Announcements to Students
ADD/DROP DEADLINE and "SHOPPING"
Students who wish to change their courses or sections should use an Add/Drop
form and return it to the Office of the Registrar no later than the Friday of the second week of classes.
In the first week of Add/Drop it is appropriate to "shop" in moderation
(attend a couple classes of interest for which you are not registered and, if
space opens, ask to add the class). You can even explore classes that were lotteried
after pre-registration.
Although Add/Drop continues for the second week of classes, in that second week you should
not "shop." The second week is best thought of as Decision week. Students
are advised to finish their decision making and hand in their Add/Drop forms
by mid-week. The last day to submit forms is Friday of the second week.
If you purchase books in the Bookstore for a course that you decide not to
take, please return the books as soon as possible. There may be other students
in the course that need them.
Return to top
Blackboard Course Management System
Many Swarthmore courses use the support of the
Blackboard
course management system. If you are adding a course which uses Blackboard, you
should try to hand in to the Registrar the Add/Drop
form for that course the day you obtain the instructor approval to add the
course, in order to get your name on the list as soon as possible. Blackboard
lists are updated the night after the Add form is handed in to the Registrar's
Office.
Return to top
CREDIT/NO CREDIT DEADLINE
For all returning students, if you wish to take one
or more courses on a credit/no credit basis during the current semester, obtain
the appropriate form from the Office of the Registrar by the end of the 9th week of classes (indicated in Academic Calendar), complete and return it
to the Office of the Registrar by this deadline, and get your receipt. This
form MUST be completed even though you may have indicated your wish elsewhere.
Your application for CR/NC grading mode is not complete until you have received
a receipt. If you apply for CR/NC grading prior to the deadline and then change
your mind prior to the deadline, you can simply take back your application without
having used one the four CR/NC options.
The faculty regulation on credit/no credit grading provides that the only grades
recorded for freshmen in their first semester shall be CR (credit) or NC (no
credit); and that in the balance of the undergraduate years, students may select
as many as four additional courses on a credit/no credit basis. For any course,
this credit/no credit option is available only if formally requested within
the first nine weeks of classes of the semester, not later. Juniors and seniors
are reminded that the minimum equivalent grade for CR (credit ) is a straight
C. This equivalent grade for freshmen and sophomores is straight D.
Return to top
COURSE WITHDRAWAL DEADLINE
The last day to withdraw from a course with the grade notation "W" in indicated in the Academic Calendar. If you withdraw after that, your grade will be NC.
After drop/add and up until the end of the 9th week of the semester, students
may, with Advisor approval and confirmed submission of the Withdrawal
form to the Registrar, withdraw from a course with the permanent grade notation
"W".
Return to top
FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE AND TRAVEL PLANS
Be aware that final exams are NOT RESCHEDULED to accommodate travel plans. If
you must make travel arrangements before the exam schedule being published, do
not expect to be able to leave until after finals end, or later if you are a senior. The most recent exam schedule is available online.
Return to top
ALL STUDENTS RECEIVE A DEGREE AUDIT
Sometime by the end of the first week of classes, all students enrolled on campus
will receive in their campus mailboxes a degree audit analyzing their progress
in fulfilling their degree requirements. If you do not get one, please come to
the Registrar's Office to request it. Please carefully look over the Degree Audit.
If there is anything there you disagree with or don't understand, please come
see me early in the semester.
Return to top
SAVE those Shadow Grade Forms!
The Shadow grade emails or paper yellow sheets are the only copies of these
you will ever get. They are NOT a part of your permanent record, so if you ever
want to share them with graduate schools or employers, you'll need to save them
for that purpose now. I recommend you store them with your passport and other
vital documents.
If by the end of the first week of classes you didn't get one you were expecting
for the previous semester, please ask the professor.
Return to top
Transfer Credit How-To's
Please note the Swarthmore College rules regarding summer school (or other)
transfer
credit, including required Preliminary Approval,
saving your work, etc.
Return to top
STUDENT RECORDS PRIVACY POLICY
In brief: Students control the release of student records off campus (except
in certain legal exceptions). On the other hand, education records
may be disclosed to Swarthmore school officials without prior consent of the
student. Our school officials include the faculty and a variety
of administrative positions, including some persons doing contract work for
the College. For detailed information about the College's policies regarding
the Privacy of Student Records, please see the Student Handbook, or see me,
the Registrar.
