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COURSES FAQs

When do I use COURSES and when do I use Albert?

COURSES

COURSES is the Law School’s registration system. Keep in mind that you use  for: 

  • Registration (for law classes and Stern Preferential classes)
  • Checking your law school schedule
  • Checking for BLOCKS that prevent registration.

Albert

Albert is the University’s student information system. Keep in mind that you use  for:

  • Entering your emergency contact information
  • Credit/fail selection (for J.D. Students only - which begins each semester AFTER add/drop ends)
  • Checking your non-law class schedule (not cross-listed classes – classes that have numbers OTHER than LAW-LW). Please note Preferential Stern classes will be converted to the Stern course number after the add/drop period.
  • Checking your financial information/bursar account.

How do I enter COURSES?

  • Use your NetID and password to gain access to COURSES

Why won’t COURSES let me bid on classes?

In order to register for classes, you must:

  • Complete BOTH your cell phone AND emergency contact information in Albert.     
  • Enter "Current Location" information in Albert.
  • Be in compliance with your Bursar account.
  • Be in compliance with the required School of Law documentation.
  • Be in compliance with New York State Health Law requirements.
  • Complete the sexual misconduct training module.

When will COURSES NOT permit you to submit a bid for courses?

  • The course is not available due to a degree (JD or LLM) or class-level restriction;
  • The prerequisite or permission/waiver form was not timely submitted;
  • The same course was taken previously (note: that other than year-long courses, students cannot register for the same class more than once);
  • The course is your third or more seminar and you do not have permission to exceed the two-seminar maximum for the semester in question;
  • Within the same semester, you bid the same number of points (other than zero points) on more than one class; NOTE: When submitting several bids at one time, if the submission contains an invalid bid or bids as listed above, COURSES will not accept any of your bid requests.
  • You can enter either an alternate bid or a conditional drop bid but not both for the same primary bid.
  • Before you register, read Registration Eligibility for All Students. If you have not met all these requirements by stated deadlines, you will not be eligible to participate in registration.­­­­
  • First-year students should read Registering for Your 1L Elective.

When will COURSES NOT schedule courses?

  • A time conflict exists with a course already scheduled;
  • The co-requisite was not scheduled because of a time conflict or because the course was not requested;
  • The course was canceled (refer to the Course Updates website);
  • The maximum number of credits of 15 has already been scheduled;
  • The class was full.

How much should I bid for a particular class? 

It is hard to say exactly how much you should bid on any particular class. The clearing price for a class may change from the bidding cycle to each cycle during add/drop. It is most likely that a class that has been historically popular will continue to be popular. 

The Clearing Price list includes classes that closed in a particular bidding cycle for a particular population of students (2L, 3L, all upper-level students, etc.). It also notes the number of bid points paid by all who were admitted to the class. The bid price correlates to the highest losing bid( i.e., the bid amount of the first person to lose). 

Can I bid the same amount of points on multiple classes?

No, you cannot allocate the same number of bid points to more than one set of primary bids. For example, you cannot bid 10 points on two primary class selections. The only bid amount that can be repeated for multiple primary bids is ZERO.

How can I change my course schedule? 

Once the results from the first bidding cycle are published on COURSES, you can make changes to your schedule during the subsequent daily cycles. You must use COURSES to participate. The first opportunity to make schedule changes for Fall will be in July and for Spring in October. During the daily cycles, bids will be processed each business day during the remaining registration period.

For Fall classes, registration will resume in July and August. For Spring classes, registration will resume in October and January. See the Registration Calendar for the specific daily cycle dates. Note: Clearing prices are not published during the daily cycles.

You have the ability to place yourself on a waitlist in subsequent cycles. Your place on the waitlist is determined by the number of points bid on the course. Please see the Subsequent Registration Cycles. 

Students who did not participate in the initial registration cycle may register for classes at this time.

NOTE: It is recommended that you complete your transactions well before the last day of the bidding period to avoid problems connecting to or being disconnected from COURSES. We recommend you finalize your registration during business hours in case you need assistance. No special accommodation can be made if you miss registration deadlines.

What other guidance can I pursue to determine which elective class I should take?

Vice Dean Hertz and Assistant Dean Kirkland wrote with helpful curricular advice. The Vice Deans have also put together an Advising website and an Areas of Study website. You should review these sites carefully.  

How can I see course evaluations for a particular class?

Spring 2005 through the last semester are available. Beginning with Fall 2008 evaluations you will be able to see statistical information as well as comments.

How do I access my results? 

To view bidding results, log into COURSES. Under “Registrations” you will see the list of classes in which you are currently enrolled. In the “Bids” section, you can hover over each result for more information. 

You will have to bid for a class again if you still have not gained a seat in that class. During the registration cycles, your chance at a seat in a class will be based on the number of points you bid.

After the first cycle of bidding should I bid on a course that COURSES says is closed?

Don’t be discouraged if COURSES says a class is closed, you can still bid for that class. In the typical situation when a registered student drops a class a student that bid on the closed class might win that seat in the class.

After the first bidding cycle, can I bid on Corporations section #2 if I won Corporations section #1 during the first bidding cycle? 

After the first bidding cycle, if you are registered for a class, you cannot bid on another section of the same class unless you conditionally add/drop the class or outright drop the class from your schedule.