Editing Freshmen FAQ

== Scheduling ==

== Scheduling ==

You do not need to begin thinking about your schedule until early summer.<ref group="Note">If you are doing [[iGniTe]], then you should determine which courses you will be taking over the summer in late spring rather than early summer.</ref> Usually in early June, your major's department or an advisor will reach out to you by email to assist you in scheduling. However, note that there are other [[Scheduling#Resources|resources]] that you can use to plan your schedule, and ''you'' will be the one registering for classes, not your advisor. In addition, it never hurts to start planning early, and there is nothing preventing you from planning your schedule well before the summer, just that this is ''not'' required.

You do not need to begin thinking about your schedule until early summer.<ref group="Note">If you are doing [[iGniTe]], then you should determine which courses you will be taking over the summer in late spring rather than early summer.</ref> Usually in early June, your major's department or an advisor will reach out to you by email to assist you in scheduling. However, note that there are other [[Scheduling#Resources|resources]] that you can use to plan your schedule, and ''you'' will be the one registering for classes, not your advisor. In addition, it never hurts to start planning early, and there is nothing preventing you from planning your schedule well before the summer, just that this is ''not'' required.

Class registration for incoming freshmen occurs during [[FASET]], which usually takes place during the summer.<ref group="Note">FASET for [[iGniTe]] students occurs during late spring; however, iGniTe students will still register for fall courses during a specified time in the summer.</ref>

Class registration for incoming freshmen occurs during [[FASET]], which usually takes place during the summer.<ref group="Note">FASET for [[iGniTe]] students occurs during late spring; however, iGniTe students will still register for fall courses during a specified time in the summer.</ref>

The best way to check which classes/requirements that you have credit for is through [https://degreeaudit.gatech.edu/ Degree Works]. However, you may not have access to Degree Works until the early summer, so if you want to know prior to then, you can look through the equivalency tables for [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/advanced-placement-exams/ AP exams], [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/international-baccalaureate-exams/ IB exams], [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/a-levels/ A-levels], and/or [https://admission.gatech.edu/transfer/transfer-credit transfer credit] to determine what credit you have.

The best way to check which classes/requirements that you have credit for is through [https://degreeaudit.gatech.edu/ Degree Works]. However, you may not have access to Degree Works until the early summer, so if you want to know prior to then, you can look through the equivalency tables for [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/advanced-placement-exams/ AP exams], [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/international-baccalaureate-exams/ IB exams], [https://catalog.gatech.edu/academics/undergraduate/credit-tests-scores/a-levels/ A-levels], and/or [https://admission.gatech.edu/transfer/transfer-credit transfer credit] to determine what credit you have.

The registrar formally classifies students by the criteria below:

The registrar formally classifies students by the criteria below:

{| class="wikitable"

{| class="wikitable"

Apart from registration priority, being classified as a sophomore or higher by credit hours means very little, especially since it is common among incoming freshmen with lots of AP or other credit coming in. For most purposes, such as freshmen housing, students are grouped by the number of years they have attended Georgia Tech as undergraduate students (i.e. first-years, second-years, etc.).

Apart from registration priority, being classified as a sophomore or higher by credit hours means very little, especially since it is common among incoming freshmen with lots of AP or other credit coming in. For most purposes, such as freshmen housing, students are grouped by the number of years they have attended Georgia Tech as undergraduate students (i.e. first-years, second-years, etc.).

Time tickets are assigned during every registration phase and indicate the time frame for which you may register for classes.

Time tickets are assigned during every registration phase and indicate the time frame for which you may register for classes.

Credit listed with X's typically means that Georgia Tech offers no course equivalent to that credit but usually still recognizes the credit.<ref group="Note">Some credit listed with X's may not count towards your degree, even as free elective credit. This credit is called "fallthrough" credit. To determine whether the credit is fallthrough or not, you should either consult your major's requirements page or check Degree Works to see if the credit is listed as fallthrough credit.</ref> This credit is typically designated as free elective credit, and it may ''not'' be used in place of an equivalently numbered course. For example, a [[CS]] major cannot use CS 1XXX credit in place of [[CS 1301]].

Credit listed with X's typically means that Georgia Tech offers no course equivalent to that credit but usually still recognizes the credit.<ref group="Note">Some credit listed with X's may not count towards your degree, even as free elective credit. This credit is called "fallthrough" credit. To determine whether the credit is fallthrough or not, you should either consult your major's requirements page or check Degree Works to see if the credit is listed as fallthrough credit.</ref> This credit is typically designated as free elective credit, and it may ''not'' be used in place of an equivalently numbered course. For example, a [[CS]] major cannot use CS 1XXX credit in place of [[CS 1301]].

Most majors require students to take a certain number of free elective credit. Any course offered by Georgia Tech, with few exceptions, may be used to satisfy this credit. Some majors may place certain restrictions on free elective credit, such as requiring a certain number of credit to come from 2000-level or higher courses.

Most majors require students to take a certain number of free elective credit. Any course offered by Georgia Tech, with few exceptions, may be used to satisfy this credit. Some majors may place certain restrictions on free elective credit, such as requiring a certain number of credit to come from 2000-level or higher courses.

Please consult this [[Scheduling#First-Year Guide|guide]].

Please consult this [[Scheduling#First-Year Guide|guide]].

Unless you are coming in with almost no credits, you should avoid registering for over 16 credits. 15 credit hours, or about 5 classes, is recommended, while you can take 12-13 credits for a lighter first semester. You should also avoid registering for under 12 credits, as 12 credit hours is the minimum to be considered a full-time student. However, not all classes are equal in difficulty, so the number of credit hours that you are taking should not be the primary basis for your schedule. A 16 credit semester may be lighter than a 12 credit semester, but this is uncommon.

Unless you are coming in with almost no credits, you should avoid registering for over 16 credits. 15 credit hours, or about 5 classes, is recommended, while you can take 12-13 credits for a lighter first semester. You should also avoid registering for under 12 credits, as 12 credit hours is the minimum to be considered a full-time student. However, not all classes are equal in difficulty, so the number of credit hours that you are taking should not be the primary basis for your schedule. A 16 credit semester may be lighter than a 12 credit semester, but this is uncommon.

Never retake courses unless there is an extremely niche reason for doing so. While you may not feel comfortable with all the material in courses that they already have credit for, you can always review the material. which is a much better option than retaking entire courses. Retaking a course does not guarantee that you will fully learn the material, risks the possibility of a low grade, and takes time away from other courses required to graduate.

Never retake courses unless there is an extremely niche reason for doing so. While you may not feel comfortable with all the material in courses that they already have credit for, you can always review the material. which is a much better option than retaking entire courses. Retaking a course does not guarantee that you will fully learn the material, risks the possibility of a low grade, and takes time away from other courses required to graduate.

A prerequisite chain is a series of courses that must be taken one after another due to prerequisite restrictions on those courses. For example, a common prerequisite chain among engineering majors is [[PHYS 2211]] to [[PHYS 2212]] to [[ECE 3710]] to [[ECE 3741]]. PHYS 2211 must be taken before PHYS 2212, PHYS 2212 must be taken before ECE 3710, etc.

A prerequisite chain is a series of courses that must be taken one after another due to prerequisite restrictions on those courses. For example, a common prerequisite chain among engineering majors is [[PHYS 2211]] to [[PHYS 2212]] to [[ECE 3710]] to [[ECE 3741]]. PHYS 2211 must be taken before PHYS 2212, PHYS 2212 must be taken before ECE 3710, etc.