Frequently Asked Questions

You've got questions, and we've got answers!

New/Incoming Students

Course Registration & Schedule Builder

How do I build my fall quarter schedule?
To begin, complete Aggie 101 and the Canvas Modules and review the sociology emphasis sheets to understand your requirements.

Log-in to Schedule Builder prior to your pass 1 time and begin building a draft of your fall schedule along with and some alternative drafts in case the courses you want are full during your Pass 1.

It's recommended that you schedule an appointment to meet with an advisor to review the draft of your fall schedule and have your questions answered.

We typically recommend 12-14 units your first quarter. 12 units is the minimum for full-time status and is required for students to meet the minimum progress standard, financial aid eligibility, and on-campus housing requirements. If you plan to be a part-time student, please connect with an advisor to learn about the process.

In subsequent quarters, students often take 15-16 units, but it not necessary for every student to take that many units each quarter to graduate on-time. It's recommended that you speak with an advisor regarding an academic plan so you can understand how many units you should take each quarter.
How does my coursework transfer to UC Davis and to my major?
Your transfer credit takes time to process, but will be displayed in your OASIS' "Academic Tab" prior to the beginning of fall quarter.

For courses taken at a California Community college, you can use Assist.org to find course equivalencies. Some course equivalencies at non-California Community Colleges are listed on the TES site. If the course is not listed on either site, you will need to work though the individual departments to determine if a course is equivalent to a course at UC Davis.

An example of how a course will be listed in your OASIS academic record is -

(SOC 001) - SOC 300 - Introductory Sociology at Consumes River College

The course listed in parenthesis is the equivalent course at UC Davis. So, in this case, the course taken at Consumes River College is equivalent to SOC 1.

Another example:

(SOC TR1) - SOC 150 - Intro to Sociology at University of San Francisco

In this example, the course is listed as TR1 in parenthesis since the equivalency has not yet been determined. You would need to work with the department regarding how the course would fulfill your requirements.
I keep getting errors when trying to register. Help!
Registration errors may occur because you have exceeded the maximum units allowed during pass 1 or pass 2, have not taken the course prerequisites, or encountered one of the following course restrictions:

→ Major Restriction: These courses are reserved for students declared in a certain major(s) during pass 1. These courses typically open up to all students during Pass 2. If you aren't declared in the major, you will need to wait until pass 2 to register for these courses.
→ Class-Level Restriction: These courses are reserved for students belonging to a certain class-level (e.g. juniors (90 units) and seniors 135 units)). Most of these restrictions are removed during Pass 2 registration.
→ Duplicate Course, Section, Equivalent, or Cross-list: You may not enroll in more than one section of a course or a course equivalent, including cross-listed courses.
→ Time Conflict: You may not enroll in two courses scheduled at the same time.
I completed the prerequisite, but Schedule Builder it saying I don't have it!
There are several possible reasons you are encountering this issue, but the most common are:
1. Your Pass 1 occurred before Undergraduate Admissions finished their review of your transfer credit so the prerequisite course is not yet posted to your record.
2. Course equivalency has not yet been determined for the prerequisite course
3. Your score on an AP or IB exam is insufficient to meet the prerequisite course

In these cases, Schedule Builder may not recognize that you have completed the prerequisite course. However, if you believe you have completed ALL prerequisites for the course, you can complete the Prerequisite Petition that appears in Schedule Builder. Completing the petition will allow you to register for the course. During pass 2 and up until the first week of the quarter, petitions will be reviewed and either approved or denied by the department.
How do Pass Times work?
Pass 1
♦ Your Pass 1 is a four hour window and your first opportunity to register for the upcoming quarter
♦ After your Pass 1 appointment ends, there are open registration times, and you can check the Registration Calendar for open times
♦ During Pass 1, many course restrictions are active. This includes major restrictions
♦ You can only register for up to 17 units during Pass 1
♦ Wait-lists are typically open during pass 1 except for courses in fall quarter that are on seat release.
♦ Wait-listed courses count toward the 17 unit maximum. Please note that wait-listed courses do not count toward the 12 unit minimum needed for financial aid!

Pass 2
♦ Many course restrictions end (e.g. Pass 1 major-restrictions end and courses open up to everyone)
♦ The maximum unit threshold raises to 19 units
♦ During fall quarter, wait-lists open for courses that are on seat release
How do wait-lists work?
Wait-lists are available during Pass 1 except for courses on fall seat release.

In Schedule Builder, when you add a course that has 0 seats, you will be prompted to add to the wait-list. When you are on a course's wait-list, you are NOT registered for the course. The wait-list is an ordered list of students who will automatically be added to the course when registered students drop the course. When you become #1 on the wait-list, and a registered student drops the course, you will automatically be registered for the open seat. The student who was in the #2 wait-listed spot will move into the #1 wait-listed spot.

If you are still on the wait-list for a course after the quarter begins, your chances of enrollment decrease every day. After the 12th day of instruction wait-lists are removed, and all wait-listed students will no longer have access to the course.
I'm supposed to take 1–2 non-major courses (electives). What's that?
Since the sociology and sociology- organizational majors only requires 72-75 units, in order to graduate, students will need to take units outside of the required major courses.
For students in the College of Letters and Sciences, 180 total units are required to graduate and of those units, 64 of them need to be upper division level courses (courses numbered 100-199). You will receive 44 upper division units from the major.
Even with completing all your GE's, you will still need additional units, so we encourage you to take non-major elective courses to expand your knowledge and explore other interests.
When you are registering for fall quarter, it's okay that some courses may already be full because you will have room in your academic plan to take elective courses.

