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College of Media, Communication and Information
Continuing First-Year Students
Spring Registration Tips
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Oct. 10: Spring schedule of classes posts to the CU Class Search
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Attend CMCI group advising workshops for spring registration (Oct. 11-28)
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RSVP in advance to attend your preferred session
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For Monday and Friday virtual sessions, use this Zoom link.
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Keep on top of fall classes!
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Check your grades in Canvas. Talk to your instructors about your academic progress in each course.
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Have concerns about your fall 2022 courses? Please reach out to advising before Oct. 28, which is the deadline to make changes to your fall classes. See the academic calendar for more information.
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Make sure to speak to your assigned first-year advisor before making any changes to your fall schedule!
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Check your finals schedule. If you have more than two finals in a day, you can move one! Check with your first-year advisor before Oct. 28 if this applies to you.
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CMCI Spring Registration Support Events
Registration Guide
Follow these steps to prepare for class registration.
Review Degree Audit in Buff Portal
Log in to Buff Portal, CU's one-stop shop for students.
How to navigate the official student portal:
Detailed Degree Audit Walk-Through
Log into your Buff Portal to access your "Class Registration Guide Card." Open the "Plan" section and click "view Degree Audit" to access the audit page.
Click on Transfer Evaluation, if applicable, to review AP/IB/Transfer credit.
Request an audit type:
- For declared programs, click Run Declared Programs.
- To view alternative programs of interest, click Select Different Program. Select criteria from the drop-down menus. Click Run Different Program.
After the degree audit is finished processing, click View Audit (look for the link on the right).
Planning courses
Review the below video from New Student and Family Program (also included in your Online Experience)
New first-year students are encouraged to register for a minimum of 13-16 credits during their first semester. Remember that you will be pre-registered for some classes at the end of June!
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First-Semester Students may be pre-enrolled in:
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CMCI 1040 (4 credits) required in first year—fall or spring (students are pre-enrolled in this course and do not need to self-register)
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The first class for their selected majors
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A CMCI Core or RAP class (such as WRTG 1160 or ANTH 1170)
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Plan to complete the rest of your schedule by adding one to three more classes to get to your desired number of credits. Additional major courses, CMCI Core classes, or lower-division electives make great options for your first semester schedule.
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CMCI Major Classes to consider: Note: First-Year students should look for lower division (1000-level or 2000-level classes)
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Communication:
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COMM 1210: Perspectives on Human Communication—3
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COMM 1300: Public Speaking—3
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COMM 1600: Group Interaction—3
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Information Science:
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INFO 1111 (Fall): Introduction to Information Science: Understanding the World Through Data—4
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INFO 1121 (Spring): Introduction to Information Science: Designing Interactions—4
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Media Production:
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CMDP 1400: Introduction to Contemporary Media Cultures—4
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CMDP 2100: Historical Media Practices—3
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Media Studies:
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MDST 1001: Foundations of Media Studies—3
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MDST 1002: Introduction to Social Media—3
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MDST 2002: Media and Communication History—3
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Journalism:
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JRNL 1000: Principles of Journalism and Networked Communication—3
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JRNL 2401
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JRNL 2014
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Strategic Communication:
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APRD 1003: Principles of Communication—3
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APRD 1004: Fundamentals of Grammar—1
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CMCI Core classes to consider:
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Note: First Year students should look for lower division (1000-level or 2000-level classes)
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Note: Students with AP and/or IB credit may already have fulfilled some areas of CMCI Core. Contact your advisor if you need help understanding your completed credits.
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Quantitative Reasoning or Computing or Natural World
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Lower Division Composition
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Recommended: WRTG 1160: CMCI First-Year Writing and Rhetoric—3
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People and Society
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Humanities and the Arts
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Historical Views
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Diversity and Global Cultures
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Elective classes: Note: First Year students should look for lower division (1000-level or 2000-level classes)
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Electives are classes that apply to your total required number of credits for graduation, but may not be meeting specific major or core requirements.
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Most CMCI students will need some elective credits to graduate.
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Elective credits are great for exploring possible areas of interest outside of your major and may help you choose your secondary area of study later on in your program.
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Make an Appointment with an Advisor
Log in to Buff Portal Advising.
