New Student Registration Information

Set your Westmont College Email/WebAdvisor Password

Instructions for setting up your Westmont username and password were sent on June 1st by the Office of Admissions to your personal email account.   Follow those instructions.  If you have questions or need help or are having trouble setting up your password, call the Student Records Advising Hotline at 805-565-6060 from 9am-3pm, Monday through Friday or email registrar@westmont.edu.  

WebAdvisor is Westmont's online registration tool.  You need your Westmont username and password to log in.  

After you have set up your password, check that you can log in to your Westmont email by going to my.westmont.edu 

Check that you can log in to WebAdvisor by going to WebAdvisor.  

Just use the PREFIX (without the @westmont.edu) when you log in to email or WebAdvisor.  

Additionally, you may not be able to access WebAdvisor via smartphone.  

What Language Class Should I take? 

You are not required to register for a language course in your first semester at Westmont College, but you are required to take a Language Placement Exam by July 10th.  

You must take the placement exam if you plan to take the same language you took in high school.  

If you studied one language in high school and want to study a different language at Westmont you may start in the first semester (001) of the new language.  

Take the Language Placement Exam and explore the Frequently Asked Questions about the exam.  

The exam will take about 15-20 minutes.  Do not use any resource books, dictionaries or other materials during the placement exam.  

If you are already fluent in another language, please contact the Modern Languages Department after you arrive on campus.

Academic Advising Questionnaire 

On your application to Westmont, you were given an opportunity to let Westmont know your areas of academic interest.  Please complete the Academic Advising Questionnaire, which is a tool we use along with your application to assign you a faculty academic advisor.  By completing the questionnaire,  you are not officially declaring your major, but you help us assign you an advisor who can get you started exploring your interests.  The Academic Advising Questionnaire is due by July 20th.  

If you have not decided on a major, your academic advisor will still be able to offer guidance and suggestions.  You will be able to change your advisor at any time as you begin to develop relationships with Westmont faculty.  

Understanding General Education Requirements at Westmont College

Westmont's General Education (GE) program is organized into 4 main categories: 

• Common Contexts: These courses ground Westmont students in a body of defining material and explicitly invite them into an understanding of the Christian liberal arts.
• Common Inquiries: These courses empower students to explore the knowledge, methodologies, and modes of inquiry within a given discipline. 
• Common Skills: These courses encourage students to develop verbal, quantitative, or physical dexterity. 
• Compassionate Action: These courses give students the opportunity to put their education into action in a variety of ways, many of which may be part of the student's major. This is typically completed in the student's junior or senior year.  

You will find more a detailed description of the GE program and its role in your liberal arts education in the Westmont College Catalog.

Click here to review frequently asked questions about Westmont's general education.  

The list of all GE courses may help you as you consider what to take (you will learn to navigate this semester's class schedule shortly). The full list of courses approved to meet each General Education requirement can be found here. 

General Education Courses Grid 

What should I take in my first semester?

First-year students can take lower-division courses (numbered 001-099). 

Many courses in the GE Courses Grid will satisfy two GE requirements as noted in the "Other GE" column. 

For the first semester, we suggest you select one course from the Common Contexts, one PE activity, and additional courses from the Common Inquiries and Common Skills areas as desired. 

Students should enroll in at least 12 units and no more than 18 units per term.

Typically, students will have a schedule with a form similar but not limited to that below in their first semester.

This tutorial will help you as you navigate WebAdvisor.  

First-Year Seminars

The First-Year Seminar introduces students to many of the core values of a Westmont education.  It provides opportunities to explore ideas and perspectives within a small community of learners.  The seminar strives to help students gain confidence in their own inquiries, to develop their own voices, to hone their thinking and writing skills, and to reflect on the purposes of a Christian liberal arts program.  Each seminar has its own thematic focus.  

Joining a First-Year Seminar is a perfect opportunity to participate in a small, discussion-oriented course where you can develop a relationship with a faculty member and a small group of peers on a topic of interest.  A First-Year Seminar is a great addition to a three or four-course load. 

These seminars are only offered in the fall semester.  They are open to any new student (first-year or transfer). 

2018 First-Year Seminars  

Transfer Students

The list of all General Education courses being offered may help you as you consider what course to take for the General Education requirements (you will learn to navigate this semester's class schedule shortly). The full list of courses approved to meet each General Education requirement can be found here. 

General Education Courses Grid 

Transfer students are not restricted to lower division courses and may find the full list of General Education courses more useful. 

Many courses on the above lists will satisfy two GE requirements as noted in the "Other GE" column

For your first semester, we suggest that you select one course from the Common Contexts, one PE activity (if needed), and additional courses from the Common Inquiries, Common Skills, and your major requirements as needed. 

Students should enroll in at least 12 units and no more than 18 units per term.

Here is a helpful guide on how transfer work is evaluated and transferred to Westmont College 

Discovering your Program Evaluation in WebAdvisor

Every student is unique. Use this tutorial to help you navigate through your individual Program Evaluation.

• All students can view accepted transfer work and test scores on their Program Evaluation and Unofficial transcript in WebAdvisor
• The Student Records Office only evaluates work to count toward your general education requirements.  If you would like a course to count towards your major requirements, please complete a Re-Evaluation of Transfer Credit Form once you arrive on campus.  
• If you are a transfer student, please feel free to visit the Student Records Office located in Kerrwood Hall once you are on campus to review your accepted transfer work with the Records Office staff if you still have questions.
• Please let the Records Office staff know if you are missing any transfer work or test scores on your Program Evaluation or transcript.  

How can I get started on my major now? 

If you are already developing an interest in a particular discipline, enroll in a course that will also earn you major credit.

