How to Register for Courses
Learning About Courses
The Schedule of Classes and University Catalog will provide the cursory catalog description of each class.
The Department’s “Courses” page will provide more detailed course descriptions drafted by the instructor of the course. As the semester approaches, syllabi will appear here as well. Searching “Past Classes” may yield syllabi for courses taught in a previous semester.
Expanding the Options
GMU graduate students are eligible to take up to 6 credits at institutions in the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Registration is not guaranteed, so students should have a backup plan for the semester they wish to register for a consortium course. You should discuss this option with your advisor and the Ph.D. Director, who will have to approve it.
The Registrar’s consortium policies are enumerated here.
Departmental guidance may be found here.
University policy on graduate students taking courses elsewhere is enumerated in the Catalog here.
Registration Policies for All Ph.D. Students
All full-time Ph.D. students must maintain active course registration in at least 6 credits per semester for graduate assistants (both research and teaching assistants) and 9 credits per semester for non-graduate assistants. See A.P 6.2 Full time and Half Time Classification in the University Catalog for details.
The first semester of HIST 999: Doctoral Dissertation Research registration must be for a minimum of 3 credits. Students who have already advanced to candidacy and completed the minimum of 15 credits of HIST 999 may sign up for as little as 1 credit of HIST 999 and submit a part-time/full-time equivalency form to be counted as a full-time student. Note that the same form allows part-time dissertation students to claim part-time status as well. See AP 6.10.6 Dissertation Registration in the University Catalog for details.
Registration Policies for GRAs, GTAs, and Lecturers
Graduate Research Assistants (GRAs), Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), and Graduate Lecturers (GL's) are required to register for a full-time course load every year prior to receiving an employment contract offer:
- For the fall semester no later than the first week of August.
- For the spring semester no later than the first week of January.
Failure to register on time will result in late registration fees. Registering on the first day of classes is considered late registration for all students, regardless of GA or full-time/part-time status.
Please see the Registrar's website for all current academic calendars.
How to Register for Courses
|
Type of Registration |
Courses |
How to Register |
| General registration | Most HIST and ARTH graduate seminars. | All active students can register via Patriot Web. Instructions are here. |
| Controlled/restricted registration |
Restricted courses that are reserved for History Ph.D. students: • HIST 696: Clio Wired • HIST 810: History Doctoral Colloquium |
Send your G number and reason for registering to the Graduate Coordinator. Once the override goes through, you will register as normal in Patriot Web. |
| Individual section registration |
Individual section courses like: • HIST 796: Directed Readings • HIST 798: Directed Research & Writing • HIST 803: Major Field Readings • HIST 804: Minor Field Readings |
Complete an Individual Section Registration Request. Have the faculty member sign it, then email it to the Graduate Coordinator. Cc your advisor. You will receive a CRN to register yourself via Patriot Web. You can input the amount of credits you need by clicking on the credit amount. For detailed instructions on inputting the credit amount, click here. |
| Dissertation proposal and research |
• HIST 998: Doctoral Dissertation Proposal • HIST 999: Doctoral Dissertation Research |