9 Office of the Registrar - Student Services Area

9.1    DIRECTORY

For the most up-to-date staff directory:

• Student Records Services Staff Directory
• Administrative Services Staff Directory
• Office of the Registrar Directory (all staff)

Office of the Registrar Listserv

Contents of this section are subject to change as we continue to evaluate processes.  New or improved initiatives may be implemented after this publication.  It is strongly encouraged to subscribe to the Office of the Registrar listserv in order to receive general information, updates, and reminders from our office.  See Office of the Registrar Listserv (http://registrar.tamu.edu/About-Us/Office-of-the-Registrar-Listserv) for more information about how to join.

9.2    REGISTRATION INFORMATION

The following registration information should assist you with determining what forms, if any, are required to make registration requests during various stages of the registration process.

Registration Access

Students & many advisors have registration access to drop and/or add courses to their schedule through the end of the Add/Drop registration period as published in the Academic Calendar. Effective with the first day of the term, students wanting to drop all classes are considered to be withdrawing and cannot drop all classes via Add/Drop.  Students are to be advised to submit their withdrawal request in Howdy.  After the Add/Drop registration period, only the dean (or dean designees) have registration access to drop and/or add courses through the official census date for the term.   It is encouraged that all registration schedule adjustments be made prior to the official census date to avoid any unintended implications that may arise due to changes made after this time (i.e., state and federal enrollment reporting issues, financial aid adjustments, international student status changes, student-athlete eligibility, etc.). 

If registration changes are needed after the official census date for the term, these must be requested using the appropriate request methods before being submitted to the Office of the Registrar for processing.
Please reference Student Rules 1.18 to 1.20 for more information about Registration and Change in Schedule (http://student-rules.tamu.edu/rule01).  

Registration-Related Forms
 

Request/Form	Circumstances for When to Use or Submit	Time Frame When to Submit
Add/Drop Requests online  *January 2019, an online Add/Drop request system was implemented to replace the paper Add/Drop form.	Student already has enrollment and needing to make changes to existing enrollment.  NOTE: Adding classes to an existing schedule after census resulting in a net increase in hours will result in a $50 late add fee. Do NOT use this form to drop all classes (i.e. withdraw) unless dropping all as a no record. (with appropriate documentation).  For withdrawals, students initiate online in Howdy.   The online request system would be able to be used to submit the same types of requests that were submitted using the paper forms. An online processing guide is available to view to assist with using the online request system as follows: Employee tab > Compass User Training > Records, Registration, and Advising > Registration > Online Course Change Submission	The online Add/Drop request system is to submit requests after a term’s census date.   It is not intended to be used to submit current term requests made prior to the current term census date as Deans and Dean’s designees are given registration access to manage add/drop requests before census.
Request for Registration After Census Form Use to add classes after the official census date. Form is in the Howdy portal and can be downloaded from the Advising tab in the Advising Resources channel or the Office of Registrar website under “Forms & Reports”.	Request for Registration After Census Form Use to add classes after the official census date. Form is in the Howdy portal and can be downloaded from the Advising tab in the Advising Resources channel or the Office of Registrar website under “Forms & Reports”.	Submit these forms to the Office of the Registrar. Forms can be submitted to the Office of the Registrar via: •    Fax: 979-845-1086 •    In Person: GSC Bldg, Suite 1501 Forms can NOT be emailed

Late Registration/Add Penalties (Student Business Services – sbs.tamu.edu)

Students who add classes after the Census Date (12th class day for fall and spring term and 4th class day for summer sessions) that result in a net increase in hours enrolled are assessed a $50 registration after census fee. 

Students who were not enrolled as of 1st class day, and who register on or after the first day of classes, but before the thirteenth day of classes (before the 5th class day for summer sessions) are assessed a $100 late registration fee. Students who were not enrolled as of the 12th class day, and who register on or after the twelfth class day are assessed a $200 registration after census fee (4th class day for summer sessions). 

Note: The University reserves the right to cancel registrations not paid by their due date, or by the official census date for semester or summer term, to comply with state laws requiring payment of tuition and fees. The late registration fee and late add fee will be applied to student accounts that are required to reenroll because their registrations were cancelled for non-payment. Registrations are subject to cancellation and/or financial penalties if sufficient payment is not received before 5:00 p.m. on the last business day before classes begin and on the Census Date (12th class day for fall and spring term and 4th class day for summer sessions), to free the classroom spaces for other students, and to ensure the most efficient use of University resources.

