Senior communication major Ashley Milon thought she was ready to register for her final semester at Columbia this week. But when she logged into her account, most of the courses she needed weren’t there — and the registration time she’d been assigned had already changed twice.

As spring registration opened this week, Milon and other students are navigating fewer course offerings and schedule confusion as the college adjusts to lower enrollment and restructured academic programs.

Registration is taking place in order of graduation priority, starting with seniors and graduate students to ensure they can secure required courses before juniors, sophomores and first-year students register later this week.

Greg Foster-Rice, associate provost for student success initiatives, told the Chronicle there was an error in the original email about registration times, though it was fixed by Monday.

“There will not be any changes,” Foster-Rice said in an email.

But the last-minute switch added to the stress for some students. Many said they were worried about getting into required classes or electives that fit their schedules, and others relied on advisors to help find substitutions or alternative classes to stay on track to graduate.

“I’m a senior and Spring 2026 is supposed to be my final semester,” Milon said. “Now I have to go through the process of seeing what I can substitute for missing courses. I’ve had registration issues in the past, but I choose to remain hopeful everything will go smoothly.” 

Foster-Rice said that during his time at the RegLab tables on the first day of registration, substitutions for required courses were resolved “fairly expediently” by putting students in touch with their Academic Advisor or the Academic Manager in their program.

Foster-Rice said that In some situations, the problem could stem from a course number changing from an earlier catalog year, or from a substitution that advisors can easily identify and enter.

“We come up with solutions that best satisfy the student’s needs and program integrity. But we are dedicated to figuring it out so students can graduate on time with relevant coursework,” he said. 

The college’s enrollment has fallen by more than 1,000 students in the past year, dropping to 4,461 this fall. Columbia also typically loses between 10 to 15% of its students from fall to spring, according to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. 

Craig Sigele, academic manager in the School of Communication and Culture, said academic managers in each school are available to assist students with substitutions.

“In the School of Communication and Culture, we carefully review student schedules to ensure they align with advising guides and program requirements,” Sigele said. “As we transition to new programs, some courses may have updated numbers or titles but still meet the same or similar learning outcomes as those in earlier guides. In these cases, a course substitution may be required.” 

Sigele added that each school also has trained faculty members designated as “advising fellows” who can help address academic questions.

Ian Oses, a sophomore illustration major who is registering for classes on Wednesday, said that he was able to meet with his advisor beforehand.

Compared to last year, where he felt unsure what classes to sign up for, now he feels more confident.

“I think I’ll be alright registering,” said Oses.

On Monday, Jaden Harris, a sophomore marketing major, was sitting on the fourth floor of the Student Center, waiting to have a virtual meeting with his academic advisor to talk through his classes, including the music production classes he wanted to take for his electives. 

“She’s been great the two years I’ve had her,” Harris said of his advisor. “Once I check in with her, everything will be cool to see what I need to do.”

The college has set up help desks in various campus buildings ahead of registration and will hold RegFest from Nov. 10 to 13 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Student Center. In previous years, RegFest began as early as October.

Aj Tijerina, a sophomore film major, said he was prepared for registration and knew the classes he planned to take. However, he was more nervous that the classes will not be available when his registration time comes later this week. 

“I feel prepared, but I’m still nervous at the same time. I have everything laid out, but I’m nervous that things are gonna be taken,” he said.

Tijerina hasn’t had issues with the new registration system introduced last spring or how it runs. The main issue he encountered was finding classes that don’t conflict with each other.

The college announced a new MyColumbia portal in April, which students first used for registration for Fall 2025 courses. The upgrade was made to consolidate class registration, financial aid awards and other self-service tools, as the Chronicle previously reported.

Although students have told the Chronicle that they like many of the features of the new system, they have struggled with figuring out their degree audits. Some students reported audits that hadn’t been updated or that had courses the college is no longer running.

“The old audit had the lovely pie chart along with the bar graphs that showed you your progress on major requirements vs electives vs college wide requirements and that was really nice because you could click on those as well to look closer at those different sections,” said Petey Holman-Hebert, a junior illustration major. “The new audit information is all cramped together with a million unnecessary dropdown menus. I’d rather it look nice and readable rather than have more integrated functionality.”

But Akeirah Jones, a sophomore music major, likes the new system.

“It’s much more easier, and also picking my classes wasn’t as hard knowing my major and knowing what I have to do for next semester,” Jones said.

Jones has had no issues planning her next semester or finding time to meet with her advisor.

“I actually am going to a meeting with one of my advisors to finalize my schedule because it’s actually good now,” she said.

Jones felt lucky that she had an advising team to help her figure out the right classes she had to take in the right semesters. 

“Registration has been really, really good for me,” she said. “I hope it’s good for everyone else.”

Sigele said that looking ahead, the new system will make the registration process even smoother by allowing students to plan several semesters in advance and by providing more standardized course offerings.

“We understand that students are still getting used to the new advising guide, and it can add to the stress of registration,” he said. “Change takes time, but most will find that the new system greatly improves planning and registration once it becomes familiar.”

Copy edited by Brandon Anaya

Additional reporting by Kate Larroder, Uriel Reyes, Julia Martinez Arroyo, Marina Bradley, Mya DeJesus and Matt Brady