Check Your Degree Requirements

An important resource at SDSU is the Degree Evaluation tool, also known as the Degree Audit.

Your degree evaluation will become your second most valuable resource after the University Catalog, as it outlines everything you are required to complete in order to graduate from SDSU and is personalized specifically to you. You can view your degree evaluation online through my.SDSU.

MyMap

The MAP for your major - the recommended sequence of courses you must complete to graduate from SDSU - is a general guide and should be used in conjunction with the other advising tools and resources.

Check for Service Indicators

• Positive service indicators are indicated by red stars that designate special services students are entitled to receive. Positive service indicators provide details about your standing and may be used as criteria when providing some services, and do not impact registration.
• Negative service indicators are indicated by a circle with a diagonal slash. This icon means you must address an issue before you become a student in good standing. There are several types of negative service indicators - registration, financial aid, student accounts - and all of these will prevent you from registering for your upcoming semester’s courses if they are not resolved.

Plan Your Class Schedule

Once you've received your registration appointment window, you may begin planning your schedule by adding classes to your shopping cart. You will be able to register for your planned classes during your registration window.

You can add open course sections to your schedule from your registration start date through 11:59 p.m. of the fifth day of classes. It is at the instructor's discretion to allow you in the class after the fifth day of classes, so it is very important to enroll in all of your classes before the fifth day. Enrollment after the fifth day of classes is considered late enrollment.

On the sixth day through 11:59 p.m. of the tenth day of classes, students must obtain permission to enroll in a class. Review the Class Permissions web page for details on how to enroll after the fifth day of classes.

Note: The fifth-day rule applies to fall and spring semesters only. The timeline is different for summer session. Review the Academic Calendars for specific date information.

After 11:59 p.m. on the tenth day of classes, students are no longer permitted to make any changes to their class schedule for the semester.

Late schedule adjustments are only permitted for extremely serious, fully-documented circumstances which are out of your control. Requests for changes to your schedule after the schedule adjustment deadline are accepted through the last instructional day of the semester and are reviewed only by the Petition for Late Schedule Adjustment.

The schedule adjustment deadline occurs at 11:59 p.m. on the tenth day of classes at the start of the semester, and no changes to your class schedule are permitted after this date.

You are responsible for checking your schedule in my.SDSU to make sure you are enrolled in the right classes, initiating any action for your own schedule adjustments, and setting your schedule by the schedule adjustment deadline.

Students may be dropped for non-attendance or lack of required prerequisites between the start of the semester and the administrative drop deadline at 11:59 p.m. on the eighth day of class.

When a student has been dropped from a course in my.SDSU, they will receive an email notification that informs them of the drop from the course. Not all colleges use this option, so it is each student’s responsibility to check that their schedule is correct by the schedule adjustment deadline.

Before selecting courses, it is important to learn and understand the vocabulary used during the registration process. Please review the following information before you plan and register for your courses.

Semester

The academic year is divided into two 15-week semesters, fall and spring. The fall semester starts in late August and ends in mid-December. The spring semester starts in mid-January and ends in mid-May. Review the Academic Calendars for important dates and deadlines each semester.

Unit

A unit represents 50 minutes of class time per week. Most classes are 3 units, but can range from 1 to 6 units. It is recommended that you enroll in 15 units each semester to stay on track to complete your degree in four years.

A 3-Unit Lecture Class Can Meet In

• Three 50-minute sessions per week
• Two 75-minute sessions per week
• One 150-minute session per week

Class Standing

• First-year—has earned 0 to 29 semester units
• Sophomore—has earned 30 to 59 semester units
• Junior—has earned 60 to 89 semester units
• Senior—has earned 90 semester units or more

Course Numbers

• 100–299 are lower division
• 300–599 are upper division

General Education (GE) Courses

General Education (GE) courses are courses from a variety of subjects (written communication, oral communication, mathematics, science, humanities) required for every major. GE courses provide you with a solid foundation of skills, perspectives, and knowledge, and prepare you for courses in your major. Typically, lower division GE is completed during your first and sophomore years. Upper division GE must be completed during your junior and senior years. Upper division GE should not be taken prior to junior level standing.

More information about GE can be found within the Degree Requirements section of the University Catalog.

Major Preparation and Upper-Division Major Courses

Major preparation courses are lower-division courses, completed during your first two years, that prepare you for the upper-division courses required in your major. Your major courses will typically be completed in your last two years. Some major preparation and upper-division courses also count toward GE requirements.

Students that are pursuing a degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) major that requires MATH 150 Calculus I/MATH 124 Calculus for the Life Sciences or CHEM 200 General Chemistry/CHEM 202 General Chemistry for Engineers in their first semester need to complete placement assessments through Testing Services.

Review the exam and assessment links listed on this page to determine if your major requires these placement assessments and information on how to register:

• Incoming First-Year Students
  • Chemistry Department Placement Exam
  • Mathematics Placement Assessment (MPA)
• Incoming Transfer Students
  • Chemistry Department Placement Exam
  • Liberal Studies Mathematics Proficiency Assessment
  • Mathematics Placement Assessment (MPA)

Mathematics

If you are a STEM major and your MAP lists:

• Mathematics 124 (MATH 124): Calculus for the Life Sciences, or
• Mathematics 150 (MATH 150): Calculus I,

you initially need to enroll in Mathematics 140 (MATH 140): College Algebra, and register for the Mathematics Placement Assessment through Testing Services.

Based on your Mathematics Placement Assessment score, you may substitute MATH 140 with MATH 124, 141 or 150.

Chemistry

If you are a STEM major and your MAP lists:

• Chemistry 200 (CHEM 200): General Chemistry, or
• Chemistry 202 (CHEM 202): General Chemistry for Engineers,

you initially need to enroll in Chemistry 100 (CHEM 100): Introduction to General Chemistry with Laboratory, and register for the Chemistry Department Placement Exam through Testing Services.

If your score is high enough on the Chemistry Department Placement Exam, then you will substitute CHEM 100 with CHEM 200 or CHEM 202. If your score on the Chemistry Department Placement Exam is not high enough, then you will remain enrolled in CHEM 100.

If you have already completed these courses, you can review the MAP for other recommended courses based on your incoming student level.