Add/Drop Request:

• Always include a reason for the request being made as a comment or upload a document (i.e. memo).  This is important backup documentation if there is ever a question about why a schedule change was made.
• The Academic Dean’s approval is the only approval required by the Office of the Registrar.  Some academic deans may require an advisor to vet the request and submit documentation to them before they will review and/or approve the request.  
• Drops- When dropping a course, keep in mind that students dropping individual courses while remaining enrolled in other courses, may have their courses dropped and not kept on their record dropped during the first twelve (12) class days of a fall/spring term, or first five (5) class days of summer.  Drops during this time result in the course not appearing on the student’s transcript, do not reflect a grade, and does not have charges* associated with these drops.  

*This only applies if the student is still enrolled in other courses and dropping during the first twelve (12) class days of a fall/spring term, or first five (5) class days of summer.

• NR Drop Type (No Record) – No record drops prior to census are expected as a means to correct student registration so records are accurately maintained on the student’s record and can be reported accurately according to state and federal rules and regulations.  No record drops are NOT intended to be used after the official census date except in extenuating circumstances where an administrative error has been detected and is necessary to correct the student’s enrollment record(s).  NR drop type removes a course from the student’s permanent record as if they were never in the course and results in no charges associated with the course. No Record drop requests made after census must be accompanied by a memo from the academic dean providing further explanation of the extenuating circumstances for why the no record is being requested and further support why it was not able to be addressed in a timely manner on or before census.  In general, courses in which a student has attended/participated, would not be eligible for a no record request.   No record requests must be approved by the Office of the Registrar. 
• “W” Drop Type - generally used to drop a course with a “W” grade for extenuating, non-academic reasons, anytime during the term.    Requires a dean’s approval. W-drops will be retained on the student’s record with a “W” grade and do not generate any refund.  Deadline for a W drop is on or before the last day of class for the term as indicated on the Academic Calendar.  Drops for prior terms, in general, will not be considered.  See NG drop type, for situations where extenuating circumstances exists and considering a course drop from a prior term. 
• NG (No Grade) requests- See Grade Changes Section for more information.
• Changing number of Credit Hours – These should be made on or before census.  To change the number of hours of a variable credit course in which a student is enrolled, all hours for that course in which the student is currently enrolled should be listed in the DROP section of the add/drop form with an “NR” drop type and the correct number of hours the student is to be enrolled in should be listed in the ADD section of the form with the grade mode specified. Generally, when the number of hours is lowered, tuition and fees are adjusted and may result in a refund; when the number of hours is increased, tuition and fees are adjusted and may result in additional charges.  There may also be additional late fees and/or non-fund as well as a late add fee of $50 on hours added after the census date.  A change of this nature could also have financial aid implications which may also impact the overall financial costs associated with the changes made. 
• Changing a grade mode BEFORE grades are posted (whether S/U to letter grade or letter grade to S/U) – To change the grade mode of an eligible course in which a student is enrolled, all hours for that course in which the student is currently enrolled should be listed in the DROP section of the add/drop form with an “NR” drop type*; and the same course information should be listed in the ADD section of the form with the new grade mode specified.  *NR drop indication in this situation is permissible, to accommodate a grade mode change.
  • Once final grades have been posted, however, a Grade Change Report form must accompany the add/drop form if the course has a S/U grade mode and changing to a GR (letter grade) mode. The Records Office does not know what letter grade the instructor intended to award. Additionally, best practice is to submit both forms together.

Withdrawals (drop all classes)

• Beginning with the 1st day of classes each term, a student wishing to drop all courses is to be considered withdrawing from the term.  
•  Add/Drop forms are not used to withdraw a student.  
• Beginning with the first day of classes, students wishing to withdraw must initiate their request online in the Howdy portal. 
• If a student is withdrawing during the first twelve (12) class days of a fall/spring term, or first four (4) class days of summer, the student’s courses will not appear on the student’s transcript and do not reflect a grade. 
  • Students who withdraw during this time period will have some financial obligation in accordance with the State’s withdrawal refund calendar published on the Student Business Services website.
  • Withdrawals made after census will result in the courses and grades of “W” appearing on the student’s official transcript.

