Academic Advising and Enrollment Requirements
Why Academic Advising is Important
The primary goal of F-1 and J-1 student status is to complete an academic program in the United States. F-1 and J-1 students are expected to enroll full-time while completing their program and make normal progress along the way.
CU Denver and CU Anschutz academic and faculty advisors are here to help you achieve your educational goals as effectively and efficiently as possible. They can provide guidance on what classes to take each semester and how different options fit into your academic and professional goals. They can help you track your degree progress and direct you to resources if you need academic support.
ISSS encourages all students to meet with their academic advisor before making any final decisions about course registration or enrollment. Discussing your course options before enrolling each semester can prevent you from making time-consuming and costly mistakes.
Academic advising models vary between schools and colleges. Use the information below as a guide for connecting with your academic advisor.
If you still need help after reviewing this information, ISSS can work with you to find the right person
CU Denver Undergraduate Advising
New Incoming Students
All new incoming students must sign up for a New Student Orientation Registration Day. During your Registration Day, you will meet with an academic advisor and register for classes for your first term at CU Denver. The Registration Day occurs via Zoom, so you can sign up and participate before you arrive in Colorado!
After attending a New Student Orientation Registration Day, we encourage you to meet with your academic advisor during your first semester to review your degree plan and prepare for the next semester.
Register for Classes:
- Sign up for a New Student Orientation Registration Day
- You will register for your first term classes during your Registration Day.
- If you have a third-party sponsor, submit your Sponsored Agreement Form each term.
Continuing Students
Academic advising is important throughout your time at CU Denver. Academic advising is a critical part of your academic success. Academic advisors can help you plan your degree, connect with campus resources, explore research or internship opportunities, and much more!
Your academic advising team will send emails to your CU Denver account periodically, so you will know how to contact them.
If you do not know who to contact about your academic advising questions, please visit the Undergraduate Academic Advising homepage on the Lynx Central website.
Undergraduate students can also contact the Center for Undergraduate Exploration & Advising (CUE&A) [https://www.ucdenver.edu/center-for-undergraduate-exploration-and-advising] if they need help with academic advising at CU Denver.
Register for Classes:
- Meet with your academic advisor to discuss your degree progress and your course selection for the next semester.
- Log into UCDAccess to register for classes
- Contact your academic advisor or Lynx Central if you have issues registering for classes.
- If you have a third-party sponsor, submit your Sponsored Agreement Form each term.
CU Denver Graduate Advising
Each CU Denver school and college has their own model for how they handle academic advising for graduate students. If you haven’t received any communication from your advisor, you should contact your department directly for more information.
We have provided the links below for the schools and colleges that have a central graduate advising page:
- Business School
- College of Architecture & Planning
- School of Education & Human Development
- College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
- School of Public Affairs
Register for Classes:
- Work with your department to register for your first term classes.
- If you have a third-party sponsor, submit your Sponsored Agreement Form each term.
CU Anschutz Advising
Each CU Anschutz school and college has their own model for how they handle academic advising for their students. If you haven’t received any communication from your advisor, you should contact your department directly for more information.
Register for Classes:
If all students in your program take their courses on the same schedule, your department may register you for courses. If you need to register for courses yourself, please follow the steps below:
- Meet with your academic advisor to discuss your degree progress and your course selection for the next semester.
- Log in to UCDAccess to register for classes.
- Contact your academic advisor or the Registrar’s Office if you have issues registering for classes.
- If you have a third-party sponsor, submit your Sponsored Agreement Form each term.
Enrollment Requirements For F-1 & J-1 Students
As an F-1 or J-1 student, you must enroll full-time during every required term. The number of credits required for full-time varies by degree level and program.
F-1 and J-1 students are also expected to enroll in classes that meet in person at some point during the term. In-person and hybrid classes should be the majority of any F-1 or J-1 student's classes during any required term.
F-1 and J-1 students are required to remain enrolled full-time the entire term.
If dropping or withdrawing from classes will put you below full-time, please discuss your situation with a Specialist by scheduling an ISSS student advising appointment or participating in ISSS walk-in advising before you make any changes to your enrollment.
