Due to the global health crisis, the Registrar’s Office will be moving our services to online support. Please feel free to contact us at registrar@law.berkeley.edu.
My student has a conflicting class and will only be able to show up for half of my classes. He says that he will stay on top of the readings and take the final. Can I approve this?
No, you cannot approve this. Under the American Bar Association (ABA) rules, a course must have 700 minutes of class time for each unit of credit. The student would not fulfill this requirement if they miss half their classes. Also, students cannot take classes that conflict and they will be asked to drop one of their overlapping classes.
I’m going to be out of town for several classes. Is it necessary to make up the classes or can I just assign more readings for the students?
Yes, it is necessary for you to schedule make-ups for all missed classes. You must contact the Law Registrar office (registrar@law.berkeley.edu) to arrange this. Under ABA rules, a course must have 700 minutes of class time for each unit in order for a student to receive credit. Your course will not fulfill this requirement if missed classes are not made-up.
I’d like to use exam numbers to do anonymous grading for my mid-term. Where can I arrange this?
Director of Student Services, Kyle Valenti, and Exam Administrator, Amanda Tran, are in charge of the exam process, including anonymous exam tracking ids (ETIs). To have your midterm or final exam administered anonymously in the exam system, contact Amanda at amandatran@law.berkeley.edu.
I’d like to choose which students from my waitlist should be admitted to my class. How can I arrange this?
At Berkeley Law, all waitlists are set to automatically move the top student on the waitlist into the class when a seat becomes available. We find that this process reduces stress and confusion since students can see which slot they occupy on the waitlist. If a student needs advice in alternative courses, JD students can make an appointment to speak with Director of Student Services, Kyle Valenti, or Dean of Students, Annik Hirshen. LL.M. students can speak with Director of LL.M. Professional Development, Rachel Zuraw.
An attorney approached me after class today and who would like to audit my class. Is this allowed?
We have many people who would like to attend our classes every semester; however due to resource constraints, we need to limit our classes to Berkeley Law students.
A student from another Berkeley graduate department would like to take my class. Is this allowed?
Seats in your class are first reserved for Berkeley Law students. If seats are still available after two weeks, students from other UCB departments or who are part of approved exchange programs will be allowed to take the class. The students should download the pdf application from the web, have you sign it, and submit it to the Registrar’s Office for Dean Hirshen’s approval.
A student from another law school wants to take my class. What should I tell them?
Students from some Bay Area law schools are permitted to enroll in Berkeley Law courses with some restrictions. Instructions for non-Boalt law students to enroll in Berkeley Law courses can be found on the back side of the application for consortium students.
I’d like to include class participation as part of my grading. Is this allowed?
You can include class participation as part of your grading. You should include this on your syllabus. At the end of the course, you should submit your raw exam scores to the registrar. Once the course is released to you in Cal Central, you will be able to see the student names associated with their exam scores and can use class participation in doing your final grading.
I gave a student an IP grade last semester, but I can’t seem to enter the grade into Cal Central. What should I do?
You should be able to update IP grades in Cal Central by going to your ‘My Academics‘ page and selecting the ‘Grades’ link for the appropriate class and semester. If this is not working for you, you may also submit an IP Grade change using the PDF form at https://www.law.berkeley.edu/files/NR-IP_Replacement.pdf. Please forward your completed petition to the Registrar’s Office, and we’ll be happy to process it for you.
I’m having second thoughts about a PC grade that I awarded to a student last semester. Can I change the student’s grade?
Under the Academic Senate Regulation 780, grade changes can only be done in the event of a clerical or processing error and must not be the result of re-examination. If your situation meets any of these criteria, then you will need to fill out a grade change petition, which is available from the Registrar.
The performance of the students in my course was spectacular this semester, and adhering to the grading curve would be unfair. Can I have an exception?
Requests for exceptions to a grading curve should be forwarded to Dean Hirshen (ahirshen@law.berkeley.edu).
I have some JD students from another university in my class. Are these students included in my JD curve?
Yes, these students are JD students and are included in your curve. UCB graduate students are not included on any curve, and their grading is up to your discretion.
The fall semester is about to start. Strangely on the schedule of classes, I have seats available in my class, but I also have a waitlist. Why is this?
We need to save seats for the transfer and LL.M. students who will not enroll until just before classes start. Once they’ve finished enrolling, any remaining unclaimed seats will be released to students on the waitlist.
Where can I find out how many students are enrolled in my class?
Every morning, enrollment counts update on the schedule of classes. If you need a list of your students, you can find these on your Cal Central ‘My Academics‘ Page. Select the blue course link in the appropriate semester, then choose ‘Enrollment’ in the upper right corner to see a list of students waitlisted and enrolled in the class. You can also select ‘Roster’ to see photos of the students and begin learning names.
What is the policy on PC grades for the Spring 2021 semester?
The faculty have voted to adopt the recommendation that PC grades will not be recorded on transcripts for the Spring 2021 semester. PC grades may still be given, but they will be recorded as a “P.”