Frequently Asked Questions
In the courses of helping thousands of students apply, enroll, and succeed in the Visiting Student program, we encounter commonly-asked questions and have included many of them below. If you are not able to find an answer, please email us or set up an appointment!
General Information
The Visiting Student Program allows individuals to enroll in BYU courses without being fully admitted. This allows students to experience our unique learning opportunities and campus culture while having the option to complete university credits that can help them advance their educational pursuits.
Applicants need to meet these criteria:
- At least 17 years of age by the first day of class
- High school GPA of 2.0 or higher or a college or university GPA of 2.0 or higher
- A composite ACT score of 18 or SAT of 860 (total of critical reading and math scores only) if high school or equivalent was completed in the past five years
- Have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement
Prospective Visiting Students who would like to enroll in a full-time class load and focus on university general education requirements should also consider BYU FlexGE.
After you have completed 24 graded semester credit hours either as a Visiting Student or through another college or university, you can apply to BYU as a transfer student. The BYU Admissions Office can provide you with more information about transfer admission.
Tuition
For in-person courses, BYU Financial Services provides tables that detail the different tuition rates for different student types. For students who have already completed a bachelor’s degree or higher the “graduate” tuition rate applies, even when enrolling in undergraduate classes.
Section Type
BYU differentiates courses offered by campus entities using "section types" to mark that difference. The main section types are:
- Day Sections - Courses scheduled by BYU Enrollment Services; primarily scheduled between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm, but instructors may schedule "Day" sections outside of those hours or on Saturdays if there are scheduling or space limitations.
- Evening Sections - Courses scheduled by the Evening Classes Department in Continuing Education. These courses must be scheduled after 4:00 pm weekdays, scheduled to conclude prior to 7:50 am weekdays, or on Saturdays.
- Salt Lake Center Sections - Courses scheduled by the Salt Lake Center and held at their location. These courses can be scheduled at any hour of the day.
Section Type will override Instruction Mode when determining registration eligibility. For example, a Day section with an instruction mode of "Remote On-Demand" will still only permit students with valid Day registration eligibility to add the section.
BYU Continuing Education does provide limited financial assistance to Visiting Students based on need. You can learn more about the types of aid available and apply for assistance through the BYU FlexGE scholarship application.
Visiting Students can also get help from BYU through a short-term loan. This loan can help students to pay tuition by the final deadline.
Visiting Students are not eligible for Federal financial aid because they are not in a degree-seeking program (the type of aid awarded via the FAFSA).
If you are a Visiting Student taking Independent Study courses, there are opportunities for you to receive financial help through Financial Aid and Scholarships on BYU Independent Study’s Scholarships and Financial Aid page.
To better illustrate that many different course types are available to non-degree-seeking students, the former “Evening Classes Student” type has been merged into the Visiting Student Program.
The Office of Visiting Students is a resource office for any non-degree-seeking student taking classes at BYU, including students taking just one or two classes, post-baccalaureate students, audit-only students, and BYU employees, spouses, and retirees.
FlexGE is a coordinated program by the Salt Lake Center and other Continuing Education departments to provide focused help for non-degree-seeking undergraduate students who are new to higher education and taking a 3/4-time or full-time schedule with an emphasis on general education courses. If you are interested in learning more about FlexGE, visit the BYU FlexGE website or schedule an appointment with an academic advisor.
Program Benefits
Most BYU services are available to Visiting Students. These include the library, sports facilities, Counseling and Career Center, and participation in other social and campus-wide events. If you would like to check if a specific service is available to you, please contact our office or schedule an appointment with an advisor.
On-campus housing is generally not available to most types of Visiting Students, but BYU-approved off-campus housing is available and highly recommended.
Note: FlexGE students during spring and summer terms may be able to stay in on-campus housing on space-available contracts. Please see the FlexGE program for more information.
Yes. You can attend a BYU student ward as long as you are living within the BYU ward’s boundaries. For specific ward information, check out churchofjesuschrist.org.
You cannot receive a BYU degree or credentials as a Visiting Student, but it is a great opportunity for you to earn transferable credits before being admitted to a university. If you would like to pursue a degree at BYU, you must submit an application for undergraduate admission and be approved as an admitted student.
There are certain steps required to earn Utah state residency. To learn more, talk with an advisor to know the best way to begin.
All students who are currently enrolled in at least one campus-based course (including Salt Lake Center) for credit can ride UTA’s FrontRunner, TRAX, and buses for free. This includes Visiting Students. Just scan your student ID when you board. If you do decide to drive to the Salt Lake Center, parking is free.
