Visiting US Student Registration

We welcome you to participate in Boston University Summer Term 2024. No special admission is required. The summer 2024 course listings are now available. Registration for summer 2024 is now open.

You can register through our online registration system, or by sending in your registration form via mail, fax, or email. Visiting students who already have a BU ID should complete a paper registration form using their existing BU ID number. Please note that visiting international students coming to BU for the summer should follow the instructions on the international section of the Summer Term website.

Register online

Students new to Boston University can register online by completing the steps below.

Please note, if you already have a BU ID number or have previously applied to Summer Term or another program at BU,  you will likely already have a record and may experience issues using this system. If you do experience issues, please email summer@bu.edu. We may advise that you will need to use a paper registration form instead. 

Step 1: Create a BU Login Account

Create a Boston University login account by completing the Login Account Form. After you have submitted this form, you will receive a confirmation email from summer@bu.edu with the subject ‘Boston University Login Account Activation’. This email is just to confirm that Step 1 is complete. This email will also contain a link to Step 3, please ignore this for now. Shortly after the initial email, you will receive a second email from ithelp@bu.edu with the subject ‘Boston University Account Claim Next Steps’ (please check your spam, as it is highly likely either of these two emails may end up there).

Step 2: Claim your BU Account

Click the link in the email from ithelp@bu.edu to claim your account through BU Account Self-Service. Click ‘Account Claim’ and enter your personal email address and date of birth. This will then prompt you to enter a PIN. Please check your personal email for an additional email from ithelp@bu.edu for that PIN. After entering the PIN, you will be asked to create your BU Login (often called your Kerberos, which will be your BU Login name and email address) and your account password. You cannot change this after this step, so please ensure you’re happy with your login. You will then confirm your BU Account information and review the University’s Computing Services Policy. Once confirmed, you will see the final confirmation page which indicates you will receive an email notification once your account has been set up (please note this should go to your personal email, but if it doesn’t, you will find it in a newly created BU email account).

Step 3: Complete Visiting Student Online Registration Form

After you have established your BU login name and password, you will be asked to complete a Visiting Student Online Registration Form, providing us with your personal contact information (the link was included in the first email you received from summer@bu.edu). Please note, you must click the ‘Register for Classes’ button before closing out your browser window. Failure to click on this button will stop you from being able to move on to the next step of the process.

If you experience the error message “Your account lacks the appropriate level of authorization required for access to this application”, you may need to wait several hours for the systems to update and recognize your newly created login. Please try again later. 

Step 4: Register for classes via MyBU Student Portal / StudentLink

Visiting students will have access to the MyBU Student Portal, an entry point self-service website where students can manage course registration, pay a bill, view grades, etc. Please note, it can take up to 24 hours for students to be able to access the portal. However, in the meantime, you can access the registration page directly via the following link.

• This will open on the “Academics” tab
• Under the “Class and Grade Information” section, select “Registration”
• Enter your BU login name and password
• Select “Reg Options” for either Summer 1 2024 or Summer 2 2024, depending onm the summer session you want to register for
• Select “Register for Class”
• Search for the course(s) you want to take
• Check the ‘Mark to Add’ box for the course you want to take
• Select “Add Classes to Schedule” at the bottom of the page

Once you have completed this process, you are officially registered in your BU summer courses. You can confirm this by selecting “Current Schedule” in the Academics Tab.  You can return to the MyBU Student Portal at any time to add and/or drop courses (until the published deadlines), list or print your class schedule, check your grades, and update your personal information.

Step 5: Set up your BU Email Address

You can now access a BU email address at www.bu.edu/webmail, by clicking on the BU Google Mail option. You will login with the same credentials you just set up.

If you experience any problems, or have questions, please email summer@bu.edu.

Register via paper-based form

If you have experienced issues registering online, visiting US students may also register by downloading a Summer Term registration form. Use the Summer 1 Registration Form for Session 1 and 12-week courses, and the Summer 2 Registration Form for Session 2 courses. You may register for both sessions at once if a separate form is submitted for each session. If you have attended BU before, include your prior BU ID number on your registration form.

Mail, fax, email, or walk-in your registration form, by the dates below.  

Boston University Summer Term
200 Riverway, Suite 114
Boston, MA 02215
Phone: 617-353-5124
Fax: 617-353-5532
Email: summer@bu.edu 

Registration for standard Summer Term courses, 2024

Start and end dates for standard Summer Term courses, 2024

Note: Some instructors do not allow students to join their course once it has begun. It is recommended that you register for and attend summer courses by their first meeting date. During add/drop week, if you want to add a course after it has started, you should first contact the instructor to receive permission to add.

Standard courses are courses that start and end on the official dates of a six-week summer session: Summer 1 or Summer 2. Nonstandard courses have a class meeting schedule that differs from an official six-week session. Add/drop dates for nonstandard courses are individually determined and can be found next to the course on the MyBU Student Portal or summer course listings.

Course loads

A full course load in a standard six-week session at Boston University Summer Term is 8–10 credits (generally two courses). Visiting students wishing to take more than this number of credits should seek approval from the director of Summer Term. Overload courses need to be added using a Summer Add/Drop form.

Course codes

All Summer Term courses are assigned a college and departmental code, a three-digit course number, and a section identifier. For example, CAS EC 101S A1 means that the course is offered in the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS), by the Economics Department (EC). The course number 101 indicates it is an introductory course, the S indicates it is a summer course, and section A1 indicates it is offered in Summer 1. Please see Course Codes & Numbers for further information on the numbering system.

Payment

Charges for tuition and fees will appear on your student account soon after you register for courses. These charges will remain, and you will be responsible for payment, unless you officially withdraw or drop your course(s) by the published deadlines. See the Tuition, Fees, & Payment section for additional payment information.

Still have questions? Our FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page for visiting students might have the answer. If not, please contact us and we will be happy to help.