Click on the advisor's photo under 'Student Success Team' to view their calendar.
Click on an available group-advising session, drop-in or meeting:
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Only group advising and individual appointments can be scheduled in advance.
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Make sure to check the modality of your selected meeting so you know how to attend. CMCI offers advising over Zoom, phone and in person.
Confirm or cancel appointments by clicking 'Show History' under My Meetings in the upper-right corner of the Buff Portal Advising Site.
View the Buff Portal Advising Student User Guide (PDF) for more details.
Check for Any Holds or To-Do Items
These items are listed in Buff Portal on the "Holds and To-Dos" card.
Expand the menus for more information.
Holds: Prevent you from taking some kind of action (i.e. registering for classes). CU Boulder departments and offices may place a hold on a student's record for a number of reasons. Resolve holds as quickly as possible by following the instructions associated with each hold listed.
To-Do items: Recommended actions necessary to complete specific outcomes. Some to-do items become holds if not completed by a specific date. Monitor to-do items closely and follow the instructions to resolve it.
Search for Classes/Add to Cart
Log in to Buff Portal and navigate to your "Class Registration Guide Card."
Open the “Plan” section and click the search for classes link. You can also navigate directly to the CU Class Search directly by clicking the below button or by typing classes.colorado.edu into your web browser
Simple 'Search Classes' tips
Use the following search criteria:
- Title, Subject, Instructor or Keyword: enter class code (e.g. CMCI 1010 or 1020)
- Term: (e.g. fall, spring, summer)
- Any Campus: select Main Campus (Continuing Education classes cost extra)
'General Education/Core Courses' search tips
- Open the “General Education/Core Courses Search" section to see Core requirements by college.
- Use the CMCI Core Attributes filter to search for courses that meet the CMCI Core Requirement Areas listed in your Audit.
'Advanced Search' tips
Select the following:
- Open, Waitlisted or Closed: use Open Only
- CU continues to offer courses in a variety of instruction modes. Learn more about Instruction modes in the Registrar's Glossary of Terms. Use the “Instruction Mode” filter to look for classes in the modality that you prefer.
Click on the class options generated from the search. Review class registration restrictions, description, time and location and section information.
Registration Restrictions:
- Prerequisite: a specific class that must be completed before taking another class at the next level.
- Co-requisite: a specific class that, if it has not been completed already, must be taken at the same time as another class.
- Recitation: some classes require enrollment in a Lecture (LEC) and a Recitation (REC); a recitation is a smaller class that meets in addition to the lecture.
Click on the desired section(s). Note: Classes may require a LAB or REC (Recitation) along with the LEC (Lecture). Select both to register for the class.
Click Add to Cart.
Hints:
Register for Classes
At the date and time of your enrollment, log in to Buff Portal.
Click on Classes and Registration, Registration Checklist and select Enroll in Classes
Review schedule in the Buff Portal to confirm enrollment.
See the Office of the Registrar's website to learn how to waitlist for a closed class, swap a class or drop a class.
Important notes about registration:
- Saving classes in the shopping cart does not save a spot in the class. Students are not enrolled until they complete their enrollment through Buff Portal.
- Students are encouraged to avoid waitlists and confirm enrollment. Waitlisted classes do not count towards enrollment.
- RAP Coordinators need to make any changes to RAP classes. First-Year Academic Advisors are not authorized to add, drop or swap RAP classes.
- Students may make changes to their schedule (with the exception of any RAP classes) during the first full week of classes.
First Year and Second Year at CMCI
First-Year Students
New first-year students should meet with their assigned first-year advisor (Kira or Paige) for any advising-related needs during their first academic year.
When meeting with your first-year advisor, students are encouraged to consider the following:
Continuing Students
After the first year at CU is complete, continuing students will transition to a major—or disciplinary—advisor for future academic support.
Students will stay with this advisor through the remainder of their time in CMCI. Advisor transitions for continuing students take place at the end of May. Check your assigned advisor in Buff Portal Advising! When connecting with your new disciplinary advisor, students are encouraged to consider the following:
Academic Coaching
Academic Coaching cultivates a steadfast partnership between coaches and students to support their individualized learning and growth process, contributing to a transformational student experience.
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