Normal Program of Study
A student in Yale College normally takes four or five term courses, or their equivalent, for each of eight terms.
1. A student may not enroll in a program of study worth fewer than three course credits in one term. A student enrolled for three course credits may withdraw from one course credit between midterm and the first day of the reading period, receiving the neutral designation W (Withdrew) in that course. Similarly, a student enrolled for four or more course credits may withdraw from one or more courses as described above, but at no time may any student carry a schedule of courses that will earn fewer than two course credits in a term.
2. A three-course-credit program of study or a six-course-credit program of study requires the permission of the residential college dean. It is assumed that any student who requests permission to carry more than five course credits does not intend to drop any of them.
3. A student must petition the Yale College Committee on Honors and Academic Standing for permission to take a program worth seven credits in a term. In the petition the student must explicitly state an intention to complete all the courses proposed.
4. Opportunities for independent study exist in many programs and departments under various designations: directed reading or research, individual reading or research, independent research or study, independent or special projects, individual instruction in music performance, independent, individual, or special tutorials, and the senior essay or project, among others. Note that course credit earned in such study may not be used toward fulfillment of the distributional requirements for the Class of 2009 and subsequent classes. Approval for any such particular course is given by the department or program; however, approval for an independent study course is also required from the Yale College Committee on Honors and Academic Standing if certain limits are exceeded. A student must petition the committee for permission to enroll in more than one such course credit in any one term before the senior year or in more than two such course credits in any one term during the senior year. Permission is also required for a student to enroll in more than three such course credits in the first six terms of enrollment. In the petition the student must give sound academic reasons for exceeding these limits.
