- What is the Course Fee?
- The fee for this academic year is $100 per 1.5-credit course and $200 per 3-credit course.
- Unlike other institutions, HBS provides students with all the course materials they will need during a course. Most courses use only cases, but some will have textbooks. If you are enrolled in an HBS course, all required reading materials for that course will be provided to you.
- The Course Fee covers the copyright licensing fees for materials used in a course. All HBS courses are charged the course fee, regardless of the number or type of materials associated with the course. The course fee is charged for courses taken for credit as well as those that are audited.
- Course materials and HBS Canvas access for an HBS course are only available to students who are formally enrolled in that course either for credit or as an auditor.
- What do I do if I need to drop my HBS class?
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Fall 2022 courses may be dropped without penalty until September 16, 2022. Spring 2023 courses may be dropped without penalty until February 10, 2023. This deadline applies to full-term courses as well as to half-term, short courses, including those in the second half of the term.
If you decide to drop a course, you must make the drop in my.Harvard. MIT students are unable to drop courses in my.Harvard, so those wishing to drop a course must email mbacrossreg@hbs.edu in addition to dropping the course in the MIT registration system.If you wish to drop a course after the deadline you must obtain permission from your home school as well as from HBS. Email mbacrossreg@hbs.edu to let the HBS Registrar's Office know that you wish to drop after the deadline and to share your home school's permission, if granted.
Please note that HBS may have a different drop deadline than that of your home school. Please consult both schools to ensure that a drop is possible.
The course fee will be refunded for courses dropped by the HBS drop deadline. Courses dropped after the HBS deadline will incur the full course fee. - What is the X/Y Schedule?
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Most HBS courses meet on consecutive days of the week: Monday, Tuesday, and some Wednesdays (X schedule days) or some Wednesdays, Thursday, and Friday (Y schedule days). Wednesdays can be either X or Y depending on the week.
X or Y class schedules, course titles, times, and room numbers may be found on the Academic Calendar in the Course Planning Resources section of this website. The X and Y scheduled days are shown on the Academic Calendar and are color coded with green showing the X schedule and blue showing the Y schedule days.
- What is the credit conversion of HBS courses into my home school's system?
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Cross-registrants are strongly advised to check with their home registrar's office about how a particular HBS course counts toward credit and toward their degree at their home school. You may also view the credit conversion information for Harvard University graduate schools.
- Are MBA Program courses open to Harvard University TAP participants or graduate student spouses/partners?
- No
- What is the case method?
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Please visit The HBS Experience page for information and a useful video demonstrating the case method used in the MBA classrooms.
- For how many courses may I register?
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Cross-registrants are limited to 6 HBS credits per term in any combination of "Long" (full-term) courses (3 credits) or "Short" (half-term) courses (1.5 credits). The credit value of courses taken for audit count toward this 6 credit limit. To see how HBS courses convert to your home school's credit system, you may view the credit conversion information for Harvard University graduate schools.
- Disqualification from HBS courses?
- If you cease to be a student in good standing at your home school at any point during your term of cross-registration at HBS, you will be disqualified from taking the HBS course, dropped from the class roster, receive neither grade nor credit for the HBS course, and will receive no refund of the course fee.
- If, for any reason, your course fee is not completely paid by the last class meeting date of the HBS course, you will be disqualified from taking the HBS course, dropped from the class roster, will receive neither grade nor credit for the HBS course, and will receive no full or partial refund of the fee.
- What are HBS's exam policies?
- Exams must be taken as scheduled by HBS, and final projects must be submitted as assigned. HBS exams cannot be rescheduled for conflicts at your home school. You may see the exam period for a given term on the Academic Calendar.
- When are HBS Final Exams?
- You may see the exam period for a given term on the Academic Calendar.
- How does HBS's grading system work?
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At the conclusion of each course, the instructor assigns one of four grades designated as Category I, II, III, and IV.
- Category I - given to the top 15-25% of students
- Category II - given to the next 65-75% in a section. The actual number of Category II grades is subject to the number of Category I grades assigned.
- Category III - given to the lowest-performing 10% of students in an elective curriculum course section.
- Category IV - seldom assigned; designates failure of achievement and/or commitment and, therefore, failure to meet minimum standards of the course. If Category IV is used in a course, the combined number of students who receive Categories III and IV must equal the lowest 10% of the elective course section.
- "Incomplete" - If a student does not fulfill all of an instructor's course requirements due to illness or another reason acceptable to the instructor, the instructor has the option of reporting an "Incomplete," which allows students the opportunity to complete or "make up" the requirements of a course. Incomplete course work must be submitted by the end of the following term to receive credit for the course.
