Course Scheduling

The Office of the Registrar begins the process of creating class schedules more than one year before each semester starts. Departments should follow the guidelines and processes listed below to schedule or cancel courses. 

Guidelines for Scheduling
(passed by the Academic Senate, February 10, 1999)

The purpose of these guidelines is to facilitate the building of students' schedules.  The guidelines are designed to enable a student to schedule the maximum number of hours, as efficiently as possible, with the fewest likely conflicts caused by overlapping scheduling of courses.  Courses, therefore, need to be distributed over the five days and observed common starting times.

While following the guidelines are important, department chairpersons or persons assuming responsibility for scheduling of classes need to consult with others about courses affecting students from several departments. They should also take into consideration sequencing and course requirements for their own majors. Effective scheduling will facilitate students in completing their degrees in a timely manner.

Scheduling Policies:

1. Programs should not schedule required major classes that students would take concurrently in the same time slot.
2. When multiple sections of a course are offered, they should be scheduled at different times and/or days to maximize the availability to students.
3. More than 50% (half) of courses in a program should be offered on a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday schedule.
4. All evening course times should observe the common break time (7:50 - 8:05 p.m.).
5. All classes should conform to the listed start times. 1-hour classes and 2-hour classes that meet two days a week must start at standard starting times listed for other courses.
6. Laboratory course and courses combining lecture and laboratory should be scheduled to utilize the laboratory facilities most effectively. Where possible, they should meet at non-peak hours (e.g., 8:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m.), generally Tuesday and/or Thursday.
7. Conference courses, independent studies, field-based courses, clinical courses and thesis are by arrangement.
8. In accordance with the YSU-OEA CBS, classes taught by full-time faculty should not be scheduled between 4 and 5 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays.
9. Department chairs are accountable for violations of these policies. The Dean of each college will be responsible for ensuring that the semester scheduling guidelines are followed in each college. Each school/college shall maintain a list of courses that will be exceptions to the above scheduling guidelines.
10. The Academic Standards Committee will evaluate the scheduling policy once every three years.

Day - Class Patterns:

1. Three (3) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet Monday(M), Wednesday(W), Friday(F) at the same time on the hour. OR
   • Meet Tuesday(T) and Thursday(R) for one hour and fifteen minutes each and must begin at prescribed hours (8:00 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 2:00 p.m.) OR
   • Meet Monday(M) and Wednesday(W) for one hour and fifteen minutes at the prescribed hours (7:30 - 8:45 a.m., 2:00 - 3:15 p.m., 3:00 - 4:15 p.m.)
2. Four (4) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet MTWF at the same time or MWRF at the same time. Each pattern should represent one-half of the four-credit courses offered in any department four days a week. OR
   • Meet M and W or W and F at the same time for a two-hour period, starting at even hours or T and R starting at 8:00, 11:00, or 2:00.
   • Departments offering four-credit courses are encouraged to schedule no more than 20 percent of them on the TR pattern.
3. Five (5) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet MTWRF at the same time on the hour. OR
   • Meet T and R for two hours each, beginning at 8:00, 11:00. or 2:00, and F for one hour. OR
   • Meet M and W for two hours each, beginning on the even hours, and F for one hour.

Evening - Class Patterns:

1. Two (2) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet any one day of the week from 5:10 - 7:00 p.m. (17:10 - 19:00), 6:00 - 7:50 p.m. (18:00 - 19:50), or from 8:05 - 9:55 p.m. (20:05 - 21:55), including one ten-minute break.
2. Three (3) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet one day per week at either 5:10 - 7:50 p.m. (17:10 - 19:50), or 8:05 - 10:45 p.m. (20:05 - 22:45), including one ten-minute break. OR
   • Meet M and W or T and R at 5:10 - 6:25 p.m. (17:10 - 18:25), 6:35 - 7:50 p.m. (18:35 - 19:50), or 8:05 - 9:20 p.m. (20:05 - 21:20).
3. Four (4) credit/contact hour courses:
   • Meet two days a week at 6:00 - 7:50 p.m. (18:00 - 19:50) or 8:05 - 9:55 p.m. (20:05 - 21:55), including one ten-minute break.
   • Graduate classes may meet any one day per week from 6:00 - 9:40 p.m. (18:00 - 21:40), including two ten-minute breaks.
4. Five (5) credit/contact hour courses
   • Meet M and W or T and R at 5:35 - 7:50 p.m. (17:35 - 19:50) or 8:05 - 10:20 p.m. (20:05 - 22:20), including one ten-minute break.

