Non-Degree and Special Students

Brandeis University welcomes special and nondegree students. You may be investigating graduate degrees, completing requirements for other degree programs or looking for exciting and challenging courses for personal development. Brandeis offers a full schedule of courses at all levels.

The fee for auditing courses or taking courses for credit is the same. Please see the estimated cost of attendance (PDF). 

Nondegree students are not eligible for financial assistance.

Registration Information

Taking courses as a nondegree or special student at Brandeis requires that you follow several steps that must be completed before the end of each term's registration period.

  • Complete the application [download PDF] and bring it to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) office in Kutz Hall 219.
  • Arrange to have final copies of your undergraduate transcripts mailed to Brandeis University's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
  • Obtain the instructor's permission and signature on the Instructor's Approval Form [download PDF], and bring the signed form to the GSAS office. You may choose to bring in the application form at the same time.
  • GSAS staff will process your application, and then give you an Authorization to Register Form. Please bring this form to the registrar's office in Kutz Hall to register.
  • Pay for your course(s) in full on or before the final day of registration. Vouchers can be presented at the time of registration.

Please remember that admission to any course is contingent upon the approval of the instructor in charge, fulfillment of any prerequisite for the course, and space availability in the course.

Special Students are not eligible for financial aid from the University and are not eligible to participate in the Stafford Loan program.

The best mode of obtaining the course information you need is to visit the registrar's webpage. There you will find the most up-to-date course schedule and the accompanying course descriptions. Lists of available courses are maintained at the respective departmental offices. Departments will also know of any prerequisites that must be met for each course, and the time, days and location of the classes, as well as the instructor's availability to discuss your interest in a particular class. Contact information is available from university directory assistance (781-736-2000) and at  www.brandeis.edu/search/.

Postregistration Refund Information

After registration, the only fee that may be refundable, in part, is the tuition fee. No refund of the tuition fee will be made because of illness, absence or dismissal during the academic year. A student who is withdrawing must notify the Graduate School in writing; refunds will be based on the date of notification and calculated as follows:

  • Withdrawal before the opening day of instruction: full refund of the term's tuition;
  • Withdrawal on or before the second Friday following the opening day of instruction: 75 percent of the term's tuition;
  • Withdrawal on or before the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: half of the term's tuition;
  • Withdrawal after the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: no refund.
Academic Record as a Special Student

An academic record is maintained for each special student, and the student's work will be graded and recorded in accordance with the prevailing policies of the Graduate School. Credit earned as a special student will be reported, at the student's request, to other institutions. The dean of Arts and Sciences may refuse to reregister any special student whose work is, in the judgment of the dean, unsatisfactory. Each semester, special students must submit to the Graduate School a completed Instructor's Approval Form [download PDF] in order to register for a course.

If you decide in the future to seek admission to a graduate program as a degree candidate, you will be doing so in competition with all other applicants for admission to that program. Admission to graduate study as a degree candidate is highly competitive. Prior status as a special student does not imply any promise of later admission as a degree candidate. If admission is gained as a degree candidate, credits earned as a special student may not necessarily apply toward the degree. Normally, no more than two courses taken for credit may be transferable if the student is admitted to a master's, doctoral or postbaccalaureate program.

International Students and Scholars

Questions regarding visa status should be referred to the International Students and Scholars Office at 781-736-3480 or isso@brandeis.edu. The staff of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences will gladly address any concerns that may arise for visiting special students.