- "No Credit" ("X") - The designation of "Incomplete" will not be used if a student's failure to satisfy the requirements of a course results from the student's willful and unexcused absence or other unacceptable behavior. Reasons for a "No Credit" ("X") determination by an instructor include:
- failure to submit a major piece of written work
- failure to take the final examination
- repeated absence from class
- repeated failure to prepare for class
In such a circumstance, the instructor reports to the Registrar that a student has not performed adequate work and no credit has been earned. An "X" grade will be reported to the student's home school.
- How do I cross-register for HBS Doctoral Program courses?
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- Cross-registrants interested in taking courses in the Doctoral Program at HBS should visit Doctoral Programs or contact the Doctoral Program Office at 617.495.6101.
- I am a Harvard Fellow/Post-Doc: how do I cross-register?
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With explicit permission from the faculty member and with space available in the course, Fellows and Post-Docs are welcome to audit MBA Elective Curriculum courses.
- Email the HBS faculty member to introduce yourself and to request permission to audit on a space-available basis.
- Assuming the faculty member has confirmed agreement, complete the online audit registration poll (see the Auditors and Harvard Fellows section on the Course Planning Resources page of this website).
- If enrolled, MBA Registrar Services will email auditors with enrollment confirmations and personalized login/password details by the date published on the Course Planning Resources page.
- I am a dual bachelor and graduate degree student; may I cross-register?
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Undergraduate students enrolled concurrently in a bachelor and graduate degree program at Harvard University who would like to cross-register for an MBA course toward their graduate degree may contact MBA Registrar Services mbacrossreg@hbs.edu for more information on our Cross-Registration policies and procedures.
Per Harvard College policy, undergraduates are limited to 8 graduate credits (the equivalent of 6 HBS credits) to count toward their undergraduate degree. Please note that standard HBS policy is that undergraduates may not cross-register into HBS MBA courses. Students wishing to count graduate credits toward their Master's Degree must gain the approval of their Director of Graduate Studies. - How are course materials distributed in the MBA Program at HBS?
- Unlike most schools which require students to purchase textbooks, course packets, etc. from the COOP, the MBA Course Distribution office distributes physical copies of required textbooks and most HBS cases. HBS cases will also be available electronically on Canvas. The course fee paid by cross-registrants covers access to all course materials required for a course. After enrollments are confirmed, cross-registrants will receive further information about accessing course materials.
- Whom do I contact regarding arranging for special accommodations for classes or exams?
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Cross-registered students needing classroom accommodations or special time considerations for exams may contact Aldo Pena Moses (amoses@hbs.edu) in MBA Student Support Services.
- What is the HBS attendance policy?
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Class attendance and participation is a critical component of the HBS Learning Model. Both excused and unexcused absences are considered in your grading and overall status.
While we hope that you will be able to attend all classes, we understand that you may need to miss class and the information below covers important information related to absences.
Using our online Student Absence Notification Tool, students must notify their instructor(s) of any absence in advance or, in the case of emergency, as soon as possible afterward. Notifying the instructor(s) and/or MBA Registrar Services does not constitute an excused absence. Even if the absence is excused, students are responsible for satisfying any "make-up" requirements for a missed class. Failure to provide proper notice may lead to adverse consequences with respect to course grades (see below).
Excused Absences
It is important to remember that while an absence may be excused, frequent excused absences may impact your overall participation, and thus your grade. You may be excused from class and class activities for:
- personal illness, including quarantine or isolation due to COVID, mild symptoms causing a student to stay home in order to keep others healthy, health emergencies, mental health, and appointments with health care providers that could not be scheduled at another time.
- birth or adoption of a student's child
- illness or medical needs of a child for whom the student is a primary caretaker
- death or serious illness in the immediate family
- funeral
- student's own wedding day, or that of a close and immediate family member
- required military service
- court summons or jury duty that cannot be postponed
- the observance of high religious days or due to religious beliefs
- You are eligible for a small, limited number of excused absence days when there is a recruiting need that cannot be accommodated on designated Job Search Days.
Students with frequent excused absences will be notified and required to provide documentation regarding the extra time needed outside of the classroom. Additional information about this policy will be shared upon enrollment.
- May I cross-register into a Required Curriculum course?
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Cross-registration into the Required Curriculum, or MBA Program First Year, is not permitted.
- How do I cross-register into an Independent Project?
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To cross-register into an Independent Project (IP):
- Obtain permission from the HBS faculty member with whom you wish to work on an IP.
- Reach out to your home school's Registrar to ensure that enrollment in an HBS IP is permitted by your home school.
- Contact MBA Registrar Services at mbacrossreg@hbs.edu with the project's details, including title of the IP, the number of credits, and the the names of any HBS student team members, if applicable.
- Please note that the course fee applies to independent projects.
View details about the Cross Registration petition process.
December 6, 2022