Summer provides an opportunity for current WashU students to stay on track (or get ahead) with their degree requirements; to focus intimately on rigorous coursework without the pressure from other academic or social demands; and/or to explore a new disciplinary area. Current WashU students must have completed at least one full semester of coursework at WashU prior to taking A&S summer courses.

We welcome students from other colleges and universities to take classes at WashU during the summer. Visiting students who enroll during A&S Summer Session must be at least 18 years of age by the start of the course and meet one of the following eligibility criteria:

• Be a matriculated undergraduate student at another US college or university.
• Be a matriculated international undergraduate student attending a US college or university.

Visiting students must be in good academic standing and will be required to complete an enrollment request form prior to receiving authorization to register for classes.

Since 1984, we have welcomed rising high school seniors to enroll in course work through our Arts & Sciences Pre-College Programs. These academically motivated students come from across the country and around the world to experience WashU over the summer. Students apply and are admitted to their respective program and receive academic support from our Pre-College Office. In addition to noncredit Exploration Courses, and applicable A&S Summer Online Pilot courses, pre-college students can choose from a selection of introductory credit-bearing courses that meet in person from 9:00-10:45am, 11:00am-12:45pm, or 1:00-2:45pm during Summer 2. 

All members of the WashU community, including students, faculty, and staff, are expected to be positive role models in their interactions with minors by behaving in a caring, honest, respectful, and responsible manner. WashU has adopted the Youth Protection Policy which outlines expectations for the safety and well-being of minors on campus. Summer Session instructors with pre-college students enrolled in their courses will be expected to abide by this policy and its corresponding procedures, which will include a background check and training program.

• Summer 1: May 18 – June 5
• Summer 2: June 8 – July 10
• Summer 3: June 8 – July 31
• Summer 4: July 13 – August 13
• Summer 5 (Summer 2026): variable, between May 18 and August 13

Additional SU26 registration and refund deadlines can be found here.

Arts & Sciences Summer Course Tuition

• Undergraduate: $1250/unit ($3750/3-unit course)

Below are standard class session days, times, and durations to keep in mind as you plan your offerings:

Session I (3 weeks)

• 3-unit courses typically meet M-F daily for 3 hours from 9am-noon or 1-4pm

Sessions II and IV (5 weeks each)

• 3-unit courses typically meet M-F daily for 1.75 hours beginning at 9am, 11am, 1pm, and/or 3pm
• 4-unit courses typically meet M-Th daily for 2.5 hours 

Session III (8 weeks)

• 3-unit courses typically meet M-Th daily for 1.5 hours beginning at 9am, 11am, 1pm, and/or 3pm 

Session V (varies)

• Please contact your department/program summer course contact  for assistance with scheduling

Those requesting to offer a course during non-standard days/times should follow the same procedure as is expected during the fall/spring semesters. Please visit the Office of the University Registrar site to submit the appropriate petition.

For additional guidance regarding contact hour requirements, please refer to the appendix of the Credit Unit Definitions document.

Instructors should post final grades for Summer Session courses in Workday approximately one week after the corresponding session ends. All Summer 2026 final grades must be posted by noon on August 17.

With the exception of courses selected for the A&S Summer Online Pilot, Summer 2026 courses will be held in person, maintaining the same modality as courses offered during the FL25 and SP26 semesters.

The minimum enrollment for Summer 2026 courses is 5 students. We understand that canceling courses negatively impacts students and instructors, so the decision to do so is not made lightly. Our office regularly monitors course enrollments leading up to the start of each session. We may allow a course to run underenrolled in some instances where the course is still pedagogically viable, meets student need, and the instructor has agreed to a reduction in pay. Cancellation decisions are finalized at least 15 days prior to the session start date.

If you plan to offer a course that has never been listed (neither during the academic year nor summer), we encourage you to contact us at summersession@wustl.edu to discuss your idea. We want to partner with you to ensure our credit-bearing course offerings help meet student need. As a reminder, all new courses will have to be approved through the standard A&S new course approval process.

Exploration Courses provide high school students the opportunity to experience WashU from home. Students explore a topic or subject through a series of interactive activities, lectures, and discussions with pre-college peers from around the world. These noncredit, online courses offer students the opportunity to immerse themselves in an innovative and collaborative learning experience. We are currently accepting course proposals for the 2026 summer semester through December 1, 2025. Additional details about Exploration Courses and how to submit a course proposal are available here.

Summer 2026 courses will now be managed in Workday. Please work with your Workday Course Section Manager to enter approved A&S courses for Summer 2026 by Friday, December 5. Your course section manager will receive a message from the OUR and/or A&S Registrar Team with further instructions for updating summer course sections in Workday.

A few items to note:

• Courses from the previous semester/summer will not automatically carry over in Workday. Each course section you have been approved to offer in A&S Summer Session will need to be set up in Workday for Summer 2026.
• Section numbers for summer courses follow a standard convention based on which session the course is being offered:
  • The first section of a course listed in each respective session is entered as follows: Summer 1 = Section “11”, Summer 2 = Section “21”, Summer 3 =  Section “31”, etc.
  • If there are multiple sections of a course in one session, then subsequent section numbers should be entered as follows: Summer 1 = Section “12”, Summer 2 = Section “22”, Summer 3 = Section “32”, etc.

Summer 2026 courses will go live for browsing on February 2, 2026, and registration is set to open on March 25, 2026.

The process for submitting course and section fees for summer session will mirror the academic year procedure. Starting in January, Jenny Givens (givens@wustl.edu) will email your summer session contact a spreadsheet listing the Workday courses for Summer 2026, along with submission instructions. Course fees must be entered into the system before March 25, 2026, when registration opens. If fees are uploaded by this date, they will be automatically applied to student accounts upon registration and refunded if the student drops or withdraws from the course. 

You will need to provide the course section number and title, the type of fee or charge item (e.g., lab fee, inclusive access text fee, materials fee), and the cost center or fund where fees should be routed upon payment. Gathering this information promptly allows Jenny time to collaborate with the Workday Student Support Team to correctly attach fees to course sections in Workday.

Note that graduate student instructors must follow all Mentored Experience Requirements established by your department/program's plan and by the Office of the Provost. Graduate student instructors should be cleared for summer teaching and given an academic appointment before listing them in Workday, and they should also have adequate mentoring, including syllabus review. Graduate students who will be the instructor of record for the first time are required to complete the A&S Summer Course Institute (SCI) in preparation for teaching their Summer Session course. This training will occur in late Spring 2026 and is provided in partnership with the Center for Teaching and Learning. Exact dates will be announced in the coming months.

For questions specifically related to instructor hiring, please contact Jennifer Kohl, Director of Finance and Operations, at jkohl@wustl.edu.

For questions related to course or course section fees, please contact Jenny Givens, Coordinator for Curricular Programs, at givens@wustl.edu. For all other questions related to student accounting matters for Summer Session, please contact the College Office accounting team at COAccounting@wustl.edu. 

If you have questions about pre-college students, the Youth Protection Policy, or Exploration Courses, please reach out to Becki Baker, Director of Pre-College Programs, at precollege@wustl.edu.

If you need assistance with course design, in particular to plan for the (re)design of a course for an accelerated/short format, help is available through the Center for Teaching and Learning.

For Canvas questions and support, please contact Tifffany Lang, Instructional Designer and Canvas Administrator, at tiffany.lang@wustl.edu, or our A&S Canvas Support Team at artscicanvas@wustl.edu.

Any issues related to Workday can be directed to the Workday Student Support team.

Registrarial matters can be directed to our A&S Registrar Team at artsciregistrar@wustl.edu.