Courses-Frequently Asked Questions

The Enrollment Authorization System (EASy) was adopted by the History Department in the summer of 2016 as the primary method for students to request enrollment authorization for History courses. A link to EASy is below.

Enrollment Authorization System (EASy): https://academicaffairs.ucsd.edu/Modules/Students/PreAuth/default.aspx

Clearing Prerequisites:

Fill out the information requested on the form and upload a PDF of your transcripts. Note in the "Justification" field the courses that you have completed to fulfill the prerequisites (or that you are a transfer/visiting student with Junior/Senior class standing).

Clearing the Class Standing Restriction:

Fill out the information requested on the form and upload a PDF of your transcripts. List in the "Justification" the college-level writing courses or HILD courses you have passed. Alternately, for Freshman Seminars, note that you are a Freshman with sophomore class standing.

Requesting Department Approval for Colloquia:

We require Department Approval for our colloquia (courses numbered 160-190). Fill out the information requested on the form and upload a PDF of your transcripts or instructor approval (like a PDF of email correspondence). In the "Justification" field please answer the following questions (unless you attached instructor approval then just note that):

• Why are you interested in taking the class?
• Have you taken any history classes before?
• Have you taken any other courses on this period?
• How heavy is your schedule? -- we will have a lot of reading and writing.
• What kinds of papers have you written before? 

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Colloquia are courses numbered 160-190 for undergraduate students and 260-290 for graduate students. They are run more like graduate seminars than undergraduate lectures in that enrollment is capped at 20 (usually 15 undergraduate seats, and 5 graduate seats) to facilitate small group discussions of the many assigned readings. The course culminates in a final research paper that for undergraduate students usually fulfills the Significant Writing Requirement for their college. Undergraduate majors are required to take one colloquium but may take more. Undergraduate students in the Honors Program are required to take two colloquia in addition to HITO 196-Honors Seminar.

Students who enroll in Independent Study courses work one-on-one with a tenured professor to develop a course of study (often a combination of reading, writing, or research) with a workload that is appropriate for the number of units the student would like to complete. 

1. Learn if you're eligible for Special Studies classes.

• If you have completed between 30 and 90 units:
  • You must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0.
• If you have completed more than 90 units:
  • You must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5.

Read the Academic Senate policy on Special Studies classes.

2. Plan your class.

• Meet with the advisor in the department with which you want to do a Special Studies project. Discuss:
  • Which faculty instructor is doing research in your field
  • How you can make an appointment to meet that instructor
• Meet with your potential instructor to design a project that fits your academic plan. Please review the application before meeting with your potential instructor to ensure all topics are discussed. Topics should include:
  
  • The nature of the project
  • How often you will meet
  • Your knowledge of the subject
  • How you will be evaluated 

3. Complete the application.

• Submit a request to enroll in Special Studies 197, 198, or 199 through the Enrollment Authorization System (EASy).
• Include your project plan and prerequisite knowledge. 
  • Note: Workload per Unit Hours
    1 unit = 30 hours a term (3 hours a week)
    2 unit = 60 hours a term (6 hours a week)
    3 unit = 90 hours a term (9 hours a week)
    4 unit = 120 hours a term (12 hours a week)
• Check with the sponsoring department for applicable application deadlines.

4. Confirm that you have been enrolled in the class.

• You will receive a notification through EASy when you have been enrolled.
• Check your schedule on WebReg to confirm your enrollment.

Note: The official university deadline to add classes is Friday of Week 2. Requests to add classes after Week 2 are only considered under extraordinary circumstances and require a petition, appropriate documentation, and approval from the academic department, college, and the Committee of Educational Policy.

Course descriptions can be found on the Courses page of the History Department's sections of the UC San Diego Course Catalog (see below). Topical course descriptions can be found on the Current Courses page of this website. 

• UCSD Course Catalog (HTML)
• UCSD Courses Catalog - History Department
  
  • Undergraduate Program (Major/minor Requirements & Policies)
  • Graduate Program
  • Professors
  • Courses (Course Descriptions)