If you are coming in as a first-year freshman, it's recommended that you stick with lower division courses (1-99 in course number).

If you are coming in as a new transfer student, we recommend that you register for only upper division coursework (100-199) unless you have already discussed taking lower division with an advisor.

Consider these options:
♦ Courses that help you explore a minor or double major.
♦ Courses that prepare your for your career interests
♦ Courses, in any discipline, that interest you (some course flyers of available courses)
♦ First-Year Seminar or First-Year Aggie Connection
Everything I want to take is full! What should I register for?
Consider these options:
♦ Courses that help you explore a minor or double major.
♦ Courses that prepare your for your career interests
♦ Courses, in any discipline, that interest you (some course flyers of available courses)
♦ First-Year Seminar or First-Year Aggie Connection
The truth about seat availability in Schedule Builder:
♦ Continuing students had their Pass 1 appointments in May, so many seats were filled prior to your admission to UC Davis.
♦ Pass times are assigned based on class standing - seniors (135 units and above), juniors (90-134 units), sophomores (45- 89 units), freshmen(1-44 units) - so as you advance through your time at UC Davis, you will have earlier assigned pass times.
♦ For many courses, seats are reserved for incoming students. The seats are divided amongst students in each college. If you encounter an error that you don't qualify for a reserved seat, it may mean that the seats are reserved for a different college, so you can try and register for another section.
♦ During Pass 2, many students will modify their schedules, so courses that are full during pass 1, may end up with open seats.
What are the add/drop deadlines?
Use the calendars on the Office of the Registrar website to keep track of all University deadlines. You can even add these calendars to your personal google calendar by clicking the Subscribe option!

Quarter Dates & Deadlines Calendar | Registration Calendar

Last day to add is the 12th day of instruction.

Courses have either a 10 day drop deadline or 20 day drop deadline. You can find the drop day for each course in the course information section of Schedule Builder.

Declaring Your Major or Minor

How do I change my major?
Students can be eligible to change their major once they have completed one quarter at UC Davis. You also need to be in good academic standing at the time that you submit your change your major form.

Some majors may have additional requirements to declare their major. Check the website for your intended major for their declaration requirements and change of major process.
How do I declare an emphasis for my major?
In sociology, we have many different emphasis options, and you do need to select one to follow in order to complete your major requirements.

There is not a formal emphasis declaration process. Simply follow the advising sheet for your intended emphasis and the next time you meet with a SOC advisor we can update your record!
I want to double major. How does that work?
In a lot of cases, students have the flexibility for completing a double major, However, there are some factors that make double majors complex, so it is important to meet with an advisor and build an academic plan that ensures requirements can be met under the unit cap and in a reasonable time-frame.
Where can I learn about minors? Will I be able to complete a minor?
Whether you are a first year freshman or transfer student, it is reasonable to expect that you will have the flexibility in your degree requirements to fit a minor into your academic plan. We encourage you to explore the minors at UCD and discuss your ideas with a major advisor or a minor advisor.

You can find contact info for minor advising on the website for the department offering the minor.

Once you have decided to declare a minor and have completed the courses required to declare it, you may declare it by using the Minor Declaration form in OASIS (under the Forms & Petitions tab). In most cases, you will not be able to declare the minor until you have completed some of the minor coursework.

General Questions

What is an A.B. Degree? Is it the same as a B.A.?
A.B. is the abbreviation of Artium Baccalaureus, the Latin form of Bachelor of Arts. At UC Davis, you will hear A.B. and B.A. used interchangeably. Formally, your diploma will read "Bachelor of Arts."
Where can I learn about my major requirements?
The majors and minors page has the advising sheets for each emphasis that list the requirements.
What is the difference between major advisors and college advisors (i.e. College of Letters & Science advisors)?
Going to both major and college advising is essential to your academic success. However, since the advisors in each department have different roles, it’s important to understand which advising center can best assist you based on your questions and goals.

Major advisors can assist you with creating academic plans, understanding major requirements, discussing your educational and career goals, preparing for grad school, and learning about field-related opportunities.

College advisors can assist you with understanding GE and IGETC requirements and other non-major degree requirements. They also advise on academic probation and minimum progress, pass/no pass grading restrictions, and can approve late drops of courses if there are extenuating circumstances.
Lower-division vs. upper-division courses. What's the difference?
Most 4-year institutions classify courses by lower and upper division, and numbering conventions are on a university-by-university basis. At UC Davis, we classify our courses accordingly:
♦ 001–099 courses are lower division
♦ 100–199 courses are upper division
♦ 200–499 courses are graduate level

Lower-division courses focus on subject-matter breadth, skill-building, and foundational knowledge.

Upper-division courses focus on the depth of a subject or topic and sometimes require prerequisite knowledge.
I live with a disability, an illness, or different abilities. How can I get accommodations in my classes?
The Student Disability Center (SDC) supports students who seek accommodations in their classes due to a documented physical, mental, or learning difference. Accommodations are meant to bridge gaps and remove barriers in a student's classroom learning experience.

The SDC website explains the process for getting registered with this service, including the documentation that you must provide.