Can I take course X even though I lack prerequisite Y?
Most prereqisites are only waived in in extraordinary circumstances. Sometimes a prerquisite can be turned into a co-requisite, but never for:
- CISC 102 as a prerequisite to CISC 203 and CISC 204;
- CISC 235 as a prerequiste for CISC 365; and
- Calculus (MATH 12x) and algebra (MATH 11x) as prerquisites to CISC 271.
As of July 2017 enrollment in any Computing course required a C- or better in all its prerequisite courses, but we used to waive this requirement (during 2017-18 and 2018-19) to give people time to raise their grades. As of July 1, 2019, we now enforce the C- requirement, and do not waive it, as was announced back in 2017.
Waiving a prerequisite requires permission of both the instructor and the School; contact the Undergraduate Chair instead of talking with the instructor.
- Attach your transcript, which you can get from SOLUS with your request.
- Specify a justification for your request, such as equivalent courses taken previously.
Even if the instructor grants permission, the Undergraduate Chair may veto the exception.
A course I need to take is full or isn't offered this year; what can I do?
Enrolment is limited in some courses due to special conditions, such as limited laboratory resources or classroom size. If you are not admitted to a course, the instructor may be willing to place your name on a waiting list. There are no enrolment limits on core CISC courses provided a classroom large enough is available.
The Undergraduate Chair might allow you to substitute another course. Otherwise, you can look for an equivalent course at another institution such as a correspondence course at Athabasca University. Please note that you'll need to receive permission in advance from the Faculty of Arts and Science to take a course at another institution.
Courses that I want to take have schedule conflicts; what can I do?
Queen's normally does not permit students to register in two courses with conflicting schedules. If the conflict is relatively minor, you may apply for permission to register in both in spite of the conflict. Permission from both instructors and the Computing Undergraduate Chair is required, and you may have to agree to specific conditions that depend on the details of how each course is organized in that specific term. Otherwise you should look for alternatives:
- a section of one of the courses in another term or on-line,
- a course that is an exclusion to the one you wanted to take and is likely equivalent, or
- a course that you can take by correspondence at another institution. (Please note that you'll need to receive permission in advance from the Faculty of Arts and Science to take a course at another institution.)