Common Registration Error Messages
Common registration error messages are listed below, including what the errors mean and what to do if you receive one of these registration error messages.
| Error Message | What It Means | What To Do |
| Prerequisite/minimum test score required | You have not met the necessary prerequisites to take this course. OR You have not registered for all parts of the course (corequisite, linked lab, etc.). | Check to make sure you meet the course’s prerequisite requirements by looking at the details in BearWeb or the Schedule of Classes. OR Make sure you are registering for all necessary parts of the course (check Schedule of Classes to see all parts). |
| Course closed | The course you are trying to add is full. | Choose another section with open seats. If there are no open seats in any section, add yourself to the waitlist for one of them. |
| Open – reserved for waitlist | The course you are trying to add is full and there is a waitlist. It is only “open” for the first person on the waitlist. | Choose another section with open seats or add yourself to the waitlist for one of them. |
| Time conflict | The course you are trying to add is at the same time as another course on your schedule. | Choose another section that works with your schedule. |
| Instructor approval required | You need departmental approval to add this course. | Contact the department for a “Special Approval Override” to add this course. |
| Departmental approval required | You need departmental approval to add this course. | Contact the department for a “Special Approval Override” to add this course. |
| This course is only allowed for certain students. Permitted student types can be found in the course details in BearWeb. | Make sure that you are one of the student types listed for the course. If you are not the required student type, you will need to choose a different section. |
| Maximum hours exceeded | You are attempting to register for more than the allotted number of hours in a term (18). | Contact your advisor/program director to request an Add/Drop form with an “Overload Petition” to exceed max hours. |
| Repeat hours exceeded | You have met the limit for the number of times/hours this course can be taken. OR You are trying to register for a class you have already taken and passed. | Contact your advisor/program director to request an Add/Drop form with a “Course Repeat Petition” (if applicable). |
| Duplicate course | You already have a section of this course on your schedule (or have already taken it in the Wintermester). | If you need another section of the course, contact your advisor/program director to submit an Add/Drop form with mention of the duplicate course. |
| Level restriction | You are attempting to register for a course outside your level (undergrad student trying to take graduate level course or vice versa). | If you are an undergraduate (UG) student needing a graduate (GR) course – a Grad Level Petition must be submitted by a staff member. If you are a GR student needing an UG course – an Add/Drop form must be submitted by your advisor/program director with mention of the level restriction. |
| Registration by Advisor Only | Only your advisor can register you for this course. If you are an Accelerate student getting this error, the add must be submitted via an Add/Drop form from your advisor. | Reach out to your advisor for assistance adding the course. |
| Mutual exclusion | You have completed a course that is identified as having substantially overlapping content. | You cannot take this course as it is too similar to one for which you already have credit. If the course is needed for your degree plan, contact the department to request a Prerequisite Override. OR If the course was taken through transfer credit and no longer needed, contact the Transfer Credit department to remove the credit. |