CS Course Registration Policy
Computer Science Department courses are needed by many student populations and are in high demand. To facilitate all COMS students* getting the courses they need and allocate the 8000+ seats each semester as fairly as possible, we have established the following processes.
All COMS courses, including CSXX, at the 4000 level or above are managed via waitlists by either the instructor or CS Advising – both appear as “Instructor Managed”.
Waitlisted courses are marked as “Restricted” on SSOL and “Blocked” on Vergil. If a course is “Blocked” on SSOL, it is not available to you, even if it has a COMS number.
In Vergil, click on the carrot next to the course you are interested in joining. If it is open to you, the message will update from “Blocked” to “Open/Full”. Then you can join the waitlist.
If you are interested in joining a course that is not blocked, please join the waitlist. Waitlists are managed by seniority and need across all student populations – undergraduate, master, and doctoral. We encourage you to register as soon as your window opens. Waitlists are not managed by waitlist positions, but if you register early, we are able to make more informed decisions about enrollment.
All 4000 or higher COMS courses will be blocked to non-COMS students until the start of Change of Program with the following exceptions:
- COMS 4111 which is also open to ENOPRE, ENEMGT, ENFINE, and ENINEN students.
- CSEE courses are open to CS & EE students.
- CSOR 4231 is also prioritized for GDOPRE, GDINEN, ETOPRE, and ETINEN students
- COMS 4121, COMS 4721, and CSOR 4246, which are DSI-specific courses
- COMS 4281, COMS 4282, MS Quantum Science; If space allows, COMS 4236, COMS 4824, COMS W6998, and CSOR 4231
- EMQUAN students, your required courses are open to you. For other courses, please wait until Change of Program.
We will not approve any RAF requests during the Change of Program.
NOTE: DSI lists certain courses with COMS numbers. If you see a “COMS” course that is “Blocked,” this is a DSI course and not available to you.
*COMS Students include the following program codes: CCCOMA, CCCOMS, CCDTSC, CCINFS, BCCOMS, BCSPDA, EDCOMS, EMCOMS, EMCMEN, EMSCAP, EMCSJN, ETCOMS, EVCOMS, EYCOMS, ENCMEN, ENCOMS, GDCOMS, GSCOMA, GSCSCA, GSCOMS, GSDTSC, GSINFA.
Concentrators and minors – CNCOMS, GCCSCA, EICOMS – will be admitted to courses if space permits after majors have been admitted.
ENROLLMENT
Waitlists will be managed from pre-registration through to the last day of Change of Program. If you are enrolled in a course, you will receive an automated email notification. The course will appear on SSOL/VERGIL the next day.
If you do not intend to take a course, please drop it early to make the seat available to your peers.
Please be sure to read all enrollment instructions in SSOL and make sure you satisfy all prerequisites. Ensure the courses you waitlist are ones you can take. The system will not block you from registering for courses at conflicting times. Registration changes after the Change of Program period may carry a financial penalty.
DENIAL
If you are denied from a waitlist, you will receive an automated email notification. This means that the demand for this course exceeds capacity, and other students have been prioritized. You are welcome to rejoin the waitlist; however, this will not change your priority, and the likelihood of enrollment is low. We recommend using your registration slot for a different course.
REGISTRATION GUIDELINES FOR NON-COMS STUDENTS
The Department will allow non-COMS students to take select courses if space permits. Select courses will open for cross-registration at the start of Change of Program for each semester on SSOL via the waitlist system.
- All necessary pre-requisite requirements for the course must be satisfied.
- We will not approve any RAF requests during the Change of Program period.
School of Professional Studies Students must consult with their academic advisor on their cross-registration process. Instructors cannot sign off on any Registration Adjustment Form without Departmental approval.
The following courses will be blocked for non-COMS students:
- COMS 4160
- COMS 4170
- COMS 4732 (ONLY Available to MS Students and Seniors if space allows)
- COMS 4995 – NEURAL NETWORKS DEEP LEARNING
PREREQUISITES
You will notice prerequisites listed on Vergil/SSOL, in instructors’ course information, and in syllabi. The registration system does not enforce prerequisites. We expect students to only join courses that they are ready to be successful in.
Published prerequisites list specific Columbia undergraduate courses – instructors expect that you have covered material from those courses. If you are a transfer student or graduate student, we do not expect that you took those specific courses at Columbia, only that you are academically prepared to successfully pass the course.
Graduate students (MS and Doctoral) should not register for 3000-level courses. These will not count towards your CS MS. If you doubt you are prepared for a particular course, please speak to the instructor and talk to CS Advising.
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