Regularly Scheduled Day Classes Chart:

*added after Academic Senate Policy was passed.

Regularly Scheduled Evening Classes Chart:

Undergraduate and Graduate: Classes that meet longer than 75 minutes, including one ten-minute break. Common break time is 7:50-8:05 p.m.

*For graduate courses only; includes two ten-minute breaks.

Department Scheduling Process:

The Office of the Registrar provides every department with an excel spreadsheet sorted by subject for each registration term (summer, fall, spring). Each file contains two worksheets; the first file is the original and should be preserved, the second is the working spreadsheet where all corrections should be documented.  Departments should filter the file by subject to view applicable courses.  

1. Departments will use the yellow highlight feature in excel to identify the following changes:
   • any changes made to the row or within the row
   • additions to the schedule
   • deletions to the schedule, mark as deleted and highlight; do not actually remove or delete the row
   • any applicable instructor Banner IDs
   • identify any distance learning course (VC, WB, or HB), any courses that have special billing rates (e.g., Prison, College in HS) and any special programs that require registration in a certain CRN
   • ​provide maximum number of enrollment at the onset when possible
   • verify each variable hour class to ensure that the course is being offered for the correct fixed hour
   • reserve courses by program, major, college, degree, department, class (rank), level and/or attribute
2. Online highlight the area that has changed within the course, such as room, capacity, days/times, etc.
3. Verify schedule, including prerequisites and restrictions.
4. Only use the yellow highlight feature, no other color.
5. Do not use a previous spreadsheet; only update the most current version sent by the Office of the Registrar.
6. Deadlines are important. Please adhere to the deadlines published in the Academic Calendar.

Instructions for Cancelling a Class:

The instructions below apply to the cancellation process that occurs after registration has opened.

1. Contact the students currently enrolled in the course to officially notify them that the class have been cancelled; provide other course options. It is the department's responsibility to notify the students!
2. Contact the Office of the Registrar to cancel the class.
3. Office of the Registrar will send a follow-up email to each student who was manually withdrawn to confirm the class has been dropped from the schedule.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are contact hours?  

Contact hours designate how long a class is required to meet in correlation to the number of credit hours. The corresponding times are as follows:
1 contact hour - 750 minutes - 12.5 hours
2 contact hours - 1,500 minutes - 25 hours
3 contact hours - 2,250 minutes - 37.5 hours
4 contact hours - 3,000 minutes - 50 hours
5 contact hours - 3,750 minutes - 62.5 hours

What does the transportation fee have to do with where the class is located?

The transportation fee is a mandatory charge for students enrolled in 6 or more credit hours per semester in courses listed as "main campus". Please carefully review each class on your schedule. If the course meets in an actual classroom on campus (brick and mortar location) the course should be listed as "main campus".

How do I identify a special billing rate?

Included on the spreadsheet is a column detailing the current billing rate.  Please review this carefully and mark any course(s) that will be offered at a special rate. Once registration opens and students register for the class, the rate will not be adjusted.

Why type of information do I make in the notes section of the excel file? 

This area is to be used to identify any special needs or requests. Please use this area to indicate the need for a classroom with multimedia equipment. If you have a room preference, please mark it in this area.

When do I select a class for special approval?

The purpose of special approval is to identify a class that requires individual permission for every student. There may be classes marked for special approval that need the approval removed, as well as classes that should be marked as special approval that are not. If a class is marked as special approval then a special approval override will be needed for every student who is eligible to register for the class.

What is a primary instructor?

The primary instructor is the only person who can submit final grades. Many times a course is being taught by more than one instructor, so it is important to designate the correct primary instructor on the spreadsheet.

How do I mark a canceled class on the spreadsheet?

If you are cancelling a class that appears on the spreadsheet, please do not delete the class from the spreadsheet, mark it canceled. By deleting the class we lose the record of the scheduled classroom and cannot keep our schedule accurate. 

What is a flexibly scheduled course?

If a course does not meet during the standard beginning and end date, you will need to complete the Application for Flexibly Scheduled Course.