Late Registration Form 

• Beginning with Fall 2018, there will no longer be a late registration form.  Departments and colleges may process requests during late registration and do not need to complete a form for the Office of the Registrar to do so.  

Request Registration after Census Form

• This form is to be used only AFTER census date for students with no course enrollment.  Do not use this to add hours to an existing schedule.  
  • $200 late registration penalty will be assessed.
• The form must be filled out completely, including UIN or T-number, name, major, classification, term, year, and all parts of the course information.  Please include a “Reason for Request.” 
• Must be signed by BOTH the student’s major Department Head & the student’s Dean (or their designees) on file with the Office of the Registrar.
• Completed forms must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar for processing.

9.3    GRADE CHANGES

Online Grade Change System (Howdy) 

Beginning in December 2016, an electronic online grade change system became available to authorized users* and enables a majority of grade change requests to be submitted, approved, and updated automatically by routing requests and approvals electronically through an online workflow within Howdy. See Grade Change Report form section below for instances when paper forms may be required.

The process will allow primary instructors to access and initiate a grade change request electronically from their Class Roster in Howdy (for courses with grades already posted), as well as allowing department heads and deans (if needed) to review and submit required approvals electronically.  The final approval submission will result in the student’s new grade being reflected within minutes!

Grade change approval authority is based on departmental and dean signature cards on file within the Office of the Registrar.  

*Authorized users include primary instructors of record, department and dean’s designees authorized as grade change approvers on signature cards AND who already have Compass Access.  

Grade Change Report form (paper form)

Paper Grade Change Report forms will still be required if one or more of the following applies:   

• Grade change request is for a grade earned prior to Fall 2009.
• If the primary instructor of record or required departmental or dean approvers are unable to access or use the online system.  
• If dean’s signature and memo justification is required due to absence of the primary Instructor of Record being able to submit the grade change request.  
  • Only the primary instructor of record is eligible to sign a grade change form for their course.  Additional graders for courses are NOT able to submit grade change requests, nor sign grade change report forms.
• Courses with grade mode changes from S/U to a letter grade must be on paper grade change form.  Also requires an approved Add/Drop form.  
  • Grade mode changes from a letter grade to a S/U grade ONLY requires an approved Add/Drop form (grade change report form not required). 
• No Grade (NG) is requested.  These can only be submitted on paper grade change report forms and only requires the signature of the student’s Dean.

If submitting a paper form, be sure the information entered on the Grade Change Report form by the instructor (i.e., the complete UIN or T-number, the course/section numbers or CRN, and the “assigned grade” you are requesting to be changed) agrees with what is currently reported in Compass.  The academic department is responsible for checking for completeness and accuracy before the form is submitted to the Student Services staff in the Office of the Registrar for processing.  Incomplete and/or inaccurate forms will be returned to the department.  When a correction is made to the form, the individual making the change must initial and date each correction.

Instructor of Record not available for signature:  If the individual initiating the grade change is not the instructor of record, the dean of the college, in addition to the department head in which the course is taught, must sign the Grade Change Report form.  The form will also need to have an accompanying dean’s memo explaining why the instructor of record did not sign the form. In the case of a Grade Change Report form not signed by the instructor of record for a Military Science, Naval Science, or Aerospace Studies course, the Commandant must sign the form and submit the memo to the Registrar.

Changing Grade Mode:  An Add/Drop form is required to change a grade mode for a course (i.e. letter grade to S/U, or vice versa).  In addition, a Grade Change Report form must accompany the Add/Drop form when changing the grade type from S/U to a letter grade.  A Grade Change Report form is NOT required if changing from a letter grade (A, B, C, D, F) to a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grade (S or U).  The Office of Registrar will change to the appropriate S/U grade designation in accordance with the Student Rules.

No-Grade (NG) Requests:  Beginning in August 2016, the Grade Change Report is used to change a previously graded course grade to No-Grade (NG).  No-Grade (NG) is generally used to change a grade from a course for extenuating, non-academic reasons, in a previously graded term. A NG requires extensive documentation of the extraordinary circumstances justifying the No Grade and must be approved by the dean of the student's academic college at the time the student was enrolled in the course being NG.   The student’s grade will reflect a “NG” grade on their official record and does not generate any refund.  This could be an appropriate consideration for a prior term course that was not dropped on or before the drop deadline for the prior term, due to extenuating circumstances.

