CS 473 sometimes fills up months before the class actually begins. If want or need to take 473 next spring, and the class is already full when you try to register, RELAX!! You have several options!
- Try again next semester.
- Enough said. (No, I'm not teaching 473 next fall. I might teach 473 again in Spring 2011, but we haven't decided that yet.)
- Talk to Steve Herzog in the academic office.
- There may be some additional slots reserved for graduating seniors.
- Get on the waiting list.
- Come to class, take notes, do the homeworks, go to head-banging sessions, go to office hours, and so forth, just like the registered students. During the first two lectures, I will pass around a signup sheet for a waiting list. Students on the waiting list will be registered in decreasing order by homework average. If you do not submit homework, I will assume you are no longer interested in registering and will remove your name from the waiting list. On the day of the add deadline (February 1), if the class is still full and there are still unregistered students on the waiting list, we will raise the enrollment cap to let everyone in. (I've had to do this exactly once in 12 years.)
- Keep trying to register.
- Come to class, take notes, do the homeworks, go to head-banging sessions, go to office hours, and so forth, just like the registered students. Once the semester starts, keep checking UI Direct. Usually enough other students will drop out after the first few weeks that everyone who wants to register can, but students on the waiting list have first priority. I will not adjust your grade just because you registered late.
- Take a proficiency exam.
- I do not offer separate proficiency exams. However, you can take the regularly scheduled final exam at the regular time for proficiency credit. Your grade will be based on your exam grade, relative to the registered students. For example, if you get a 75% on the proficiency exam, you get the same letter grade as a registered student who got a 75% on their final exam. If you plan to take the final exam for proficiency credit, please contact me at least one week beforehand.
The university has lots of rules about proficiency exams. You need a grade of C- or better to pass. If you pass, your transcript will have a grade of "Pass", and you will receive the usual number of credit hours. If you do not pass, nothing will appear on your transcript. You must be a registered student who has not already taken the class. (The rules for graduate students are slightly different.)
Do not take the proficiency exam unless you are sure you know the material! Some students wait until their very last semester at UIUC to take the 473 proficiency exam, and then fail. Those students did not graduate; some of them even lost pending job offers. Don't do this! As a safety net, I strongly recommend also taking the midterms; these will be averaged in with your final.
- Encourage your friends to drop.
- They don't really have to take 473 this semester, at least not as much as you do. If they're really your friends, they'll drop the class to make room for you.
Jeff Erickson
(jeffe@cs.uiuc.edu)
05 Nov 2009