Registration Notes

Register for Classes

    1. New students (includes freshman and new transfer students) will register for their first semester classes at their orientation sessions.
    2. Continuing students will receive an e-mail from the Student Service Center (SSC) instructing them to view their Student Center in Buckeye Link for their appointment window time and date. Note that this e-mail does not give students the actual time and date when scheduling starts; students must retrieve this information in Buckeye Link.
    3. Internship and co-op students: Students who are registered for an internship or co-op and plan to return to campus to take classes need to register for Engineering 4689 through Engineering Career Services to keep their registration active the semester(s) they are away from campus. The phone number for Engineering Co-op and Internship Program (ECIP) is 614-292-5830 and they will add the course for you.
    4. Returning students who did not register for current semester classes (with the exception of summer semester) will need to reactivate/update their information prior to being able to register. Examples of students who fall into this category may be returning from active military duty, have taken time off to work or have been taking classes at a different institution and  are returning to Ohio State. To reactivate, please contact an academic advisor. If you have been absent from the university for a while it is best to make an appointment with an academic advisor.

      Students who have been away from the university six months or more also need to re-activate their Buckeye Mail e-mail account. Go to http://8help.osu.edu for reactivation assistance.

    Prior to Registration, All Students Should:

    • Know your appointment window for registration and be ready to schedule classes expediently. If you need to make an appointment with your advisor, plan ahead. Do not wait until it is time to register as advisor appointments may be filled.
    • Fill out the financial responsibility statement on Buckeye Link under to do list.
    • Resolve all holds on accounts. Make sure parking fines, library fees and all other fees are taken care of.  Students are not able to add classes if there are any financial holds on their account. Holds on student accounts will prevent a student from adding classes, dropping classes, receiving a transcript or even graduating so it’s important to find out what type of hold it is and what to do to resolve it.  If you’re unable to register for classes or pay fees, look at your Student Center in Buckeye Link and see if there is this symbol of a red circle with a line through it. Click on the red circle to find out what you need to do to resolve the hold on your account. Note that your ECE advisor cannot resolve holds; you need to contact the appropriate office directly.
    • Receive signatures from faculty if courses need permission before they can be added. 
    • Know the appropriate class number (listed in parenthesis) and the credit hours for the course if the credit hours are variable.
    • Know alternative courses that can be taken if original courses are filled or not offered.
    • Submit official transcripts if courses have been taken at other institutions so credit can be posted. Send official transcripts to the Transfer Credit Center. Posting transfer credit takes time. Send an unofficial grade report to your advisor to keep them updated on your progress.

    How to Register for Classes Using Buckeye Link

    • Visit the SIS Student Center Reference Guide for assistance.
    • Students are responsible for registering themselves for their courses. 
    • Advisors can assist students in registering for ECE classes if there are questions with prerequisites. ECE advisors cannot over-ride prerequisites for classes from other departments. 

    Waitlisting Classes 

    • If the class section you want is filled, place yourself on the waitlist and always attend the class.
    • If you have completed the appropriate prerequisites for the class and are unable to waitlist the course, contact your ECE advisor.
    • Note that you can waitlist yourself for more than one section of the same course.
    • Waitlist yourself for only those sections you can actually attend as the waitlist will not work if you have a time conflict with another course.
    • The waitlist only functions through the first Friday of the semester and does not carry over to subsequent semesters. After the first Friday, you may still add classes, if space is available, by using a course enrollment permission form with appropriate signatures.
    • As a back-up plan, add yourself to another course that you need in case you’re unable to add the waitlisted course making sure there are no time-conflicts with waitlisted sections.   

    Important Semester Registration Dates

    Specific deadline dates for each semester are available from the University Registrar's website. Click on "important dates" for the appropriate semester. Information regarding refund dates is also included in this website. The information below is regarding full term autumn and spring courses. The add/drop deadlines are different for first and second term courses and summer.

    1. First Friday of the semester: Students may make their own schedule changes (drops and adds) through the first Friday of the semester using Buckeye Link. If a class is filled, students would need a signature from the professor allowing the student to enter a filled class as long as the class is not at classroom capacity.
       
    2. Second Friday of the semester: To add courses before the second Friday, students need to complete a course enrollment permission form and have the necessary signatures before turning it in to their advisor. Students may drop off course permission forms at the front desk of Dreese, room 205, to be processed as long as they completely fill in the form and include a phone number where they can be reached. In order to ensure that courses are properly dropped or added, students should follow-up by checking their student center. Advisors cannot make changes to schedules if there are any holds in place. Make sure you have resolved all holds with the appropriate office before attempting to add classes. Students can also drop classes themselves on Buckeye Link through the third Friday of the semester.
       
    3. Fourth Friday of the semester: Students can also drop classes themselves on Buckeye Link through the fourth Friday of the semester. A “W” will not appear on a student’s transcript if a course is dropped by the fourth Friday of the semester deadline. Students will not be able to drop themselves from classes during weeks 5 – 10 of the semester and must see their advisor to drop during this time.
       
    4. After the fourth Friday of the semester, students will not be able to drop themselves from classes and must see their advisor to drop during this time. If you’re sending an e-mail, be sure to type “withdraw” in the subject line and always send e-mails from your OSU WebMail account.
       
    5. Tenth Friday of the semester: Friday of the tenth week is the last day to withdraw from a class unless you have special circumstances that were beyond your control. See your advisor for more information regarding decisions to drop a class prior to this deadline. 
       
    6. Students who want to drop their entire course load for the semester need to contact their advisor to assist them. The university calls this a "university withdrawl." A university withdrawl simply means you are withdrawing for courses for the current semester. Always double-check with offices such as Financial Aid, the Office of International Affairs and student health insurance before withdrawing.