Course Numbering
Period I - Current Course Numbering Policies
These course numbering policies were implemented in the Summer 2005 academic term and are still the current guidelines. Courses in the Course Catalog are identified with a subject code of up to four letters and a 5-digit course number. The 5-digit course number is all numeric and uses the following numbering conventions.
First Rule: The first digit in the 5-digit course number indicates the level of the course:
0XXXX = Pre-College course
1XXXX = Freshmen Level course
2XXXX = Sophomore Level course
3XXXX = Junior Level course
4XXXX = Senior Level course
5XXXX = 5th Year Senior / Advanced Undergraduate course
6XXXX = 1st Year Graduate Level course
7XXXX = 2nd Year Graduate Level course (MBA / LAW)
8XXXX = 3rd Year Graduate Level course (MBA / LAW)
9XXXX = Upper Graduate Level course
Second Rule: The second digit in the 5-digit course number indicates the category of the course:
X0XXX = Regular classroom course
X1XXX = Lab / Drill / Studio
X2XXX = Tutorial / Discussion Group
X3XXX = Seminar
X4XXX = ND Study Abroad or Remote Learning
X5XXX = Internship / Field Work
X6XXX = Directed Readings
X7XXX = Special Studies
X8XXX = Thesis / Research / Dissertation
X9XXX = Transfer course articulation
The last three digits of the course number are used by each academic department to meet their own curriculum structuring needs.
Period II - Before Summer 2005
The following course numbering policies were in effect from 1970 through the Spring 2005 semester. During this period, courses in the Course Catalog were identified with a subject code of up to four letters and a 3-digit or 4-digit alphanumeric course number using the following numbering conventions.
101 - 199 = Freshman courses
200 - 299 = Sophomore courses
300 - 399 = Junior courses
400 - 499 = Senior courses and first year law student courses (The latter were open to graduate students for graduate credit with the permission of the department chairman and/or the Graduate School dean.)
501 - 599 = Fifth year courses in five year programs, first year MBA courses, second year law courses, and graduate courses open to qualified undergraduates with the permission of the chairman of the department and/or class professor.
600 and higher = Third year law courses, second year MBA, and all graduate courses were restricted to graduate students and were numbered in the 600's or higher.
A letter suffix on a course number was occasionally used to denote a completely different course or a type of course (examples: "L" for Lab, "D" for Drill, and "T" – Tutorials).
Questions about the numbering of courses should be addressed to the Office of the Registrar by emailing classreq@nd.edu.