Yes. Visiting Students are allowed to take up to 18 credits per semester or 9 credits per term, but the recommended credits for a full-time student is around 12–16 credits per semester or 6–7 credits per term.
Talk to an advisor to help you learn which credits will transfer to specific universities and colleges.
Yes. These can be purchased through BYU Meal Plans.
Visiting Students are welcome to join in with BYU’s campus events. There are all kinds of events that happen year-round, including weekly devotionals and forums, BYU sporting events, and more.
Visiting Students are eligible to work on campus in part-time staff positions. You can learn more about what campus jobs are hiring at the YJobs website.
Application
First complete a Visiting Student application. If you do not have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement, you will need to complete the endorsement as well.
No, the Visiting Student Application will grant you clearance for all the course types you are eligible for.
Registration
This will depend on your personal scheduling needs. Setting up an appointment with an advisor can catapult your planning into reality and ensure your credits will transfer to the schools you intend to apply to. In the meantime, here are a few examples of aspects to consider:
- If you are just beginning your college journey, you will want to start with General Education (GE) courses. These include foundational courses such as a first-year writing course (WRTG 150), a science course, a history course, and so on.
- If you work during the day, you probably need to take classes in the evening or online. Fortunately, all the Visiting Student course types include flexible or evening-study options.
- If you are not able to go to school from May to August, you may want to look into Evening Classes and Salt Lake Center courses for in-person enrollments or Independent Study for online enrollments (which come with a 12-month completion window).
- If you want to complete a course over the summer but do not want the compressed length of spring or summer term, a BYU Independent Study course would give you more time and flexibility. Be aware that you will need to allow three weeks to transfer credit (if needed as a prerequisite for a fall class) once the course is completed.
Class schedules are available at:
- The Salt Lake Center's website,
- in MyMap,
- and in the BYU class schedule
for upcoming and recent semesters and terms. For spring and summer terms, just select the term to see available courses; spring term usually includes more options than summer term.
BYU Independent Study courses are also available. Students can start these courses at anytime and complete them at their own pace (2–12 months).
If you have any questions and need more guidance through the registration process, your advisor can help you. Here are the steps:
- Create a BYU login profile (Net ID) if you don’t have one already. (Please do not make a duplicate login.) This Net ID is permanent and cannot be changed, so choose wisely. For help, contact BYU’s Office of Information Technology.
- Complete the Visiting Student Application and Ecclesiastical Endorsement.
- Review the Class Schedule and the University Catalog to explore GE requirements and BYU courses.
- Log in to my.byu.edu.
- Click on MyMAP to access the registration system and to search for your desired courses.
- Add class sections. If your registration window is not yet open, add courses to your cart and make sure you submit your cart before 6:00 p.m. Mountain Time the day before your priority registration day.
Simply find the courses you need in the BYU Independent Study online catalog, add them to your cart, and check out. If you have questions, you can submit a question, use the online chat, or call 801-422-2868 (local) or 1-800-914-8931 (toll-free).
Post-Baccalaureate
A post-baccalaureate visiting student is a student who has a bachelor’s degree but is not enrolled in a graduate program. These students have limited access to university resources and can take classes available to all Visiting Student types.
There are many reasons why students with a bachelor’s degree would want to attend classes as a post-baccalaureate student. A common reason to participate in this program is to take a few more classes to be eligible to apply for a graduate or professional program.
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
- Minimum 2.5 GPA in completed bachelor’s degree.
- Have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement
Post-Baccalaureate studies are billed the graduate tuition rate.
Post-baccalaureate students may sign up for the same sections available to Visiting Students (Salt Lake, Evening, spring term, and summer term).
Day sections during fall and winter semesters may be available under a limited circumstance if the Visiting Student application is completed by a semester’s official “Former Student” deadline, if there is availability in the course on the first day of the semester, and if the desired course fulfills a legitimate academic or professional need. (Coordination with BYU Enrollment Services is needed to approve this, necessitating the earlier deadline.)
No.
To be considered for admission to this program, students should apply on the Visiting Student website. Applicants must also have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement.
The following additional steps ONLY apply to post-baccalaureate applicants who would like to take Day section enrollment for credit during fall or winter semester:
Applicants seeking Day section enrollment for credit in fall or winter semester must complete the Visiting Student application by the earlier deadline AND upon completion of the application they must send an email to VisitingStudents@byu.edu explaining why they are seeking this additional enrollment eligibilitiy. In the email, specify in detail how long you plan to enroll, what specific coursework you need, and why you want to attend BYU.
No. The classes you choose to take can be for a specific purpose or can be for personal enrichment.
