Please check the FAQ link for answers concerning different topics, and send an email to an appropriate contact (right-hand column) only if your answer isn't in a FAQ page.
| Topic | FAQ Link | |
|---|---|---|
| Registration issues and waitlists | this page | gradinfo at stat dt ubc dot ca |
| On-line registration not recognizing pre-requisites | https://courses.students.ubc.ca/cs/main | contact course co-ordinator |
| Statistics program advising | https://www.stat.ubc.ca/undergraduate-faqs | ugradadv at stat dot ubc dot ca |
| Changing to Statistics major | https://www.stat.ubc.ca/undergraduate-faqs#faq-tabs-1 | latemajorentrants at stat dot ubc dot ca |
| Data science minor | https://www.stat.ubc.ca/undergraduate-faqs#faq-tabs-3 | dsugradadv at stat dot ubc dot ca |
| UBC transfer credits |
https://students.ubc.ca/enrolment/registration/transfer-credits/post-sec... |
transfer.credits at ubc dot ca |
| Course outlines (previous years) | https://www.stat.ubc.ca/course-lookup | gradinfo at stat dot ubc dot ca |
ADVISING AND REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Please read the information and FAQs below before asking for assistance. Your question may well be answered here. If your question remains unanswered, please contact the Student Services Coordinator. Registration assistance is handled centrally via email, so please do not contact course instructors or come to the Main Office for registration assistance, as you will be directed back to this webpage.
Please ensure that you register in courses and labs as soon as your registration window opens. Our courses fill up fast, and we will not register you in a course that is full because you missed your registration window.
Registration priority is given to students registered in Statistics majors (including combined majors) during the first month of registration, or up until August 1st, whichever comes first. After that, any seat that are not filled will be opened to students from other programs. This includes waitlists.
DSCI 100: Please note we have a new waitlist for the Python section DSCI 100 100, the waitlist is DSCI 100 WL4. We encourage any students wishing to take that section and cant get in right now to register in that waitlist. It takes time to move students from the waitlist into the course as it has to be done manually so please do not contact the office if you see seats available in the course if it is blocked. It will be unblocked once all priority students have been registered first.
PREREQUISITES:
Our firm policy is that students must have the required prerequisites to enroll in Statistics courses. Prerequisites for each course are as stated in the UBC Calendar. Many of our courses have a hard prerequisite check, which means that students who are lacking the exact prerequisite will be barred from registering in the course.
If you believe you should be eligible to register because, for example, you have legitimate transfer credits to meet the prerequisites, please email the Student Services Coordinator. You will need to submit transcripts and course outlines/syllabus in order to demonstrate how you meet the prerequisites for the course. This should be done at least one month ahead of your registration time to allow time for assessment.
For courses where a hard prerequisite check does not exist, please note that students are still expected to meet the prerequisites for the course. If you do not have permission to take a course for which you are lacking the official prerequisite, you may be removed from the course.
Credit excluded courses: Students should keep in mind that a credit excluded course cannot be used in place of a prerequisite. Please plan your courses carefully with a view to courses you may want to take in the future. Credit excluded courses have some overlap in content, but are not direct equivalents, and thus cannot be substituted as a prerequisite.
REPEATING A COURSE:
It is a Faculty of Science regulation that students may NOT repeat a course for a higher standing. Students are only able to repeat a course if they received a failing grade. Only your Faculty Advising office has the authority to register you in a course that you previously failed.
WAITLISTS:
If there is a waitlist for a full course that you want and have the prerequisites for, you should register on the waitlist immediately.
Please note the following regarding waitlists:
- If all non-restricted seats are full, and you do not meet the restrictions for the available seats, please register yourself on the waitlist.
