# Course Planning Resource Guide
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If you have navigated to this site, most likely you are ready to complete course form(s) for the courses you will be teaching during the coming Academic Year. We ask that you review the forms, including those for spring semester, make any necessary updates and additions, and then submit the forms as soon as possible, and no later than June 30th.
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### Academic Calendar Information expand\_more
Additional information to consider while reviewing the HGSE academic calendar.
- Please refer to the Interfaith Calendar at for the dates of religious holidays.
- Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences holds classes on Veteran’s Day. HGSE does not hold classes on Veteran’s Day.
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[### HGSE Academic Calendar
](https://www.gse.harvard.edu/community/students/academic-calendar)AY2026-2027
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[### HGSE Academic Calendar \[PDF Version\]
](https://registrar.gse.harvard.edu/sites/g/files/omnuum3991/files/2026-03/HGSE%202026-27%20Calendar.pdf)AY2026-2027
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[### HGSE Instructional Days of the Week \[PDF\]
](https://registrar.gse.harvard.edu/sites/g/files/omnuum3991/files/2026-03/HGSE%20Instructional%20Days%20AY26-27.pdf)AY2026-2027
### Course Catalog Display Information expand\_more
**Catalog Number**
Assigned to new courses based on number convention to maintain consistency in the data. Requests for adjustments to catalog numbers can be made in consultation with the registrar.
**Course Title**
The title is displayed in the catalog and limited to 100 characters.
**Course Description**
This description pertains to each offering of the course and should exclude any information that is only relevant to the instance of a class in the specific year and term. Any information that may become outdated from year to year should be excluded if possible.
**Class Notes**
A space that appears in the course search listing under Course Description for application instructions, irregular schedule notes, and other information that pertains only to the class for the term in which it is offered. Class Notes are distinct for each section of a course while Course Description is shared by all offerings of that course.
**Course Attributes**
These values help categorize the course and describe the content, pedagogy, and competencies relevant to the course. These attributes are searchable by students in the online catalog. Click here for a list of currently available course attributes.
### Grading Options expand\_more
**Letter Grade (LG):** Standard A through F letter grading.
**Satisfactory / No Credit (SUS):** Students receive SAT for a passing grade or NCR for no credit.
**Student Option (OPT):** Students select their grading preference at the time of enrollment for either SAT / NRC or Letter Grade.
Note that HGSE students must take at least 16 credits for a Letter Grade and the grade option may factor into a student’s course selection decision.
### Enrollment Type expand\_more
### Lottery-based Enrollment
When the lottery opens as published on the [HGSE Academic calendar](https://www.gse.harvard.edu/community/students/academic-calendar), students may rank up to 6 courses in order of preference among all courses participating in the lottery for that term.
The lottery is run on the day or day after the lottery deadline specified on the HGSE Academic Calendar. Students are enrolled in up to four courses automatically. At this time, instructors of lottery-based enrollment courses are notified that their enrollment roster and / or waitlist is viewable in my.Harvard.
Each lottery course has a my.Harvard waitlist, and eligible students are enrolled from the waitlist as space becomes available every 15 minutes. After the lottery is run, during open enrollment and the add/drop period, students may add themselves to the end of the waitlist with an approved petition for instructor permission.
Instructors may choose to stop their waitlist from enrolling students on a date of their choosing, if earlier than the add/drop deadline is desired.
Instructors may specify a number of seats to be held for cross-registration students. Seats held in this way are only for the initial lottery run and are not held as the waitlist begins to run.
### Application-based Enrollment
**Application-based** courses have limited enrollment capacity and applications are administered by the primary instructors, faculty coordinators, and teaching fellows. In addition to submitting a petition for instructor approval via my.Harvard, faculty may require additional steps before admitting students into the course.
Guidance and expectations for the application process should be visible on the my.Harvard in the **Class Notes** section. Instructors are encouraged to conclude their application process and notify students on or before the [open enrollment period](https://www.gse.harvard.edu/community/students/academic-calendar) to give students ample time to enroll in back up courses.
Upon request, instructors of **application-based** courses may have a my.Harvard waitlist enabled for their course. This option allows for automatic enrollment from the waitlist into the course roster as space becomes available. Students with approved petitions for instructor permission can add themselves to the waitlist if the course is at enrollment capacity or the enrollment if there is space. The waitlist is ranked, and students are automatically enrolled if there is space in the course every 15 minutes.