(An exception to this would be taking a Day section course during fall or winter semester. These sections may be available under a limited circumstance if the Post-Bacc Prep application is completed by an earlier application deadline and the applicant has specified how desired course fulfills a legitimate academic or professional need. Additionally, there must still be availability in the course on the first day of the semester.)
No. The classes you choose to take can be for a specific purpose or can be for personal enrichment.
(An exception to this would be taking a Day section course during fall or winter semester. These sections may be available under a limited circumstance if the Post-Bacc Prep application is completed by an earlier application dealine and the applicant has specified how desired course fulfills a legitimate academic or professional need. Additionally, there must still be availability in the course on the first day of the semester.)
No. The classes you register for will be offered for credit by default. If you choose to change your registration to "audit" status, you will not receive credit for audited courses.
If you have any questions and need more guidance through the registration process, your advisor can help you. Here are the steps:
- Create a BYU login profile (Net ID) if you don’t have one already. (Please do not make a duplicate login.) This Net ID is permanent and cannot be changed, so choose wisely. For help, contact BYU’s Office of Information Technology.
- Complete the Post-Bacc Prep application and Ecclesiastical Endorsement.
- Review the Class Schedule and the University Catalog to explore GE requirements and BYU courses.
- Log in to my.byu.edu.
- Click on MyMAP to access the registration system and to search for your desired courses.
- Add class sections. If your registration window is not yet open, add courses to your cart and make sure you submit your cart before 6:00 p.m. Mountain Time the day before your priority registration day.
Audit Only
Auditing classes mean that a student will register for coursework without receiving credit.
- Complete a Visiting Student Application.
- Complete an Ecclesiastical Endorsement.
- No application fee is required.
Not all classes or sections are available for auditing. To manage restrictions, departments and instructors use “permission-to-audit” codes. This code is given out by the instructor or department during the first two weeks of the semester or the first six days of a term.
The visiting student must be completed each semester in which the student wishes to attend classes.
Permission-to-audit codes are given out by course instructors or by the department up until the sixth day of the semester or term. The permission-to-audit code cannot be used to enroll in the section until the first day of the semester or term. Instructors and departments may choose to deny a permission-to-audit code for any reason.
Auditing a class costs the same amount as taking the class for credit.
The expectations of an audit-only student vary from instructor to instructor and should be agreed upon prior to enrolling.
Audited classes will not show up on a student’s record, will not be considered during enrollment verifications, and do not fulfill minimum registration requirements.
Yes, audited classes do count in the maximum credit hours allowed per semester/term.
Yes, please complete a Visiting Student application and select the semester/term you are planning on attending. Then select "Audit Only" from the options at the top of the application.
Please refer to Benefits for more information about the Tuition Benefit. Related forms, such as the Employee Request for Class Attendance and the Spouse Taxation From are also available from Benefits.
Concurrent Enrollment
The Concurrent Enrollment program is for local high school students interested in taking college classes before graduating. These students can take classes to help fulfill general education requirements before attending college while getting a feel for what college classes are really like.
Yes. The purpose of this program is to complete courses that fulfill high school requirements while earning university credit. You must complete the concurrent enrollment voucher to finalize this.
Most universities publish transfer guides for transfer credit. For assistance determining specifics, please contact the Admissions office of universities you are applying to.
Yes. BYU’s tuition benefits for dependents do apply to courses taken as Concurrent Enrollment. Please contact University Benefits for specifics.
- Complete the General Student Information and Ecclesiastical Endorsement parts of the online application by the appropriate deadlines.
- Complete junior year of high school and be at least 16 years old.
- Have an unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher.
- Indicate unconditional support from your high school counselor and parent.
- Agree to enroll in no more than 11.5 hours during fall and winter semesters and no more than 5.5 hours during spring and summer terms.
- Submit an ACT or SAT score.
- Fill out the concurrent enrollment voucher.
- Note: A new concurrent enrollment voucher must be submitted for each enrollment at BYU.
- Have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement.
You must be a local high school student in a program that awards a high school diploma.
Concurrent Enrollment students may sign up for the same sections available to Visiting Students (Salt Lake, Evening, spring term, and summer term).
Day sections during fall and winter semesters may be available under a limited circumstance if the Concurrent Enrollment application is completed by our office's earlier, strict deadline. Additionally, there must be availability in the course on the first day of the semester. (Coordination with the Admissions Office is needed to approve this, necessitating the earlier deadline.)
- Complete a Visiting Student Application application.
- If you do not have a current Ecclesiastical Endorsement, you will need to complete the endorsement as well.
- Download the concurrent enrollment voucher and begin filling it out.
- Schedule an appointment with an academic advisor to begin the course verification process.