- Waitlists work on a priority basis for students who register before August 1st. As seats become available, students are moved manually into the course in the following order:
- Students in a Statistics specialization (including majors and combined majors, and all other variations), and students in certain other specializations for whom the course is required, and who register on the waitlist during BEFORE AUGUST 1ST*
- Students in a Statistics specialization who wish to take the course to fulfill STAT elective requirements, and who register on the waitlist during BEFORE AUGUST 1ST*
- Students registered in a minor in Statistics
- Everyone else in order of registration on the waitlist (including graduate students from other departments, non-Stat majors, visiting students, exchange and Go Global students, and Stat majors after the first month of registration)
- In some cases, higher priority may be accorded to students in a certain year or specialization. Within a category, students are moved in order of the date they joined the waitlist. *Students should register on the waitlist as soon as possible. If you do not register on the waitlist during the first month after registration opens, you will not be given priority, in order to be fair to other students who are on the waitlist.
- If you are a student who is in 4th year, and need a course to graduate in May, you may be considered for forced registration or priority in the waitlist. To be eligible for priority registration, you must register on the waitlist and notify the Student Services Coordinator of your situation BEFORE AUGUST 1ST. Please note that only students who are within 30 credits (in September) or 15 credits (in January) of graduation will be considered for forced registration, and only when the course is required, and not an elective. We will verify this information, and notify you if you qualify. If you are able to take another course to fulfill your requirements, you will be asked to register in that course if it is not full. Please note that you will not receive this priority if you have failed to be promoted to 4th year.
- We will be moving students from the waitlist into the course in batches, and this may not occur every day. Thus, a course may seem to have seats available for several days before we will fill the seats from the waitlist. Please be patient, and do not contact the Department about this issue.
- Waitlists are managed according to the priorities described above. Please do not contact the instructor or office staff to ask about your waitlist position, or to request the ability to jump the queue (except as per item 3).
- Students who are unable to register in the waitlist for reasons such as prerequisite issues should contact the Student Services Coordinator as soon as possible to be placed on the list. Please see our information on prerequisites for more information.
- Most courses with a waitlist will use these policies up to the add/drop deadline. After the add/drop deadline, no further students will be admitted to our courses, and the waitlist will be purged close to the end of office hours.
- If we attempt to move you from the waitlist into the course, and you have meanwhile registered yourself in something that conflicts, we will contact you via email about the conflict. You will be given 24 hours to clear the conflict, after which time we will move on to the next student. We will only attempt to contact you once, so it is up to you to monitor your email, and clear any conflicts in a timely manner.
REGISTRATION FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Can I register in a Statistics course without the prerequisite? I’m really interested in the course, and I will work really hard!
Prerequisites for our courses are firm, and we generally do not allow students to register in a course if they do not have the prerequisite. Historically, students who do not have prerequisites have done poorly in our courses. Students should plan ahead and make sure they take the proper prerequisites for any courses they will want to take.
I want to take Stat 406, but I took Econ 326 or 328, which are credit excluded with Stat 306. Can I register in Stat 406?
Unfortunately, no. Econ 326 and 328 are credit excluded with Stat 306, but these courses are not equivalent. There is a great deal of material covered in Stat 306 that is not found in Econ 326 that is not foundin either Econ 326 or 328, and that material is crucial for success in Stat 406. Students wishing to take Stat 406 at some point will need to plan ahead and take Stat 306. Combined Stat/Econ majors should note that they may take Stat 306 rather than Econ 326.
I’m a Graduate student in another department, and I’d like to register in some undergraduate Statistics courses. Is this possible?
Yes, as long as you have fulfilled the prerequisite background. If you took the prerequisites at another university, you will likely need assistance with registration. Please contact gradinfo@stat.ubc.ca, and provide a course outline or link to demonstrate how you have fulfilled the prerequisites.
I’m an undergraduate student. Can I take a graduate course?
Yes you can, provided you have the relevant background. You’ll need to contact the course instructor and get permission to register. Be prepared to explain to them why you think you have the background to succeed in the course. Then you’ll need to fill out an Enrolment Form and have it signed by all necessary parties before submitting it to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
I’ve registered in a course, but all the labs that fit my schedule are full. What should I do?
You should be diligent and keep trying to register in a lab that fits your schedule as spaces open up. The department will ensure that there are enough lab seats available for the number of students registered in the course. However, we cannot guarantee that seats will fit your preferred time or registration schedule, and we cannot overload labs due to space restrictions. You may need to change your registration in other courses to get access to a lag/tutorial where there are available seats.
