International students at new international students having conversation with staff

How to Resolve Registration Errors for Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Students

Exchange students can register for classes by themselves on and after the Non-Matriculated Class Registration Start Date for each term. Start date, eligibility to register for classes, and other details can be found on the How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student page. 

What classes that I cannot register for?

Non-degree-seeking exchange students may encounter various registration errors when attempting to register for classes. While some errors can be resolved by students or advisors, others may require additional steps.

Please note that exchange students cannot register for classes that have.:

  • Time Conflict: Students will have to drop the time-conflicting classes first to register for the new course. 

  • Sections with Letters. For example, 80H, 80C, 80S, 80F, 80M.

How to Resolve "Pre-requisite Error"

Note: The following instruction provides a guide for exchange students to waive the prerequisites. It's not guaranteed that the waiver is approved. instructors/advisors may require additional documents (transcripts) or deny waiving the prerequisites for certain courses.

  • Each course may have more than one error including the pre-requisite error. Therefore, accepted exchange students are encouraged to follow instructions in this resource to resolve other errors after the pre-requisite deviation form is approved.
  • Most 300 or 400 level courses would require students to satisfy the prerequisite requirements.
  • The process to waive the prerequisites is explained in your myOswego account when you go to register for courses: 
    • Access your myOswego account.
    • Select the "Non-Degree Student Temporary Prerequisite Registration Waiver" link under the Registration tab.
    • Select the proper term.
    • Enter the 5-digit CRN for the course and choose "Add".
    • Confirm that you are requesting a prerequisite waiver for the course.
    • Choose "Add class".
    • Choose "Acknowledged".
    • Then you will need to register for the course. 

The SUNY Oswego Registrar's Office may follow-up via email with students who submit this form to receive proof and/or a copy of their transcript demonstrating the pre-requisite requirements were met at their home university.

Please note that completing the prerequisite waiver does not automatically register you for the course. After submitting the waiver, you must register for the course separately.

  • Potential Additional Errors: If you followed the prerequisite waiver process but still encountered errors, there may be other issues affecting your registration. In such cases, continue following the provided steps to resolve any additional errors in this webpage.
  • Contacting Advisors for Assistance: If you have followed all steps to waive prerequisites and are still encountering issues, please feel free to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet to get assistance from student buddies. To learn how to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet, please check out Section 3 of How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student webpage. 
How to resolve "Instructor Permission", "Classification (Class restriction)" errors

If you've received errors related to instructor permission or class restrictions, please feel free to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet to get assistance from student buddies. To learn how to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet, please check out Section 3 of How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student webpage. 

How to resolve "Major/Minor" or "Cohort Restriction" Errors

Facing errors due to major/minor or cohort restrictions? You'll need permission to enroll in these courses as a nonmatriculated international exchange student. 

To resolve "Major/Minor" or "Cohort Restriction" errors, please feel free to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet to get assistance from student buddies. To learn how to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet, please check out Section 3 of How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student webpage. 

How to resolve "Closed Section error"

When the course is closed, only the course instructor can allow an extra seat for you. Please send a polite email or you may want to go to the class in person but please be mindful that your request may not be granted. The best practice is to find a class that has available seats and make sure you meet the full-time requirements from day 1 at Oswego. To learn more about the full-time requirement, go to Section 1 of How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student webpage. 

How to resolve "Instructor Signature Required"

Received the "Instructor Signature Required" error? Please feel free to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet to get assistance from student buddies. To learn how to complete the J-1 Class Registration Worksheet, please check out Section 3 of How to Register for Classes as a Non-Degree Seeking Exchange Student webpage. 

Where can I find the instructor name?

The course instructor information is usually provided when you click on the "course title" as shown in the diagram below:

Screenshot of myOswego displaying Course instructor of a particular course