Frequently Asked Questions

Registration

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Can I take ITP classes?

Most of our classes are open to all students. You do not need a background in technology or engineering in order to enroll in our introductory classes. Over 86% of students pursuing our minor programs have majors outside of the Viterbi School of Engineering.

You can read more about our classes online.

Do I need to declare a minor or specialization in order to take ITP classes?

You do not need to declare a minor or specialization in order to take ITP classes. However, if you are considering adding a minor or specialization after taking an ITP class, be sure to complete the class on a letter-graded basis.

How do I register for an ITP class?

Most of our classes are open to all students. To register:

  1. Review the Schedule of Classes. You may read more about each class on our website.
  2. If you are completing a minor or specialization, make sure to review your requirements before selecting classes.
  3. Pay careful attention to prerequisites. You cannot earn credit for a prerequisite course after you complete a higher-level class.
  4. Register using Web Registration or at the Registration One-Stop Center.

After the first week of classes each semester, all classes require d-clearance to register. D-clearance is only granted with the instructor’s permission. This ensures that you’re able to discuss what material you’ve missed with the instructor, and the instructor will be able to advise you if you’ll be able to catch up and succeed in the class.

  • We recommend adding classes by the end of the second week of the semester at the latest.
  • Once received, d-clearance requests are processed within 2 business days, so plan ahead.
  • If there is no longer space in the classroom (or not enough computers), we may not be able to add any new students.

In order to get d-clearance:

  1. Please reach out to the instructor of the course. If applicable, discuss what material you've missed and ask if they will be able to accommodate your registration in the course.
  2. If approved, please forward the instructor's approval email to itpadvising@usc.edu.
  3. ITP Advising will send you a DocuSign form via email. Fill out and submit the form.
  4. The instructor will then receive the DocuSign form. They will sign and submit the form.
  5. Once ITP Advising has reviewed and approved the form, we'll email you when you have d-clearance to register.
  6. Your d-clearance will expire at the end of the following day. Please register ASAP and email itpadvising@usc.edu confirmation once you have done so.

Can I have a prerequisite waived?

Some students have already completed preparatory course work in CSCI, EE, or ISE or have worked on their own programming projects. In these cases, skipping a prerequisite and registering for a higher-level course may benefit the student.

  • We advise students to complete all required prerequisites.
  • After you complete a course, you cannot “go backwards” and complete its prerequisite in a later semester for credit.
  • This information applies to waiving prerequisites to register in higher-level classes only. If you are pursuing a minor or specialization program in ITP, then you may need additional units to replace the waived requirements. For information about how waiving prerequisites impacts your progress in your minor or specialization, please contact our academic advisors.

The following prerequisite waivers are approved for ITP classes:

  • CSCI-102 (2 units) satisfies the ITP-109, ITP-115, or ITP-165 requirement. (Excluding the Applied Analytics minor/specialization. Students interested in completing the Applied Analytics minor/specialization must complete ITP-115)
  • CSCI-103 (4 units) satisfies the ITP-265 requirement.
  • CSCI-104 (4 units) satisfies the ITP-365 requirement.
  • EE-155 (4 units) satisfies the ITP-265 requirement.
  • EE-355 (4 units) satisfies the ITP-365 requirement.
  • ISE-583 (3 units) satisfies the ITP-320 requirement for graduate students.

To obtain a prerequisite waiver:

  1. If the waiver is listed above, please email itpadvising@usc.edu to request the waiver.
    Please be sure to include your USC ID number.
  2. If the waiver is not listed above, you will need to obtain the written approval of the instructor of the higher-level course. If you obtain approval, please forward the instructor's approval email with your USC ID number to itpadvising@usc.edu.

How do I get d-clearance?

Most ITP classes do not require departmental clearance (“d-clearance") in order to register during the normal registration period.

D-clearance is generally required when adding a class after the beginning of the semester or when adding special classes, like ITP-470 “Information Technology Practicum" and ITP-480 “Information Technology Internship."

In order to obtain d-clearance after the first week of classes:

  1. Please reach out to the instructor of the course. If applicable, discuss what material you've missed and ask if they will be able to accommodate your registration in the course.
  2. If approved, please forward the instructor's approval email to itpadvising@usc.edu.
  3. ITP Advising will send you a DocuSign form via email. Fill out and submit the form.
  4. The instructor will then receive the DocuSign form. They will sign and submit the form.
  5. Once ITP Advising has reviewed and approved the form, we'll email you when you have d-clearance to register.
  6. Your d-clearance will expire at the end of the following day. Please register ASAP and email itpadvising@usc.edu confirmation once you have done so.

How do I register for ITP-470?

In ITP-470 “Information Technology Practicum,” exceptional students pursue individual practical or exploratory projects under the guidance of full-time faculty in ITP. To get d-clearance to register for this class, each student must submit a project proposal on MyViterbi, which the planned faculty member must approve.

How do I register for ITP-480?

ITP-480 “Information Technology Internship” is a unique class that allows each student to earn academic credit for an approved project completed in tandem with an internship. Each student earns academic credit for an approved related project component and not solely for the work duties.

To register for ITP-480, you will need both an internship offer and a project proposal approved by a full-time faculty member in ITP. Each student must submit a d-clearance request on MyViterbi, which the faculty member guiding the internship and project must approve.

Can I be added to the waitlist?

ITP is now keeping a waitlist for any class section that becomes full during Fall and Spring registration periods (d-clearance is applied to classes that have an active waitlist). The waitlist form will not be available until two weeks before the beginning of the Fall 2023 semester.

If you are interested in registering for a full class, please fill out a waitlist request form here (Link will become active for Fall 2023 registration on August 14, 2022). Please keep in mind the following:

  • Submitting a waitlist request form does not guarantee that you will be able to register for the requested course.
  • Waitlist priority is not solely based on when the student requested to be added, but other factors are considered including graduation date, minor/major requirements, and availability of alternative classes.
  • If you are given d-clearance to register, you will be notified by ITP advising, and you will have 2 days before your d-clearance expires.
  • If you are not able to register for a course you are on the waitlist on, please reach out to itpadvising@usc.edu to discuss possible substitute courses to maintain degree progress.

Do you offer online courses?

Please email itpadvising@usc.edu for more information.

Published on June 24th, 2019

Last updated on April 11th, 2023