Important Dates and Deadlines
Deadlines and Events for Instructors and Departments
For course related tasks or events for the current and future terms.
Please check back often as dates can be added or changed.
For Spring 2026:
- January 7, 2026: Instructors informed of classroom assignments, including mandatory sections.
- January 12, 2026: Add/drop opens for returning students, instructor consent not needed.
- January 15, 2026: Locations published on my.harvard.
- January 26, 2026: First day of classes.
For Spring 2026:
- February 2, 2026: Open Add/Drop deadline. After this date permission from instructor is needed for enrollment.
February 9, 2026: Last day for undergraduates to add/drop without a fee.
For Fall 2026:
- February 9, 2026: Canvas sites course offerings open for instructors.
- February 23, 2026: Last day to apply edits to the AY 2026-2027 course listings before the faculty vote.
For Academic Year 2026-2027:
- March 3, 2026: Faculty vote to approve course offerings.
For Fall 2026:
- March 9, 2026: Last day to submit a course requisite to the Registrar's Office for a fall 2026 course.
- March 10, 2026: Edits to meeting times, class notes, and instructors due.
- March 11, 2026: my.harvard Course Search will be made public and available to students.
- March 18, 2026: Fall 2026 Crimson Cart opens.
For Fall 2026:
- April 1, 2026: Returning student registration opens.
- April 1, 2026: EMS opens to departments for fall 2026 classroom preferences, including sections.
- April 15, 2026: Returning student registration closes.
For Fall 2026:
- May 1, 2026: Deadline for departments to enter classroom preferences, including sections, in EMS.
For Fall 2026:
- Tentative fall 2026 classroom assignments, including mandatory sections shared with departments.
- Mid-June: Crimson Carts open for incoming first-year students.
For Fall 2026:
- Instructors informed of classroom assignments, including sections.
For Fall 2026:
- August 1, 2026: Classroom locations display in my.harvard Course Search.
- August 11, 2026: Course registration opens for incoming (new) students.
- August 24, 2026: Open Add/Drop begins, instructor consent not needed.
For Fall 2026:
- September 2, 2026: Classes begin.
- September 9, 2026: Open Add/Drop deadline, after this date students need instructor permission to enroll in courses.
For Fall 2026:
- October 5, 2026: Undergraduate add/drop deadline.
For Spring 2027:
- TBD: Course edit deadline.
- TBD: Basic course information and syllabus information should be uploaded to Canvas by this date.
- October 21, 2026: FAS Crimson Cart opens.
- October 21, 2026: Petitions for limited enrollment courses can be submitted.
For Spring 2027:
- November 4, 2026: Course registration opens for all FAS students.
- November 18, 2026: Course registration deadline for all FAS students.
For Spring 2027:
- December 2026: Tentative classroom assignments for primary components shared with departments.