Frequently Asked Questions

General

• Where is the CHHS Student Success Center located? 

  • The CHHS SSC is located in MacQuarrie Hall, Room 533 (fifth floor).

• Who is my assigned academic advisor?

  • Check your Success Team on Spartan Connect for your assigned advisor. If you do not have an assigned advisor, please call the front desk at (408) 924-2910. 

• How do I know if I am a lower-division or upper-division student?

  • Lower-division students have completed 59 units or less. Lower-division students meet with Student Academic Success Specialists during their first and second year at SJSU.

    Upper-division students have completed 60+ units. Upper-division students meet with Academic Advisors at the SSC or a major/faculty advisor within their respective major.

• How do I apply for graduation?

  • Our advisors can walk you through the process of applying for graduation and determine elibility. Visit the Office of the Registrar's Application Central webpage for additional information.

• Can I print or use the copier at the center?

  • Printing and copier use at our center is for faculty and staff only. Students may print or copy at the Computer Services Center in the Student Union (Upper Level) or at the Martin Luther King Library.

Change of Major

• Change of Major for Newly Admitted Students

  • Newly admitted students must complete at least one semester at SJSU and earn a GPA before being considered for a change of major request. New students must attend orientation with the college housing their admitted major. At orientation, however, students with an interest in changing their major will have an opportunity to let their orientation advisors know this information. This information will be taken into consideration when advising students for their first semester.

• How do I change my major?

  • Students must apply to the major of their interest. Each major has specific impaction or change of major criteria, either a set of prerequisite courses or a minimum GPA requirement, as well as an application process. Meet with an advsisor for more information.

• When can I change my major?

  • Different majors have different deadlines. Consult with a Student Success Center advisor.

• If I change my major, can I still graduate in 4 years?

  • Changing your major can delay graduation. Visit an academic advisor for more information.

Registration

• When can I register for classes?
  • Your enrollment appointment date and time is listed in your MySJSU student center.  Please see this guide for instructions.
• I need to retake a class, but the registration system is giving me an error message.  What should I do?
  • Please see the Office of the Registrar website for information on repeating a class.
• I am repeating a class. Do I need a petition in order to repeat the same class? 

  • If you are repeating a class for the first time, you are able to re-enroll through MySJSU 

    If you are repeating a class for the 2nd time, you will need to complete the Petition for a Repeat Exception. 

• I have a CHHS  Academic Advising hold on my account. What should I do?
  • The CHHS - Academic Advising hold will prevent you from registering for classes. If you are a CHHS major, please check your email inbox and MySJSU message center for a message from Talisha Teague.  Follow the instructions in the message in order to get the hold lifted.  If you are in the UPN program, please check your email inbox and MySJSU message center for a message from Max Estrada. Follow the instructions in the message in order to get the hold lifted.
• I have an Academic Advising hold on my account. What should I do?
  • We invite you to make an appointment with a CHHS SSC academic advisor. 
• What is the difference between Academic Notice, Continued Academic Notice, and Academic Disqualifiction?

  • Academic Notice (formerly Academic Probation) refers to the academic standing category for students with a SJSU cumulative GPA below 2.0. 

    Continued Academic Notice refers to students to obtain a semester GPA of a 2.0 but have not brought their SJSU cumulative GPA to a 2.0 or higher 

    Academic Disqualification refers to the academic standing category for students on academic notice who have not met the criteria to remain on continued notice (term GPA of at least 2.0), or return to good academic standing (SJSU cumulative GPA of at least 2.0).  

• Where can I get more information about Petitions or Withdrawls?

  • You can visit this link to find about more information about Petitions.

    You can visit this link to find information about late drops as well as semester withdrawls.

• I have another SJSU hold on my account. What should I do?
  • You can visit this link to find information on the most common SJSU holds as well as what actions you can take to work towards clearing them. 
• I have put courses in my shopping cart, am I done registering?
  • No, putting courses in your shopping cart does not constitute having registered for a class. You must now select those classes and finish the enrollment process.
• I’m not sure if the class I’m looking at is in-person, online synchronous, or online non-synchronous. How can I tell the difference?
  • For the classes that are being held in-person, you will see days, times, and a room number listed. Synchronous classes will have scheduled online meeting times via Zoom. For these classes you will see days, times, and “TBA” listed as the room number. Non-synchronous classes will not have scheduled online meeting times. These classes will show “TBA” for Days & Times and the Room number.
• I’ve been trying to register for a class forever, and the system won’t let me.  What should I do?
  • Science classes like CHEM 1A often have several components; a LEC (lecture), a SEM (seminar), & a LAB. You must put all of the components in your shopping cart (open classes only - no wait listing!) and then complete registration for all 3 components at the same time.  If you don’t register for all components at the same time, you will get an error message.
    Or you may also get an error message “Prerequisites have not been met,” which means that your enrollment category will not let you register for those classes and/or you still have some courses to take before you can enroll in the course
• My error message says "Department Consent Required." What does this mean?
  • This means you will be unable to add the class without a permission number ("addcode"). You will need to contact the instructor of that class and ask them for a permission number. If the instructor is "Staff" please contact the department the course belongs to.
• My error message says “This Course is Outside Your Career Field.” What does it mean?
  • This means you are trying to enroll in a course not approved for your status, i.e. your enrollment category and/or major.  You must choose another course.
• What does the "Time conflicting / overlap” error message mean?
  • The class you’re trying to register for conflicts with the day and time of another class you are either already enrolled in or are also trying to enroll in at the same time. You cannot register for two classes that meet at the same time. You must choose another class without a time conflict. 
     

Upper-Division Writing Directed Self Placement (UDW DSP)

• What is the UDW DSP? What happended to the Writing Skills Test (WST)?
  • In the past, a passing score on the Writing Skills Test (WST) was a prerequisite to enrolling in SJSU Studies courses. However, due to COVID-19 and public health considerations, SJSU suspended the WST until further notice.  To prevent any barriers to students' progress to degree, SJSU has created an alternative process, the Upper-Division Writing Directed Self Placement (UDW DSP) exercise. The UDW DSP will help you learn about the 100-level writing courses that are available to you (both 100A and 100W) and choose the course that is right for you. Once a student has completed the UDW DSP, their WST requirement will be fulfilled and will never expire. We strongly encourage you to complete the UDW DSP before your enrollment date to prevent any delays in registering for your 100-level writing course. Please visit this website[BROKEN LINK] for more information about the UDW DSP.  
• Why is this necessary?
  • Completing the UDW DSP will allow you to take your SJSU Studies Upper Division GE's R, S, and V. It will also allow you to take the 100W course for your major.