Chemistry Registration Policies

Over the summer, when you were placed into CHEM 115 lecture and lab, you were also placed into specific sections of CHEM 116 lecture and lab (i.e., these sections already appear on your spring course schedule). 

If you plan to continue into CHEM 116 in spring, then these are your sections. Do not change them. Plan the rest of your schedule around these CHEM 116 sections. 

• If you attempt to change or drop a section, there is no guarantee that you will gain a seat in the course or lab, so do not change or drop. 
• That said, feel free to add to a waitlist if you prefer a different section, but there is no guarantee that there will be room to switch sections. 
• Important: you must be “current” in both a lecture and a lab to be fully registered for the course. If you are only in a lecture or only in a lab, that does not guarantee you a spot in the course.  

If you do not plan to continue into CHEM 116 in spring, please fill out this form as soon as you know. Plan your schedule without CHEM 116. Drop CHEM 116 right away during the registration interval. 

When you originally registered last spring/summer, you likely already secured seats for CHEM 116 lecture and lab and planned your schedule accordingly. Do not change these sections.  

If you plan to continue into CHEM 116 in spring, then these are your sections. Do not change them. Plan the rest of your schedule around these CHEM 116 sections. 

• If you attempt to change or drop a section, there is no guarantee that you will gain a seat in the course or lab, so do not change or drop. 
• That said, feel free to add to a waitlist if you prefer a different section, but there is no guarantee that there will be room to switch sections. 

If you do not plan to continue into CHEM 116 in spring, please fill out this form as soon as you know. Plan your schedule without CHEM 116. Drop CHEM 116 right away during the registration interval. 

If you plan on finishing CHEM 115 or 116 elsewhere (e.g., community college; four-year college or university) and the course is not listed on the credit guide page, then you need to (a) get the course pre-approved by the CHEM Department Chair (b) fill out the transfer credit approval form and, (c) arrange for a transcript to be sent to the Registrar’s Office as soon as possible after completion of this course. 

In this case, if you plan to take CHEM 116, 220, or 221 here, you cannot register until the transcript has been processed by the LFC Registrar’s Office provided that there is space in the class.  In addition, a C- or better is needed in CHEM 220 to take 221.  For CHEM 300, a C- or better is needed in CHEM 221 and you need to  an exam with the Lake Forest College Chemistry Department at the beginning of the semester. Please contact the instructor for CHEM 300 to arrange a time for the exam Please contact the CHEM Department Chair for more details. 

During the spring advising period, you will choose courses for both next fall and next spring. Registration occurs during the last two weeks of March. If you choose to register for CHEM 220 & 221, please keep the following things in mind: 

• Initial course and lab caps are set a bit low so that students can distribute themselves across all the lecture and lab options. 
  • This also gives us some flexibility to accommodate students with very inflexible schedules. 
• It’s always better to secure open seats and schedule around them than to be on waitlists.  
  • If open seats exist, don’t simply be content to go on a waitlist. Instead, register for the open seat first before you add to the waitlist for a preferred section. 
• That said, waitlists are inevitable. 
  • The bulk of waitlist management for CHEM 220 will take place between May and July. CHEM 221 may not be resolved until December. In both cases, if we can manage to finish earlier, we will. 
  • Sometimes, students who are “current” in a lecture or lab will need to be moved to another section that fits their schedules. We try to minimize this, and we take great care when making such changes. 
• Although we strive to accommodate all students who want a seat, we cannot guarantee seats, nor can we guarantee specific sections/times/instructors that a student desires. 

If you plan on finishing CHEM 116 elsewhere (e.g., community college; four-year college or university) and the course is not listed on the credit guide page, then you need to (a) get the course pre-approved by the CHEM Department Chair (b) fill out the transfer credit approval form and, (c) arrange for a transcript to be sent to the Registrar’s Office as soon as possible after completion of this course. 

• In this case, if you plan to take CHEM 220 & 221 elsewhere, you cannot register until you earned a passing grade and the transcript has been processed by the Lake Forest College Registrar’s Office. Also, you can only register if a seat is available in both lecture and lab.  Please contact the CHEM Department Chair for more details. 

When you originally registered last spring/summer, you likely already secured seats for CHEM 221 lecture and lab and planned your schedule accordingly. Do not change these sections. 

• If you attempt to change or drop a section, there is no guarantee that you will gain a seat in the course or lab, so do not change or drop. 
• That said, feel free to add to a waitlist if you prefer a different section, but there is no guarantee that there will be room to switch sections. 

If you do not plan to continue into CHEM 221 in spring, then please fill out this form as soon as you know. Plan your schedule without CHEM 221. Drop CHEM 221 right away during the change-in-registration interval. 

If you plan on finishing CHEM 220 or 221 elsewhere (e.g., community college; four-year college or university), and the course is not listed on the credit guide page, then you need to (a) get the course pre-approved by the CHEM Department Chair (b) fill out the transfer credit approval form and, (c) arrange for a transcript to be sent to the Registrar’s Office as soon as possible after completion of this course.

• In this case, if you plan to take any upper-level CHEM courses here (e.g., CHEM 221; CHEM 300), you cannot register until the transcript has been processed by the Lake Forest College Registrar’s Office.  In addition, a C- or better is needed in CHEM 220 to take CHEM 221.  For CHEM 300, a C- or better is needed in CHEM 221 and you need to take an exam with the LFC Chemistry Department at the beginning of the semester. Please contact the CHEM 300 instructor  to arrange a time for the exam

During the spring advising period, you will choose courses for both next fall and next spring. Registration occurs during the last two weeks of March. If you choose to register for CHEM 300 or other upper-level CHEM courses, please keep the following things in mind:  

• Initial course and lab caps are set a bit low so that students can distribute themselves across all the lecture and lab options. 
  • This also gives us some flexibility to accommodate students with very inflexible schedules. 
• It’s always better to secure open seats and schedule around them than to be on waitlists.  
  • If open seats exist, don’t simply be content going on a waitlist. 
• That said, waitlists are inevitable. 
  • The bulk of waitlist management for CHEM courses will take place in May and June, but if we can manage earlier, we will. 
  • Sometimes, students who are “current” in a lecture or lab will need to be moved to another section that fits their schedules. We try to minimize this, and we take great care when making such changes. 
• Although we strive to accommodate all students who want a seat, we cannot guarantee seats, nor can we guarantee specific sections/times/instructors that a student desires. 

If you plan on finishing CHEM 221 elsewhere (e.g., community college; four-year college or university), then you need to (a) get the course pre-approved by the CHEM Department Chair (b) fill out the transfer credit approval form and, (c) arrange for a transcript to be sent to the Registrar’s Office as soon as possible after completion of this course., 

In this case, if you plan to take any upper-level CHEM courses here (e.g., CHEM 300), you cannot register until the transcript has been processed by the Lake Forest College Registrar’s Office provided that space is available,  In addition, C- or better is needed in CHEM 221, and you need to take an exam with the Lake Forest College Chemistry Department at the beginning of the semester. Please contact the instructor for CHEM 300 to arrange a time for the exam.