Return to top
HOW TO SEND YOUR GRADES TO PARENTS OR GUARDIANS
If you would like a copy of your unofficial grade report to be
sent to your parents, guardians, please either use the Grades Notification form or write us a letter including
the recipient's name and address, and sign it. We will see that they get a
copy. Please tell us if you want the grades sent once, or at the end of every semester you are enrolled. Also, if the recipient's address changes, you must rewrite the form or letter
and sign it indicating the change of address. Grade reports are always unofficial. If you need to send an official transcript of your grades, please request that using the transcript request form.
Swarthmore encourages students to share information with their parents or
legal guardians, but ultimately the decision of what information to share
rests with the student.
Return to top
HONORS SCHEDULING FOR SENIOR YEAR
Honors students should avoid planning two seminars or any two essential components
of their honors program for their senior spring semester. Note that program approval
does not constitute a promise that the two seminars or components will be scheduled
at different times. In spite of this warning if you plan to take two seminars,
or two essential components of your honors program in your senior spring semester,
then at the beginning of your senior fall semester you should alert the chairs
or coordinators involved to the possible conflict so that they can try to avoid
this in their scheduling for the spring.
Return to top
WANT TO BE UNLISTED IN STUDENT HOME DIRECTORY?
If you want your name and home address withheld (unlisted) for the yearly printing
of the student Home Address Directory, please tell the Registrar by October 1 of the fall semester. Every Fall the Registrar produces a student directory of names and home
addresses (but not phone numbers), which becomes available for pick-up upon request
around November 1. All students currently attending classes on campus are included
in the directory, unless students specifically request that their information
be withheld. Phone numbers are never listed.
Return to top
SCHEDULE FOR LAST TWO DAYS OF FALL CLASSES
Monday December 10, 2007 follows the "Friday" class schedule, replacing the Friday of Thanksgiving break. This means Monday-only meetings do NOT meet on this day, whereas Friday-only meetings do meet on this day. Monday/Wednesday/Friday meetings also meet on this day.
Tuesday December 11, 2007 follows the "Thursday" class schedule, replacing the Thursday of Thanksgiving break. This means Tuesday-only meetings do NOT meet on this day, whereas Thursday-only meetings do meet on this day. Tuesday/Thursday meetings also meet on this day.
A word on Fall 100-level seminars: In brief, the 14th meeting of a Fall 100-level seminar happens after Dec. 11th, even if it falls in Finals week. The Registrar builds the Finals schedule planning for these 14th meetings explained below, which may be used or not at the discretion of the professor.
- Monday meeting seminars may use Monday December 17 as a possible 14th meeting.
- Tuesday meeting seminars may use Tuesday December 18 as a possible 14th meeting.
- Wednesday meeting seminars may use Wednesday December 12 as a 14th meeting.
- Thursday meeting seminars have their 13th meeting on Tuesday December 11 (the replacement day) and for their 14th meeting they may use Thursday December 13 or Thursday December 20; professors please let the class and the Registrar know if you are using one of these (Registrar assumes December 13th unless told otherwise).
- Friday meeting seminars have their 13th meeting on Monday December 10 (the replacement day) and may use Friday December 14 for the 14th meeting.
The faculty policy on 14th meetings of Fall 100-level seminars is that they may meet in either the seminar format or a final exam. (The faculty did not approve having a 14th seminar and then a 15th meeting for a final exam.)
Return to top
Review the Inclement
Weather Policy
Return to top
Read the Guidelines
on Scheduling Conflicts Between Academics and Athletics.
Return to top
STUDENT RECORDS PRIVACY POLICY & THE USA PATRIOT ACT
The policies and practices of the Registrar's Office regarding the Privacy of
Student Records have not changed since September 11, 2001, or under the USA
PATRIOT Act. Although the USA PATRIOT Act permits the federal government somewhat
more latitude than it had before in obtaining court orders to have access to
student records, key principles of FERPA (the main Privacy law involved) are
confirmed in the USA PATRIOT Act, so that private records are still private
and unavailable to government unless the student signs a release or except by
a limited variety of court orders. As we did before the new Act, my office will
make a reasonable effort to inform the student or alumnus of any such court
order, unless the court order specifically prohibits us from doing so. For more
information about the College's policies regarding the Privacy of Student Records,
please see the Student Handbook, or see me, the Registrar.
Return to top
VOTER REGISTRATION
Please carefully review the Voter
Registration and Swarthmore Voting Place Information
