Registration

When to register

Registration opening dates for newly admitted students

Registration opening dates for returning students

Summer registration opening dates

• Register for at least one course before August 14 to avoid late registration fees.
• Students should register for courses as soon as registration opens. Classes get filled quickly. The later you register, the lesser chance you can secure a spot in the class.
• You can add and remove courses without incurring a course change fee before the add/drop deadline.
• Should you decide to withdraw from a course during a semester, you may do so on Minerva before the course withdrawal deadlines. See Course Withdrawals on this website for detail.

How to register

Visit this website to learn more about how to create a class schedule, how to use Minerva to register, Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) option, etc.

• MUHL 186: Western Musical Traditions
  This course has two components: lecture and tutorial. You must select both components at once when adding the course.
• MUTH 150: Theory and Analysis 1
  Students must take a placement exam before registering for any theory course. Registration permission will only be granted to students who took the theory placement exam.
  This course has three components: lecture, tutorial and laboratory. You must select all three components at once when adding the course.
• MUIN (practical instruction)
  Also known as private lessons for your instrument/voice type, including voice coaching (MUIN 301 and MUIN 302). These private lessons are designated by the course numbers, MUIN 180 & 181 in the first year if you are a U0 BMus student, or MUIN 280 & 281 if you are a U1 BMus student. Students in BMus Voice Performance and LMus Voice cannot apply for MUIN 301 and MUIN 302 in their first year. You cannot add MUIN practical instruction on Minerva. You must submit a Practical Instruction Request before mid-May to request for practical instruction registration for both fall and winter semesters. Email teacherpreference.music [at] mcgill.ca if you have questions about practical instruction.
• MUIN (practical exams)
• This is a practical exam, such as a recital for your instrument/voice. You cannot add MUIN practical exams on Minerva. Practical exams are generally added to your records around late October for a December recital, or late March for an April recital. You must submit a Practical Exam Application to register for a practical exam. Email practicalexams.music [at] mcgill.ca if you have questions about practical exams, or if you would like to have the practical exam added to your records before the add/drop deadline.

What to register for

myProgress

• Starting Fall 2026, Bachelor of Music (BMus) and Licentiate in Music (LMus) students admitted in Fall 2022 or later can use myProgress to monitor their program progress.
• Students should consult myProgress to determine which courses they should register for. myProgress also documents transfer credits which students received.

Sample Study Plan

• We strongly recommend students follow the sample study plans for their programs. Students may risk delaying graduation if they do not comply with the suggested course sequence.
• Sample Study Plans for all Bachelor of Music programs are designed for four years, or three years for the Licentiate in Music. Depending on the number of transfer credits and course exemptions through placement exams, students may complete a Bachelor of Music within three years.
• The sample study plans for the degree and licentiate programs are located under “Program Structure” on the program website.

For example:

Electives

• All Bachelor of Music programs require students to complete non-music electives, music electives or free electives.
• Refer to the Electives page for detailed explanations on your options and a list of electives for which you may register.
• Students may take one non-music elective per semester with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) option, up to a maximum of 10% of earned credits towards their degree requirements. Visit the Course and Program Regulations website for more S/U details. The S/U option must be indicated on Minerva’s registration menu when you add the non-music elective before the add/drop deadline.

Ensembles (MUEN)

• Ensembles are courses with MUEN prefixes.
• Refer to the program description in the Course Catalogue or myProgress to review which ensembles you may register for your program.
• Most ensembles require students to pass an audition between late August and early September before registering. Ensemble audition schedule is found on this website.
• Ensemble options by program or instrument can be found at this website: Ensemble Policy for Undergraduate Programs.
• Students should wait until they receive the ensemble assignments before registering for an ensemble.
• Several ensembles are offered with the same course number but a different section number, such as chamber music (MUEN 560), jazz combo (MUEN 570), choirs (MUEN 593), etc. Students must ensure they register for the right section number for their ensemble before the add/drop deadline.
• Students enrolled in the wrong ensemble section will receive a J grade, an incomplete failing grade.

Maximum course load

• Bachelor of Music students are allowed to register for up to 18 credits each semester (or 12 credits for the summer term).
• Licentiate in Music students are allowed to register for up to 23 credits each semester (or 12 credits for the summer term).

Minerva registration error messages: What to do?

Waitlist

Students may add themselves to a waitlist for a course indicating this option.

Most of the complementary music history courses (MUHL 3xx) and advanced musicianship courses (MUSP 3xx) have a waitlist.

Important notes about waitlists and how to join a wait list

Common Registration Issues

At times, students may receive error messages (closed course, class/major/program restriction, departmental/instructor approval, prerequisite or test score error, maximum hours exceed, etc.) on Minerva when attempting to register for a course.

View detailed explanations for each registration error message

Students should seek registration approval from the department or instructor offering the course.

For a music course, if the request is approved, forward the instructor’s approval email to studentaffairs.music [at] mcgill.ca so that Music Student Affairs can issue the necessary permit for you to register.

For a course from a faculty other than Music, the department which offers the course will grant students the necessary permits to register.

Example 1: Contact the psychology department about a PSYC (psychology) course registration

Example 2: Contact Music Student Affairs (studentaffairs.music [at] mcgill.ca) if maximum hours are exceeded.

Music instructors’ emails are available at: Profiles List | Music - McGill University

Unable to find an instructor at the above link? Email studentaffairs.music [at] mcgill.ca

When emailing the department or instructor to seek registration approval, please ensure to include the following details (students must use their McGill email):

1. Full Name
2. McGill ID
3. Course detail (course code, section number, full course title, Course Registration Number [CRN])
4. Semester when the course is offered
5. Type of registration error message
6. Reason for taking the course

Additional tips for common registration problems encountered by students:

Registration verification

Registration verification is a critical step to ensure you are properly enrolled in courses or have successfully dropped/withdrawn from a course. Record verification must be completed before the key academic dates for add/drop and withdrawals.

Important: Students will not receive credits if they did not register for the proper courses by the course add/drop deadline. Students will receive a “J” grade (failure due to unexcused absence) for courses which were not dropped or withdrawn from before the key academic deadlines. In both cases, graduation may be jeopardized.

Two ways to verify registration:

Option 1: View Weekly Class Schedule

• Minerva > Student Menu > Registration Menu > Step 5: View Personal Weekly Class Schedule

Option 2: Unofficial Transcript

• Minerva > Student Menu > View your Unofficial Transcript

FEES

Once you have finalized your course registration, you can view your McGill fee statement via an eBill. eBill payment deadlines are found on the Student Accounts website.

Visit this website if you have more questions about fees, scholarships and other funding opportunities for music students.