Spring 2024 Course Planning Guidelines

College of General Studies Program Requirements

The CGS Program: The College of General Studies’ innovative, integrated, interdisciplinary, team-based program inspires students to make connections between disciplines and to connect their knowledge to real-world problems.

CGS Program Requirements: Required CGS program courses include two writing courses in the first year and two natural science courses in the second year. To complete the CGS program, students select at least three additional CGS humanities courses and at least three additional CGS social sciences courses to be taken during the first and second years. For more information, see the College of General Studies Program requirements.

BU Hub: All BU students will pursue coursework in the BU Hub, a general education program that is integrated into the entire undergraduate experience. BU Hub requirements are flexible and can be satisfied in many ways, through coursework in and beyond the major and, in some cases, through co-curricular activities. The CGS program fulfills most of the BU Hub University-wide general education requirements, and all CGS courses carry BU Hub units.

Students will determine the most appropriate course selection in consultation with their academic advisor.

Advanced Credit

Students who wish to apply an Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), or any other examination scores must consult with their CGS academic advisor. Please refer to Boston University’s Admissions website for further information.

To have your test scores reviewed for college credit, an official score report must be sent to Boston University. All Advanced Placement reports should be sent to the Admissions Office directly from College Board; all other score reports should be sent to the International Admissions Office at intadmis@bu.edu.

The following AP/IB scores award credit for the noted CGS first-year courses and HUB units:

Note: BU does not award credit for IB English A: Language and Literature.

Choosing an Elective

Your spring 2024 schedule will consist of a combination of courses that work towards the College of General Studies Program requirements in addition to one or more elective courses. Electives are courses taken either for academic exploration or to work towards a particular major or degree plan.

The school and college pages below outline elective options. If an elective is unavailable at the time of registration, you can select an alternative elective.

• College of Arts and Sciences
• College of Communication
• College of Engineering
• Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences
• Questrom School of Business
• College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College
• School of Hospitality Administration
• Wheelock College of Education & Human Development
• Pre-Law track
• Pre-Medical track

For more information about the four-year pathways to a degree, check out this helpful tool.

You must make an appointment with your CGS academic advisor to review your academic plans. You will not be able to register for classes until you have spoken with your advisor.

During your appointment, your advisor will give you your Academic Advising Code, which you will use to unlock the registration tool on the MyBU Student Portal. See the registration instructions for guidance on unlocking the registration tool.

The spring 2024 Class Schedule will be available online on the MyBU Student Portal on September 29th. You can view descriptions of all BU courses by using the Course Search.

You will use the MyBU Student Portal Planner to plan your spring 2024 course schedule by following the information below:

Plan Your Required CGS Courses

Your CGS course registration/team for spring 2024 determines where and when you will study during the summer. Summer term 2024 dates are below. Availability on these teams is determined by your registration time assigned by the BU Registrar’s Office. See Step Five for details.

• Team A will study in Boston during summer session I (May 21 – June 28)
• Teams B, C, D, and E will study in London during summer session I (May 20 – June 28)
• Teams F, G, and H will study in London during summer session II  (July 1 – August 9)

Your course numbers for spring 2024 CGS courses are listed below:

• Humanities: CGS HU 103
• Rhetoric: CGS RH 103
• Social Sciences: CGS SS 103
• All your CGS course sections must start with the same letter. This indicates that all your CGS courses are on the same team.

• When you use the MyBU Student Portal Planner to plan your spring 2024 classes, you will have a mock-up of your spring 2024 class schedule and you will be ready for registration. Refer to the registration instructions for guidance on using the Planner tool. The planner does not reserve seats in the classes. It is a tool to plan a schedule.
• The button labeled “Continue Search From” at the bottom of the screen when searching for a course means there are more courses on the next page.
• CGS courses require two components: one lecture (LEC) and one discussion (DIS). The MyBU Student Portal will note this next to a blue pushpin at the beginning of the course listing. The note will tell you what components you need and any special instructions that go along with that. Make sure when you are signing up for courses that you pay attention to these notes.
• Remember to plan multiple options! Your first choices may not be open. Choosing multiple options will save you from having to search multiple times on registration day.

Plan Your Electives

Remember, no time conflicts! Make sure the times of your electives and CGS courses do not overlap. There is usually a 15-minute pass time interval between classes.

• Be sure to hit the “Continue Search from” button at the bottom of your search results to view all sections being offered.
• Pay attention to see what the course requires (lecture, discussion, lab, pre-lab). Make sure to add all required components of classes if needed.
• Please note that your elective classes do not need to start with the same letter as your CGS course sections.
• Remember to plan multiple options! The first class you choose may not work with your CGS required courses and choosing multiple options will save you from having to search multiple times on registration day. Use the Planner option in the MyBU Student Portalto create a draft of your schedule. Refer to the registration instructions for guidance on using the Planner tool.

Registration for first-year students opens on Sunday, November 12, 2023. Check the MyBU Student Portal to confirm you are in compliance for registration. Upon logging in, go to the Personal tab, followed by selecting Compliance Status; failure to meet the requirements will prevent you from registering. For more information, please view the Requirements for Registration.

The University Registrar assigns your registration time, which is determined by the last digit of your BUID number. See below for your assigned time. Note: The time is Eastern Standard Time in the United States.

Students are not permitted to register prior to the assigned start dates and times listed for each semester, however students are strongly encouraged to use the MyBU Student Portal to begin setting up their planners in advance.

If you have used the Planner option, you can simply add the classes from your planner to your schedule when registration opens for you. Refer to the registration instructions for guidance if you need it.

If the class(es) on your Planner are full or closed, you should register for your back-up options. Note: If the course is flagged, then open seats shown are not available.