Most departments at Westmont have provided a sample plan outlining how four years in each discipline might look.  These sample plans will be useful to you in selecting your first-semester classes.  Keep in mind that these are sample plans. Not every student will complete the major in the same way. 

• View the sample plans on each of the department's webpage
• View each major and minor requirements in the Westmont College Catalog

If you are currently unsure of your major, don't worry. The general education requirements are designed to cross disciplines so that you can experience different aspects of Westmont's academic offerings.  Focusing at first on GE requirements will help you discover what majors might interest you.

Preparing to Register for Your First Semester at Westmont

Now that you're familiar with Westmont College's general education requirements, you can select a list of possible first-semester classes.  Be sure to select backup courses in case your first selection courses have already closed.  You should have 8-10 potential courses chosen prior to your registration time so that you have plenty of backup options. 

When Can I Register for Classes?  

Every semester you will receive an email notice from the Registrar's Office with registration information. One of the first things you should do when you get this notice is to check your registration time.  To do this:

• Log in to WebAdvisor
• Navigate to the Student Menu 
• Select My Registration Time and Advisor Clearance under the Registration menu

Using WebAdvisor to Select and Register for Classes

Now that you've become familiar with WebAdvisor, decided which courses to take, and know when to register, you are ready to register for classes!

Log in to WebAdvisor

This registration tutorial will help you create your preferred sections list and register at your appointed time.

Once you are ready to register for your courses, you can use this Register and Drop Section registration tutorial to walk you through the final steps of registration.  

Some notes on registration:

• If the course title includes "w/lab" (with lab) you must also register for the Lab section associated with the course.  For example, the lecture section of the course is CHM-005-1 General Chemistry w/lab and the lab section of the course is CHM-005L-1 General Chemistry Lab.  
• Be flexible and prepared by selecting backup courses in case your first choices have closed by the time you register.
• To ensure that you not be barred from registering for specific courses due to a prerequisite requirement, you may attempt to register for courses in your preferred sections list before your appointed time.  You will not be allowed to register before your appointed time, but any issues that might prohibit you from registering will appear as a warning.  Be sure to clear up these issues prior to your registration time. 
• Double check My Class Schedule once you've registered.  Changes made after the Add/Drop deadline will result in a $40.00 late add fee or a permanent "Withdraw" on your transcript. 

After you review the class schedule, you can begin planning your own course schedule for your first semester.  Use this Schedule Planner to help you create a preferred schedule that has no time conflicts.  Plan alternate courses in the event that your preferred courses are already closed.  

How will my AP/IB Scores be Applied to Westmont to review how accepted AP test scores will benefit you at Westmont College

• Click here to review how accepted AP test scores will benefit you at Westmont College
• Click here to review how accepted IB test scores will benefit you at Westmont College 
• Check your Westmont unofficial transcript and program evaluation to view your accepted scores in WebAdvisor

I'm on a Waitlist.  Now what?  

Managing Waitlists

When a class has reached its capacity its status is changed to "Closed".  When a student adds themselves to the waitlist, the course is still closed, but the status of the course is changed to "Waitlisted."  A student on the waitlist will not automatically be bumped into the course from the waitlist. 

If you are waitlisted for a course, you are responsible for moving yourself from the waitlist into the closed course by getting instructor approval.  An instructor can give you approval in two ways:

• Let the instructor know that you are waitlisted in their course and that you would like to be added (Instructor information is included with the course information on WebAdvisor).  Include your ID number so that your instructor can register you in the closed class in WebAdvisor (until the day first day of classes).  

OR

• Bring an Add/Drop form to your instructor for their signature approval to add or drop a course from your schedule.  Bring the signed Add/Drop form to the Student Records Office in Kerrwood Hall to add the course from the waitlist.  

Please note: If you are waitlisted for a class, there is no guarantee that the instructor will give you permission to add the course to your schedule.  Please wait to purchase textbooks until you've been added to the course. 

Adding &  Dropping Classes 

After you register, you still have the opportunity to add and drop via WebAdvisor until the day before the first day of classes.

On the first day of class, however, you will not be able to use WebAdvisor to make changes to your schedule.  You will need to get an Add/Drop form for the Student Records Office.  

• Fill in the course information exactly as it appears in WebAdvisor in either the Add section or the Drop section, depending on the changes you wish to make.
• Have the instructor sign the form
• Bring the Add/Drop form back to the Student Records Office to finalize the process before the Add/Drop Deadline.  

The Student Records Office staff is here to support you both in your transition to Westmont and during your journey here as a student.  

When you call, you will be speaking with a staff member in the Student Records Office, not your academic advisor.  You will have the opportunity to meet with your academic advisor once you are here on campus. 

The Student Records Office are knowledgeable about schedule options, navigating WebAdvisor, and other tools for new students (transfer work, AP/IB work, SAT/ACT scores, etc.).  

To prepare for your academic advising call, please:

• review all material on the Registration Checklist tabs
• use WebAdvisor to select 6-8 class options for your schedule
• have access to the internet
• have questions prepared

Friends and family are welcome to assist the students in the registration process, but it's important to know that federal laws protect the students' academic privacy.  Without the students' consent, there are some issues we will not be able to discuss over the phone unless the student is present and active in the conversation.  

We want you to feel comfortable interacting with all Westmont College staff so that once students are on campus and have questions, students can effectively advocate for themselves.  Contacting the Student Records Office staff members is a great opportunity to be "in the driver's seat" asking any question the students may have about their first-semester schedule.  

The Student Records Advising Hotline can be reached at 805-565-6060 or by email at registrar@westmont.edu if students have any questions or concerns about the registration process.   The staff members will be available 9-3pm (Pacific Daylight Time) Monday-Friday.