When planning for your fall classes, think about creating a balanced schedule by choosing courses from various subject areas rather than focusing your choices in any one area or in any one type of course. Taking several courses in a single discipline or combining several courses that are all, for example, math-focused or will require a lot of reading can be overwhelming. Try to balance your schedule by selecting courses across the Web of Inquiry (UR's foundational curriculum), potential major or minor exploratory classes, and electives.
There are two (2) steps to registration for first-year students: Pre-Registration and Self-Registration. The details for each step are outlined below. If you have any questions about planning your schedule, please contact your Peer Academic Advisor, your Summer Advisor, or a staff member in the AARC.
All new first-year students will be pre-registered for their fall semester classes during this phase. Students should follow these steps to submit their course preferences for pre-registration.
Every new student will have be assigned to an advising team comprised of a factulty/staff Summer Academic Advisor and a Peer Advisor (PA).
Your Summer Academic Advisor
Your summer advisor will contact you in mid-June to make a virtual/remote advising appointment. Your summer advisor can help you understand UR’s general education curriculum, graduation requirements, and options for exploring potential majors or minors. Please be prepared for this meeting by reflecting on your academic interests and goals.
Your Peer Advisor
You can also expect to hear from your PA in mid-June. They will be available throughout the summer to help answer a variety of campus-related questions, so be sure to take advantage of their Spider expertise and connect with them!
Beginning June 22, you will have access to the First-Year Pre-Registration Preference Form in your Spider Portal. The form includes detailed instructions, but here are a few important things to keep in mind when completing it:
A full-time course load at UR is 3.5 units. We typically recommend that first-year students register for 4 to 4.5 units in the fall semester.
There are only two required courses for first-year students: FYS 100 (a one-unit seminar on a topic of your choice) and WELL 100 (a zero-credit graduation requirement). What you choose to take beyond that is up to you!
We recommend selecting up to 20 first-year seminars and up to 20 additional courses on the preference form. Including more options increases your chances of being pre-registered for a full schedule with classes you’re excited about.
The first-year seminar (FYS 100) is one of two required courses first-year students must take in the fall. FYS 100 provides students with a hands-on introduction to academic inquiry and offers the opportunity to explore varied interests in small class settings with close faculty contact.
FYS courses are limited to 16 students (no overrides, no exceptions), so it will be important that you select several different FYS courses on the preference form.
Want to know more about a specific FYS? You can look at course descriptions in BannerWeb or on the FYS webpage.
Wellness 100 (WELL 100) is required for all new students during their first semester. This 10-session course introduces college life at the University of Richmond through health and well-being topics and highlights key campus offices and resources. WELL 100 is one of three required wellness courses that carry no academic credit (0 units) but are required for graduation.
You will not include WELL 100 classes on your preference form. Instead, the registrar will register you for a WELL 100 class that fits your schedule.
Richmond has a second language requirement, and students are encouraged to demonstrate proficiency early in their academic career. Please refer to this page for more information about the requirement.
If you plan to study a second language, be sure to determine your placement in that language before registering for a course.
Note: French, Italian, and Spanish offer intensive language courses (up to 7 hours of class time per week) that are worth 2 units. If you enroll in a 2-unit intensive language course, you will have space in your schedule for only two additional units, one of which will be FYS 100.
Once we receive your Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) scores, we will add any credits you’ve earned to your academic record. You will see these credits reflected in GradTracker.
As you plan for the fall semester, be sure to account for any units you may have already earned by examination. If you received credit for a course based on a qualifying AP or IB score, do not include that course on your preference form.
Please make sure your official scores or transcripts are sent to the university so your credits can be applied to your record.
Students who need to register for additional units or modify their fall schedule may do so during the self-registration phase by following the steps below.
On August 3, log into BannerWeb to view your pre-registered fall schedule and check the following:
If you answered “YES” to all of these questions and are satisfied with your schedule, no further action is needed for registration.
If you answered "YES," but wish to make changes to your schedule, you may do so during self-registration on August 10.
If you answered “NO” to any of these questions, you must participate in self-registration on August 10.
If you’re not sure which classes to take, consider taking:
First-year students typically enroll in 100- or 200-level courses. Many 300- and 400-level courses require prerequisites that most first-year students have not yet completed.
Because most courses have limited seats, it’s helpful to have several alternatives in mind when registration opens. Courses can fill quickly during the self-registration phase, so building a longer list of possible options can help reduce stress and increase your chances of creating a schedule you’re excited about.
Do you have questions? Ask your Peer Advisor or your Summer Advisor - they are here to help you!
You can also call on the Academic Advising Resource Center (AARC), or check out the New Spiders Summer webinars for helpful topics.