### Open Enrollment
Courses are not size limited and are for all HGSE students who have met applicable course enrollment prerequisites.
Petitions for instructor permission are needed for enrollment after the open enrollment period, and the registration deadline expires.
### Restricted Enrollment
Courses are limited to a specific population or list of students. This does not include online courses for OEL students. These courses may be eligible for batch enrollment by the Registrar’s Office.
### Prerequisites expand\_more
An instructor may designate other courses as prerequisites for enrollment. If a course with prerequisites is not space-limited, it may be offered as **Open Enrollment** as students who have not satisfied enrollment prerequisites will be prompted to submit a petition for instructor permission.
A course with prerequisites not described by enrollment in prior coursework or enrollment in a particular program should be offered by **Instructor Application.**
### Schedule and Meeting Pattern expand\_more
This data reflects when and how the class meets. One meeting pattern is defined by days of the week on which the course meets, meeting start time, and meeting end time. For example, Monday and Thursdays from 3:30PM to 5:30PM.
**Visual Class Schedule**
During the course planning period, the academic planning team maintains a visual course planning schedule to track when courses meet as they are developed. This is a useful resource for thinking about when courses might be offered to avoid conflicts with other key courses as well as community and program blocks.
**Start and End Times**
Classes should start and end in 15-minute intervals within the hour to facilitate travel time in between classes. To avoid a conflict with a commitment that begins at 3:00PM, for example, a class should end at 2:45.
**Sections**
A section refers to the specific offering or instance of a course. For example, A123 may be offered twice in the Fall full-term session with A123 Section 1 and A123 Section 2. Sections do not refer to small groups within a class offered only once.
**Small Groups**
A course with required small groups that maintain static group membership and meet regularly outside of the main meeting pattern should be reflected by a meeting pattern and student enrollment in my.Harvard.
[### Visual Schedule for AY2026-2027
](https://hu.sharepoint.com/:x:/s/OfficeofRegistrar/IQDEZvoKxfXXTYj48WQCssZrAToGl6RqHHM4GxNLlVz7wl4)This is a link to a view only excel document with the live draft of the course schedule. This document is subject to change throughout the course planning cycle.
### Room Allocation expand\_more
Ahead of the start of each term, you will be sent a separate room preference survey by the registrar’s academic planning team. Please fill this form out as completely as possible as it is important to know your 2nd and 3rd choice spaces. The registrar’s office makes every effort to accommodate space requests based on preferences but facility limitations along with several very popular spaces makes accommodating every request impossible. After open enrollment is closed, you will be notified of your room assignment.
**Breakout Space**
Breakout space is required for small discussions or groupwork during portions or all a course. The registrar’s office academic planning team will assist you in reserving appropriate breakout space for
All requests for modifications to academic space reservations, including breakout rooms and ad-hoc meeting needs should be made through .
[### Classroom Layouts for HGSE Buildings
](https://registrar.gse.harvard.edu/sites/g/files/omnuum3991/files/2025-04/hgse_classrm_spaces_for_registrar_scheduling_ay24-25.pdf)This PDF document will display the classroom layout, seating capacity and location for all HGSE classrooms.
### Year-Long Courses expand\_more
Year-long courses are offered in two components across terms. Each component has a unique catalog number and often shares a course title. Course titles should include “pt 1” or “pt 2” to highlight that the course is part of a yearlong course.
**Indivisible**
A year-long course which requires successful completion of the second half to receive credit for the first half. Indivisible year
**Divisible**
A year-long course that awards credit for the first half to a student who continues to the second half and / or vice versa.
### Jointly Offered Courses expand\_more
More information coming soon!
### Course Previews expand\_more
Course Previews are comprised of 2 components
- **Pre-recorded videos**: a required part of the course enrollment process and should be uploaded to your Canvas site no later than the date designated below. Please make sure to follow [these instructions](https://registrar.gse.harvard.edu/sites/g/files/omnuum3991/files/2025-08/how_to_publish_your_course_preview_video_on_canvas.pdf) when uploading your 8-10 minute course videos.
- **Live Q&A course previews**: Offering a live course preview is encouraged but optional. If you opt out of the live course preview, we ask that you make yourself available on the dates designated below to answer any questions students may have about your course via email or office hours.
Please see the HGSE [Academic Calendar](https://www.gse.harvard.edu/community/students/academic-calendar) for important dates.