In alignment with the shared values of Weill Cornell Medical College, the Office of the Registrar seeks to provide excellent customer service to all of our stakeholders, including: faculty, colleagues from other departments, internal and external constituencies, collaboratively with Cornell University in Ithaca, WCMC-Q, other medical institutions, and most importantly, our students.
The Office of the Registrar is charged with maintaining the permanent record of the student, including archived data and documents. The Office monitors the academic progress of each student from admission through graduation, retains demographic/biographical information, changes in name, initiates all registration processes, and verifies enrollment, while ensuring that all entities are compliant with FERPA regulations and institutional policies.
Registration is the first step in your study at Weill Cornell Graduate School (WCGS). Once registered with WCGS, you will have established your student status and be able to use Weill Cornell's many resources. You must be registered each semester until you finish your degree or withdraw from the program. In order to be considered a registered student, a student must enroll in at least one course, or enroll in a graduate thesis/dissertation research course.
You must notify WCGS and the Registrar's Office if you wish to withdraw, take a leave of absence, or otherwise cease to be registered.
Course listings are available on LEARN and all registration occurs in that environment. Registration instructions are disseminated by email before each registration and add/drop period. Please see the Academic Calendar for the schedule.
All Graduate students must register by the end of the second week of each academic term. Students who have completed course requirements should maintain registration in dissertation research courses.
Anyone that is not fully admitted into the Graduate School, but seeking to take PhD level course please contact the Registrar’s Office on how to submit the Application for Non-Degree Graduate.
Auditing Courses: Students are permitted to audit a course, whereby they regularly attend classes without participating in all graded aspects of the course. Students must obtain approval from the course director and their home department, before they may audit a course. The audited course will appear on the student’s transcript as AU. Deadlines to declare an audit and to add/drop a course are outlined in the academic calendar. Students may not audit a course and later retake the same course for credit. Courses taken as an audit do not fulfill program degree requirements.
Many WCGS courses may be taken (either for credit or audit) as a non-degree student. For more information and the application, please see the Application for Non-Degree Graduate.
For information regarding WCGS academic policies, including grading policies, please see the WCGS Code of Legislation.
Degree-seeking students may have the opportunity to participate in courses at affiliate organizations.
Cornell Tech
Each semester, there is a limited number of Cornell Tech courses that are available to WCGS students. Instructions for applying for Cornell Tech courses are disseminated via email each semester. Students may not audit courses at Cornell Tech and availability is limited.
Cornell University
Students interested in attending courses on the Ithaca campus may apply for the Linkage program. Students may also take select distance learning offerings from Cornell Ithaca with WCGS and instructor approval. Availability is limited.
CUNY-Graduate Center
A limited number of courses offered by Hunter College and the CUNY-Graduate Center may be available to WCGS PhD students. Please see the Inter-University Registration Information and form for more information.
Rockefeller University
PhD students may apply to take courses at Rockefeller each semester by completing an application in LEARN. Instructions for applying for Rockefeller courses are disseminated via email each semester. Students may take courses for credit with the approval of the department, and may audit some courses as well. Subject to availability.
New York Genome Center – Genomic Innovation Course
PhD students may apply to take Genomic Innovation at the NY Genome Center. See https://genomicinnovation.org/ for more information. Once your registration has been processed at the NYGC, please forward the confirmation to registrar@med.cornell.edu so it can be added to your registration records.
New York Structural Biology Center
PhD students may apply to take courses at the New York Structural Biology Center. Please see https://nysbc.org/education/courses/ for more information. In order to have courses added to your registration records, please email confirmation of registration as well as approval from the program director to take the course for degree credit to registrar@med.cornell.edu.
To graduate, student must satisfy the academic and research requirement imposed by the academic Program and the student’s Special Committee, submission of final dissertation (within 60 days after defense), and pay all outstanding bursar bills. Doctoral student must file a dissertation within seven years of first registering in the Weill Cornell Graduate School (exceptions may be granted by the Dean). Master’s student must file a thesis within four year of first registration in the Weill Cornell Graduate School (exceptions may be granted by the Dean).
Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences confers degrees three times throughout the academic year: August, January and May.
Our office is happy to assist current students, former students and alumni with requests of enrollment status, dates of attendance, and graduation information, transcripts, In-School loan deferments. In order to release your academic information, please complete the Credentialing Request Form. Requests are processed within 7-10 business days.
Requests from third-party screening agencies may be emailed or faxed to the Office of the Registrar along with a written signed release from the alumni or former student. As dictated by the Federal FERPA Law, information regarding academic records can only be released upon written consent of the student or alumni. We are not able to provide verbal verification.
All diplomas are sent via postal mail, first-class for domestic (US) mailing and airmail for international mailings. Please allow 30 days from the mailing date to receive your diploma.
Requests for replacement diplomas can be made online through our official diploma vendor, the Michael Sutter Company: https://www.michaelsutter.com/cornell
Using that link, you can order a replacement diploma online. There is an $85 charge for each diploma replacement. You will be able to choose Standard Delivery, or Express Delivery for an additional fee. Your Diploma will be printed and mailed within 1-2 business days of your order.
If you have questions about diplomas, please contact the Registrar's Office via phone at (646) 962-3470 or via email at registrar@med.cornell.edu.
