To support greater student equity, University of Michigan students now will be assigned course registration appointments based only on credit earned as an enrolled U-M student or accepted after transferring from another college or university.
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Beginning with registration for the spring, summer and fall 2021 semesters, college credit earned through tests taken before enrolling will no longer be counted for registration priority purposes. This includes Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams, and other tests such as ACT, SAT, AVL, CLEP and IMAT.
College credit earned through tests taken before matriculation will continue to satisfy course prerequisites and count toward degree completion.
The change ensures that U-M students who attended high schools with few or no opportunities to earn test credit will not be at a disadvantage in appointment assignments. The more equitable registration assignment approach will apply to all undergraduate and graduate students.
About one in four incoming U-M students arrives without any test credit. Inequity in course selection can be amplified over time, as those students may be unable to enter majors in sequence or take longer to graduate.
“This is the kind of systemic change that promotes equity,” said LSA Dean Anne Curzan. “We want to make sure that students who didn’t have access to AP and IB credits in high school get to start college on the same footing as every other student in terms of having access to classes. LSA students have been calling for this change for years as part of our DEI efforts — it really matters.”
Along with Curzan’s office, support for the change has been expressed by the Advising Council at U-M, LSA Student Government, the Office of Enrollment Management Student Advisory Board, and the Student Records, Curriculum, and Academic Advising Advisory Group.
“The data show that a student who is disadvantaged in their appointment time as a first-year student continues to be disadvantaged throughout their U-M career,” said University Registrar Paul Robinson. “The consequences compound, and largely affect students from under-resourced high schools and low-income families.
“These are the very students we have worked hard to attract and enroll through initiatives like the Go Blue Guarantee.”
Registration by appointment for select graduate programs for spring/summer/fall 2021 is March 31-April 2. Registration by appointment for undergraduate programs is April 5-16.