Submit Paper Grade Change Report forms to the Office of the Registrar as follows:

• Fax: 979-845-1086 (is routed directly into registrar staff workflows and routed to student’s record).
• In Person*: GSC Bldg, Suite 1501.
• Forms can NOT be emailed.  

*If submitting in person or via campus mail, the Grade Change Report forms MUST be submitted to the Office of the Registrar in a SEALED departmental envelope.  Grade Change Report forms not delivered (by hand or campus mail) in a sealed departmental envelope will be returned to the appropriate office for resubmission.

Students Handling Grade Change Forms:  Under no circumstances should students handle Grade Change Report forms once they are initiated.  This includes forms being routed for signatures and completed forms being delivered for processing.

Obtaining Blank Grade Change Forms:  Grade change forms are no longer in triplicate (white, yellow, pink copy) format.  These forms should be downloaded in the Howdy portal as in the following location as needed:

• Faculty/Teaching tab in Howdy portal.
• Advising Resources channel on the Advising tab in Howdy.

Additional Grade Change Guidelines

Signature Authority:  Make certain the individuals signing the form (i.e. department head and, if required, the dean) have signature authority to sign for grade changes.  Signature(s) must agree with the signature cards on file in the Office of the Registrar or the form will be returned to the department.

Grades more than one year old and lowering grades:  Grade changes for grades more than one year old and those lowering the student's grade must have the approval and signature of the dean of the student's academic major at the time the student was enrolled in the course in addition to the signatures of the instructor and department head.

Missed Grading Deadline:  Grades cannot be submitted online in Howdy after the grading deadline. Grades not entered by the deadline will have temporary grades of “X” populated and will require the instructor to submit a grade change for each student registered in the section.  The online grade change system can be utilized once the ‘X’ grades have been posted.

9.4    FULL-TIME CLASSIFICATION FOR INTERNSHIPS/CO-OP EXPERIENCE

• The internship/co-op experience must satisfy degree requirements and represent the equivalent of a full-time load.
• Only full-time classification for co-op experience can be used to qualify for Federal Financial Aid. Full-time classification for internships is not used to qualify for Federal Financial Aid.
• The student’s academic dean must submit or sign a memo from the department containing ALL of the following information:
  • Description of the internship/co-op program.
  • Name(s) and UIN(s) or T-number(s) of participating student(s).
  • Course number, section number, and total number of hours for which student(s) must be enrolled to qualify as full-time.
  • A statement indicating that the internship/co-op fulfills degree requirements.
• Full-time enrollment time-status will not be set until the student is enrolled in the specified course(s) for the correct number of hours according to the information provided in the memo. Spring internships should be on a memo by themselves. Summer and fall can be combined into one memo as the student may be registering for both semesters at the same time, however, fall requests may not be able to be processed until fall (in the event registration changes may be needed).
• Minimum and maximum hours required for the student to be enrolled will be set to the number of hours required for the internship according to the information provided in the memo. This will prevent the student from being able to make schedule changes (i.e. adding or dropping) the required course without permission and appropriate documentation.
• Departments who have an approved internship course (usually 684), should use this course for the student’s enrollment whenever possible.

9.5    GRADUATE CERTIFICATES (ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES/ DEGREE AUDIT)

• Certificate programs will appear on each student’s record as a separate curriculum record.
• There are three types of certificates:

Major Dependent	A student is admitted to the program through the offering department. Admission to the program requires the student to be pursuing a specific degree/major at Texas A&M University. This type of certificate program typically serves as a track within a degree program. The certificate and degree are awarded simultaneously.
Degree Dependent	A student is admitted to the program through the offering department. Admission to the program requires the student to be pursuing a degree at Texas A&M University. The certificate is awarded upon completion of the requirements independent of a degree.
Stand-Alone	A student is admitted to the program through the Office of Admissions. The student may pursue the certificate without being enrolled in a degree program. The certificate may be awarded upon completion of requirements.

