some requests may remain pending while higher-priority requests are processed.
• If a student is forced-added into a course, but later drops the course, the student will not be force-added into the course a second time. Also, if a student is force-added into a specific section of a course, the student will not later be able to request a different section of the same course. Our priority is helping each student to get a seat and the department cannot faciliate schedule changes through force-add.
• Even if a student submits a force-add request for a CS course, the student should still continue to try to add it through the drop/add mechanism when it is available. Drop/Add & Course Request Dates
• If a student is taking a prerequisite course outside of VT, the systems that govern course request and add/drop will not have this information and will not allow a student to enroll in courses for which the prerequisite has not been satisfied (or in progress at Virginia Tech). If seats in the course are still available, students can submit a force/add request for the CS course at Virginia Tech once the transfer course's final grade is received.
• Requests from CS Minors may be denied if the student already has enough courses to complete the CS minor.
• CS Minors must meet all of the prerequisites to enroll in CS courses. 
• Please note that instructors cannot override force/add decisions made by the department, so please do not approach your instructor for special permission to get into their course. If you have questions about a force/add request, CS majors or minors should contact their CS academic advisor.

Force/Add Requests for Non-CS and Shared CS courses

Not all force/adds for CS courses/courses required for CS students go through the CS Department. For examples, please see below. 

• CS 3654: CMDA
• CS 2164: Political Science (contact course instructor for force/add)
• CS 4164: BIT/Pamplin
• CS 5000 course level and above: CS Graduate Programs Office
• MATH 2534, 2204, 2114, 3134: Mathematics

To learn more about the force/add process for different programs across the University, review the Student Advising information.

Course drops and withdrawals are two options to remove courses from a semester schedule. Before removing a course, speak with the Instructor to get help with course content if needed, s consider any financial aid and/or scholarship implications, and speak with your academic advisor to consider how the schedule adjustments may impact future course planning and graduating semester plans.

Course Drop

Students can drop courses during the open add/drop period before the end of the first week of class. After the first of classes, there is a drop deadline each semester where students can make additional adjustments to their schedule. Dropping a class before the drop deadline removes the class fully from your DARS, unofficial transcript, and Canvas Dashboard. 

Students can drop a course by following these instructions.

1. Log into HokieSpa.
2. Click on the HokieSpa tab at the top.
3. Click on Registration (Add/Drop) and Schedule.
4. Click on [Drop/Add] Register for Classes.
5. Click on Drop down menu next and choose the current semester.
6. Click OK on the Financial Notice in the top right corner of the screen.
7. In the bottom right corner of the screen, click on the dropdown options in the Action column next to the course in which you intend to drop.
8. Select Drop Web.
9. Click Submit in the bottom right hand corner to drop the course. Changes are not saved unless you click Submit. By clicking Submit, you are dropping your seat and there is no guarantee that you will be able to get back into that section of the course because it will be available to other students. 
10. The class will show as Dropped on your schedule and the course will be dropped on Canvas overnight. There is no need to contact your professor to let them know you dropped the course.

W Grade Policy

• The W grade policy (course withdrawal) allows currently enrolled students to designate a course status of Withdrawn (W) after the last day to drop a course. No more than 3 courses can be withdrawn during a student's undergraduate academic career.
• A withdrawal places a "W" on the student's academic transcript and is not calculated into the GPA.
• Students remain enrolled in the credit hours associated with the course; they will be shown as attempted hours.
• A maximum of three (3) course withdrawals can be used during a student's academic career.
• Students can submit a course withdraw request through the last day of classes each term.
• There are no refunds for tuition and fees for a course that is withdrawn.
• Students cannot use the W grade policy on a course with an honor code violation.
• Students must submit a request to the College of Engineering to withdrawal from a class. 

The College of Engineering provides more information including a tutorial and things to keep in mind when considering if a course withdrawal is appropriate for your circumstances.