Registration and Lottery

Fall 2025 Gen Ed Registration and Lottery Overview

The deadline to submit petitions for the Gen Ed lottery has passed. Lottery results will be posted today (Wednesday April 9).

Returning Student Registration for Fall 2025 Gen Ed Courses

• For a searchable list of Fall 2025 Gen Ed courses by category please see our course catalog.
• Fall registration opens on April 2 and closes on April 16.
• During registration you can enroll in uncapped courses directly, making sure to choose a section that has available seats OR submit your preferences, depending on how the course is configured.
• If you get an error message saying an uncapped course is full, it is likely that you tried to enroll in a full section. Please remove the course from your cart and add it back in, making sure to pick a section with open seats.

Gen Ed Lottery Info for Returning Students

• The Fall 2025 Gen Ed Lottery deadline for capped courses has now passed. Lottery results will be posted April 9.
• If your petition is approved by the lottery, you must claim your seat by the “claim seat” deadline at 11:59pm on Friday April 11.
• Only a green checkmark indicates success in the lottery. If you see either “petition pending” or a red X, it means that your petition was unsuccessful. If this is the case and you would still like to try to enroll in the course, please submit a new petition.
• As with uncapped courses, if you get an error message saying an uncapped course is full, it is likely that you tried to enroll in a full section. Please remove the course from your cart and add it back in, making sure to pick a section with open seats. Your approved petition will be retained.
• After the claim seat deadline passes on April 11, admission to the course opens up to post-lottery petitions and is at the instructor’s discretion. If you were unsuccessful in the lottery or missed the deadline, please submit a new petition.

Incoming Student Registration for Fall 2025 Gen Ed Courses

• Registration for incoming students will run August 12-14.
• During registration you can enroll in uncapped courses directly, making sure to choose a section that has available seats OR submit your preferences, depending on how the course is configured.
• A limited number of seats for incoming students will be added to capped courses prior to registration opening. Enrollment in capped courses is by petition. Please note there is no Gen Ed lottery for incoming students.

Registration for Spring 2025 Gen Ed Courses

• The enrollment deadlines for spring courses have passed. If you are in a placeholder section please ensure you are switched into a scheduled section as soon as possible. Any course switches at this late stage must be approved by the Ad Board.

Looking to browse Gen Ed courses? Check out our course catalog, where you can filter by semester offered or by category.

Do you have a question or issue pertaining to lottery logistics or enrollment within my.Harvard? Get in touch with us at gened_enrollment@fas.harvard.edu.