• A list of approved certificate programs can be found here.
• If a student is admitted to a Major or Degree Dependent certificate, the new curriculum record is added through the University Adjustment System (UAS) using an Additional Curriculum Request.
  • Students can also be admitted into Stand-Alone certificates through the UAS if they are currently pursuing a degree, degree-dependent certificate, or another stand-alone certificate at Texas A&M
• If the student is not pursuing one of these programs, they would have to be admitted to the stand-alone program through the Office of Admissions
  • Requests can be initiated by the student’s primary advisor, or the advisor over the certificate program (secondary advisor).
  • The UAS will route each request through an approval workflow and after all necessary approvals are granted, Degree Audit will add the certificate program as a new curriculum record for the student.
  • After the curriculum record is added, a degree evaluation is available for the certificate program to allow the student and advisor(s) to track the student’s progress towards certificate completion.
• Other UAS Requests related to Graduate Certificates
  • Other than an Additional Curriculum Request to add a certificate, all remaining UAS requests type related to a specific certificate program can only be initiated by the certificate advisor. 

Request:	Purpose:
Adjustment	Substitute a course for a specific certificate requirement.
Graduate Exception	Mark the completion of a non-course requirement; update the catalog term for the certificate program; change the certificate program option (distance vs. non-distance).
Additional Curriculum Request - Remove	Used to remove a certificate from the student’s record if they no longer wish to pursue the program.

• Other Certificate Information
  • It’s best to have a certificate added as soon as the student expresses interest in the program. 
    • The program can always be removed later if the student does not plan to complete it. 
    • Doing this early gives the student and advisor access to the certificate degree evaluation which allows them and their certificate advisor to track their completion progress. 
    • The student will not be able to apply for graduation for the certificate program until it is added through the UAS. Adding this early allows for a seamless transition when it comes time to apply to graduation for the certificate program.
  • Distance vs. Non-Distance
    • If a certificate has been approved as a distance program, the program code will end in -XDE. 
    • In Non-Distance Certificates (program code does not contain XDE) no more than 50% of the courses required for the degree plan can be taken as Distance Education courses. 
      • Example: in a 12-hour certificate program only 6 of those hours can be distance courses. 
  • Certificate Clearance Reports
    • Each semester a nightly report runs for students that have submitted a certificate graduation application. This report will provide a snapshot of the student’s certificate progress/completion to assist advisors in clearing unmet requirements. 
    • Report Name: SRC_CS_DC_CLEAR_CT_XX_CSV.
      • XX = your college code.
  • Certificate Awarding Schedule
    • Monthly Awarding: Degree Dependent and Stand-Alone certificates can be awarded at the end of each month if the student has applied to graduate with the certificate and is meeting all certificate requirements (all courses are graded and rolled to history). 
    • All certificate types can also be added at the end of a semester along with degrees. 
    • Awarding Schedule:
      • Fall Semester: September 30th, October 31st, November 30th, December conferral date.
      • Spring Semester: January 30th, February 28th/29th, March 31st, April 30th, May conferral date.
      • Summer Term: June 30th, July 31st, August conferral date. 
  • Once a certificate is awarded, the student will be sent a physical certificate. These should only be issued by the Office of the Registrar. 

9.6    GRADUATE APPLICATION (ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES/ DEGREE AUDIT)

• Graduation applications for graduate degrees and certificates are submitted through Howdy. 
  • Applications open the first Wednesday after the prior terms graduation (Spring applications will open the first Wednesday of January). 
  • A single graduation application must be submitted for each credential the student will be awarded (one per degree and one per certificate).
  • Deadlines and Submission Time Frame – Graduate Degrees
    • Student Rule 14.1
      • Fall/Spring Semester: graduation applications should be submitted no later than the Friday of the fifth week of the semester. 
      • Summer Term: graduation applications should be submitted no later than Friday of the first week of the second summer term. 
      • Applications are accepted after the initial deadlines, but a late fee ($50) would be charged. 
      • The last day to submit a graduation application is the last day of classes for a semester/term. 
  • Online Application Submission Window.
    • Graduation applications for degrees are available in Howdy the day the application opens. 
    • It will be available in Howdy through the 60th class day of Fall/Spring and the 15th class day of Summer 2. 
    • Graduate degree applications submitted after this date (prior to the last class day) must be submitted through a paper graduation application. 
• Certificate Graduation Applications
  • Unlike degrees, Certificate Graduation Applications will be available in Howdy from the time the application opens until the last class day of the semester/term. 
  • If a graduation application is not submitted for a certificate program, the credential will not be awarded when the student completes all certificate requirements.

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