Can I attend a lab section that I’m not registered in, if it fits my schedule better?
You must go to the lab in which you are registered. Marks are assigned in accordance with registration, and you will not receive grades for your labs if you do not attend the section in which you are registered.
What happened to Stat 241? It's a requirement for me, and I can't find it to register!
Stat 241 has been cross-listed with Stat 251. In 2018 we eliminated Stat 241, and all students can now register in Stat 251.
The course I want to register in is full, but I don’t see a waitlist?
We don’t have waitlists for all of our courses. Some courses are offered in the summer, and students who are unable to register in the winter can take the course at that time. Some of our larger courses, such as Stat 200 and Stat 251, experience a great deal of movement in registration, and most students can get a seat if they are vigilant in terms of monitoring enrollment. If there is no waitlist for a full course, you’ll need to watch for a space to open up, and register yourself at that time.
I see room in the course, so why is the waitlist not moving?
Once a waitlist is created, the main section is blocked and nobody can register in it. We move students from the waitlist into the course in batches, so it may be several days before we are able to full available seats from the waitlist. Please be patient and to not contact staff or instructors about this issue.
Can I contact the course instructor or Department Advisor to improve my priority on the waitlist?
All waitlists are managed according to the priorities listed above. Please do not contact instructors, advisors, or office staff to ask about your position on the waitlist, or to request special consideration. The exception is those students mentioned in item 3 above.
What are my chances of getting into a full course if I’m registered on the waitlist?
Each course is different, and your chances of getting in are difficult to predict. Generally, a small number of seats in almost every course become free for various reasons, but please keep in mind our prioritization, as listed above.
Can’t you just add more seats, or another section for the course?
Unfortunately, this is not always possible. Additional seats require additional TAs, bigger rooms, and more labs. Additional sections require additional instructors and TAs, additional rooms, and more labs. Though we do our best, it may not be possible to meet the demand for additional seats or sections.
I’ve registered on the waitlist for a course, but I really need the course in order to register for courses in subsequent terms. What should I do?
You can only register on the waitlist and hope for the best. We accommodate as many students as possible in our courses, and will move students off the waitlist as space become available. You might want to consider making an appointment with your departmental advisor to discuss course planning for future terms, in case you cannot get into the course you want in the current term. We strongly urge all students to plan their courses well in advance, taking into account prerequisites and recognizing that many of our courses are only offered once per year. Make sure you register as soon as your registration date and time permits.
I’m a 4th-year Stat major, and a course I need to graduate is full! What should I do?
First of all, please consult the UBC Calendar, and make sure that the course IS truly required. If the course is an elective, and there are other courses that you could take, please check and see if any of those courses have room in them. If there is another course you can take, and there is room in that course, you will need to register in it, even if it is not your preference. We cannot force add students to a full course if there is another available option. If, however, the course is a *required* course, and there are no other options available, please register on the waitlist immediately, and contact gradinfo@stat.ubc.ca as soon as you have registered on the waitlist. Please note that we will verify your request, and will only register you in the course if there are no other options available to you. We will not force register students on the basis of preference.
The course I want to take is full. Can I just audit it, instead?
Due to seat restrictions in lecture halls, we are not able to allow students to audit a course that is full or has a waitlist. We offer priority to students who need to take a course for credit.
I’m a Stat major, and I registered on the waitlist right before the semester started. Will I be given priority for the course?
We offer priority to students as discussed above. However, in fairness to students who registered in a timely manner, this priority is only extended students who register on waitlists during the first month of registration. We cannot extend priority to students who forget to register, change their minds, fail to plan ahead, or have dropped the course for whatever reason and now want to pick it up again.
How can I avoid having to get on a waitlist during the next school year?
Be sure to register for courses as soon as your registration time becomes available. Students register by year, in descending order of GPA: 4th year, then 1st year, then 3rd year, and finally 2nd year. Your best chance of avoiding a waitlist is to improve your GPA. When your GPA goes up, you register earlier.