Please review the academic calendar for your program to learn the deadlines for registration and withdrawal from classes:
To learn more about the details of your enrollment requirements, please carefully review the details provided on this page. These details are important as you work with your academic advisor to develop your degree plan and course enrollment each term.
If you need to enroll less than full-time, please review the Reduced Course Loads page to see if any of those exceptions apply to your situation.
Undergraduate Credits Required for Full-Time Enrollment
Undergraduate full-time enrollment for F-1 and J-1 students is at least 12 credits during the fall and spring semesters.
Enrollment during the summer is not required for your immigration status unless:
- You will start your program during a summer term.
- You will complete your program during a summer term.
If you are required to enroll full-time during the summer,
- CU Denver undergraduates must enroll in 6 credits for full-time summer enrollment.
- CU Anschutz undergraduates must enroll in 12 credits for full-time summer enrollment.
Your program may require or recommend summer enrollment to help you complete your degree on time. Full-time enrollment in the summer is not an immigration requirement unless it is your first or final term in the program.
CU Anschutz students should refer to the Enrollment Status section of the CU Anschutz catalog for any additional details about full-time enrollment requirements.
Traditional BSN students should be prepared to enroll in additional credits at another school to meet their full-time requirements in their first summer term.
Minimum credits required for Undergraduate Full-Time Enrollment
| Fall | Spring | Summer |
CU Denver | 12 credits required | 12 credits required | 6 credits required |
CU Anschutz | 12 credits required | 12 credits required | 12 credits required |
Graduate Credits Required for Full-Time Enrollment
The F-1 and J-1 regulations allow schools to make local decisions about full-time requirements for graduate students.
ISSS uses the definitions in the catalog and official graduate education policy documents to determine full-time requirements.
CU Denver
CU Denver graduate students are expected to enroll in at least 5 credits every required term.
The fall and spring semesters are required for all students.
Enrollment during the summer is not required for your immigration status unless:
- You will start your program during a summer term.
- You will complete your program during a summer term.
Your program may require or recommend summer enrollment to help you complete your degree on time. Full-time enrollment in the summer is not an immigration requirement unless it is your first or final term in the program.
CU Anschutz
CU Anschutz students should refer to the Enrollment Status section of the CU Anschutz catalog to find the full-time enrollment requirements for their program.
Enrollment during the summer is not required for your immigration status unless:
- You will start your program during a summer term.
- You will complete your program during a summer term.
Your program may require or recommend summer enrollment to help you complete your degree on time. Full-time enrollment in the summer is not an immigration requirement unless it is your first or final term in the program.
Common Exceptions for Graduate Students
CU Denver and CU Anschutz graduate students enrolled in any number of thesis or dissertation credits are considered enrolled full-time.
F-1 and J-1 students should discuss with their thesis or dissertation advisor how to spread out their thesis or dissertation credits to meet their immigration and degree requirements.
In-Person Enrollment Requirements
F-1 and J-1 students can count no more than 3 credits of online or remote classes towards the minimum credits required for full-time enrollment. Online and remote credits should be less than 50% of the minimum credits required for full-time enrollment.
J-1 students must also be in classes that meet predominantly in person. J-1 students should look for hybrid classes labelled as 51-99% in person. Hybrid classes that are 1-50% in person will count against the limit for online or remote courses.
Students with an international third-party sponsor should discuss any hybrid, remote, or online course enrollment with the International Sponsored Student Specialist before making any final decisions.
Students enrolled in independent study courses who need these classes for the in-person enrollment requirements should document all in-person meetings or course activities. ISSS encourages students to provide their documentation to us so that we can keep that information in their immigration files.
Minimum In-Person or Hybrid credits required – CU DENVER
| Fall | Spring | Summer |
Undergraduate | 9 out of 12 credits | 9 out of 12 credits | 3 out of 6 credits |
Graduate | 3 out of 5 credits | 3 out of 5 credits | 3 out of 5 credits |
Minimum In-Person or Hybrid credits required – CU Anschutz
CU Anschutz students should refer to the Enrollment Status section of the CU Anschutz catalog to determine the number of in-person or hybrid credits required for their program.