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Registration
Information
For handouts, tutorials and more information about
using SPIRE log on to SPIRE
Help.
All returning students should log on to SPIRE starting Wednesday, April 2
to:
- See when your registration appointment begins.
(Your appointment defines the start and end dates/times you can
register for courses. Appointment times are different for different
students.) In SPIRE, select "Enrollment", and then "Enrollment
Appointment".
- Registration appointments run until the
Add/Drop deadline at 5pm on Monday, September 15. You should register
as early as possible after the start of your appointment in April,
but
the continuous availability of the system until September 15 should
help you if you need to make changes in your schedule.
- Check if you'll need to get a RAC (registration
approval code) from your primary major advisor before registering. If a
RAC is required, the appointment display in SPIRE will say so.
- The RAC is a four-digit number which
changes each semester. If your department requires you to get a RAC
before registering, SPIRE will ask you for your RAC before allowing you
to add any classes. Note: RACs are not required for all students – only
those majoring in certain departments.
- See if you have holds that will prevent
registration. If you have any holds that block enrollment, contact the
office which placed them to clear them before your registration is
delayed.
Schedule of
Classes
Classes will be available after Wednesday, April 2, through the SPIRE
Schedule of Classes. The SPIRE Schedule is constantly updated with
up-to-the-minute information about all class sections, including
meeting times, eligibility requisites (such as restrictions for "majors
only"), whether the class is still "open" (meaning it has available
seats), and other class details.
The Schedule of Classes shows all classes available for registration.
The SPIRE Course Catalog does not include exactly the same courses. The
Catalog tries to give a broader picture of the courses a department may
offer – not just those actually being offered in a given semester. The
Catalog will, therefore, include descriptions of courses that are not
scheduled to be offered this semester. On the other hand, there are
some classes offered for a particular semester that are NOT included in
SPIRE's Catalog, so not every class listed in the Schedule of Classes
will have an entry in the Catalog. To learn more about any courses
listed in the Schedule that are not listed in the Catalog, consult the
department offering the course.
Waitlists
Some classes will offer automated waitlists through SPIRE while others
will not. The decision is up to the department offering the course.
Some departments prefer a first-come first-served approach to letting
students find seats that have been vacated by other students dropping
the course. Others maintain manual waitlists collected before or at the
first class meeting. If you find during your initial appointment that a
course you are interested in is full, you are advised to enroll
yourself onto the automated waitlist if one exists (you can tell
because the class will show a non-zero waitlist capacity in the SPIRE
Schedule of Classes), or wait until mid August to see if new spaces are
freed as the start of the semester approaches.
If you want to enroll yourself onto a SPIRE waitlist, follow the
instructions for adding a course and select the "OK to waitlist?"
checkbox when it appears. There are some things you should know:
- You will be assigned a position number on the
waitlist, but departments and instructors may exercise their own
judgment in altering students' positions on the waitlist. A
position on a waitlist indicates a possibility, not a promise.
- To get on a waitlist or to be moved off the
waitlist into a newly-freed space in the course, you will need to
meet all eligibility requisites like "seniors only" or "majors only".
You will also never move from the waitlist to the course if the move
would cause a time conflict in your schedule, if you are fully
registered into another section of the same course, or if you are
already registered for the maximum number of credits in your unit limit!
As few students drop courses before mid August, we don't expect many
seats to open up before then in courses that have filled. Therefore,
the Registrar's Office will check waitlists to see if anyone can be
moved into the course only weekly during the April through
mid-August registration period. After August 18, the waitlist will be
checked
daily through Friday, August 29. Students still seeking admission to a
full class after August 29 should attend the first class meeting and
follow instructions from the instructor or department about continuing
to seek admission to the course. Once classes have begun, the
department is in total control of which students, if any, will be moved
from a SPIRE waitlist into newly-opened seats in their courses.
Unit Limits
As in the past, there are limits governing how many units (aka credits)
you may register for. There is also a similar but separate limit
defining how many units' worth of waitlists you can be on. Your limits
are listed on your Enrollment Dates page in SPIRE. As always, unit
limits are strictly enforced and no unit overloads can be approved
until August 18. (Undergraduates seeking overloads must petition their
Academic Dean; graduate students contact their Graduate Program
Director.) No exceptions to the waitlist maximums will be granted at
any time.
The limits for undergraduate students who have requested part-time
billing status are, appropriately, lower than those for full-time
students. If your billing status plans have changed, please come to the
Registrar's Office, 213 Whitmore, before September 15 to request a
change.
Time Conflicts
You cannot register for two courses that meet at the same time (or even
overlap briefly) until August 18. Between August 18 and September 15,
if you have written permission from the instructors of both courses,
you will be able to submit your add request through your Registrar's
Office. If there is space available and you meet all other requirements
for the course, staff will be able to add you into the conflicting
course.
Five-College
Courses
You may not register for courses at Amherst, Hampshire, Mt Holyoke or
Smith Colleges using SPIRE. Registration for these courses is
available through the end of the Add/Drop period, and must be done on a
paper 5-College Interchange Registration form.
UMass undergraduates in degree programs should contact the 5-College
Office, 614 Goodell Building, 545-5352 for more information
(eligibility requirements, etc.) and to get a form.
UMass graduate students who wish to register for 5-College courses
should consult the Graduate School, 534 Goodell, at 545-0024.
Getting Help
New students receive in-person help with SPIRE during the New Students
Orientation sessions.
If you are experiencing difficulties using SPIRE, select the
following from the menu in SPIRE to look for the answer you need: Help,
SPIRE Support Site, For Students. If still puzzled, call the OIT help
desk at 545-9400 or go to A107 Lederle Lowrise for in-person
assistance.
If you've lost your password, try the "Forgot your password?"
link on SPIRE's logon page, or go in person to the OIT help desk in
A107 Lederle Lowrise with a photo ID between 9am and 4:45pm Monday
through Friday.
If you have questions about registration, call the Registration
Assistance Line during your registration appointment. The office is
open Monday through Friday 9am – 4pm. Undergraduates call 413-545-2605.
Graduates call 413-545-0024.
If you have a disability that prevents you from using SPIRE for
registration, please come to your Registrar's Office during your
registration appointment for assistance.
Good luck with registration!
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