Enrollment Requirement Groups (ERGs)

Enrollment Requirement Groups (ERGs)

ERG stands for Enrollment Requirement Group. ERGs are used in the course catalog and schedule of classes to restrict enrollment to specific student populations. They are the organizational method behind prerequisites (in the form of catalog requisites), reserve capacities (rCaps), and class level enrollment control (section level ERGs). ERGs can be built using a combination of student group codes, programs, plans, test scores, academic level, and courses.

The creation of and changes to ERGs applied to undergraduate College courses are directed by the Office of Undergraduate Curriculum, Policy, and Records (OUCPR) based on the College's Undergraduate Bulletin. ERGs are built and maintained by the Office of the Registrar. For questions about ERGs, please contact OUCPR at ugcurric@iu.edu. 

Use of ERGs

To search for existing ERGs, use the SIS path: Curriculum Management > Enrollment Requirements > Enrollment Requirement Groups.

For more details, see the Registrar’s guide on Searching for Enrollment Requirement Groups in SIS. This guide contains a table of commonly used ERGs. You can access this guide in the Scheduling Officer Portal using the path Libraries > Reference Guides and Resources > Enrollment Requirement Groups (ERG) > ERG – Searching for ERGs.pdf.

Prerequisites ERGs are also known as catalog requisites, as the ERG is attached to the course at the course catalog level. The prerequisite ERG is built to enforce the course prerequisites described in the College's Undergraduate Bulletin. Catalog requisites are automatically applied to each class scheduled. 

You can view the catalog requisite for a course using this SIS pathway: Curriculum Management > Top Pages > Course Catalog.  Enter the subject area and catalog number, or course ID, then select the Offerings Tab. Details about the catalog requisite can be found in the Enrollment Requirement Group field. If the course in question does not have a catalog requisite, this field will be blank. 

You can view the catalog requisite for a scheduled class using this SIS pathway: Curriculum Management > Distributed SOC > Maintain SOC (Distributed). Enter the term and class details, then select the IU Class Requisite tab. This will be the same as the catalog requisite shown in the course catalog. Catalog requisites should not be removed from classes.

To change a prerequisite ERG, please visit the Creating an ERG > Prerequisite ERG section of this page. For more information about prerequisites overall, please visit the prerequisites page of the OUCPR website. 

ERGs can be applied at the schedule of classes level to add an enrollment restriction to a class outside of the prerequisites described in the Bulletin. It is appropriate to use a class level ERG in cases where the enrollment restriction is applicable to a specific instance or instances. For example, if only one or two classes scheduled are reserved for a specific student population, while other instances of the class do not have restricted enrollment.

These ERGs should be used sparingly, and in a manner consistent with best practices for curriculum management.

Reserve Capacities, or rCaps, are used to reserve a portion of seats in a class for a specific student population (or, in the case of multiple rCaps, multiple populations) for a set period of time. rCaps are typically added during schedule build, in the Meeting and Enrollment Control tab of DSOC. They can be added, edited, and removed during schedule maintenance using the Reserve Capacity request feature in CART. You can find guides about how use rCaps during both build and maintenance in the Scheduling Officer Portal.

rCaps should be set to begin on the first day of student enrollment for the term in which the class is scheduled. The end date varies by the group the rCap is controlling for, as determined by the Office of the Registrar. Information on the end dates for rCaps can be found in the Scheduling Officer Portal, using the pathway: Libraries > Reference Guides and Resources > Term Dates > Select the relevant academic year, then look for reserve cap dates/UDOP reserve cap.

 Common applications of rCaps

  • Reserving seats for incoming students participating in New Student Orientation (NSO)
  • Reserving seats for pre-enrollment
  • Reserving seats for majors
  • Reserving seats for students of a specific class standing

If the student population you seek to control for cannot be managed with an ERG, it may be appropriate to enable enrollment by department or instructor consent only. For more information about this, please visit the Consent and Permissions page on the OUCPR website.

If you are unsure about whether an ERG can be applied to the student population you have in mind, please reach out to ugcurric@iu.edu.

Creating an ERG

The creation of a prerequisite ERG comes at the end of the process for creating new courses. New courses are proposed by units using CARMIn, then proceed through multiple levels of review. For more information about proposing a new course, and the approval process, please visit the Course Proposals page of the OUCPR website. Once a new course proposal is fully approved, the new course is added to the SIS Course Catalog by University Enrollment Services (UES). Any prerequisites that were included in the approved proposal are programmed into the course catalog in the form of a prerequisite ERG, which is associated with the new course as a catalog requisite. Once a course is added to the schedule of classes, the prerequisite ERG can be viewed by going to the IU Class Requisite Tab, in the Catalog Requisite field.

Please note that ERGs cannot manage prerequisites or restrictions concerning student GPA, enforce co-requisite courses, or target a student population without a specific code in SIS. If your unit is creating a new class with prerequisites that cannot be enforced with an ERG, please contact ugcurric@iu.edu to discuss how to effectively enforce the prerequisites on your new class.

For more information about prerequisites overall, please visit the prerequisites page of the OUCPR website. 

ERGs not created to enforce prerequisites are created to control for a set student population. Examples include:

  • Students of a specific class standing in a specific program
  • Students pursuing a major, minor, or certificate in a specific program
  • Students in a specific group only (e.g. Hutton Honors, ASURE, Groups Scholars Program)

These ERGS can be applied to a reserve capacity (rCap), at the class level, or both.  

To create an ERG not associated with prerequisites, please contact OUCPR at ugcurric@iu.edu. Before reaching out, please use the ERG search feature in SIS to confirm a new ERG is needed.

When requesting the creation of an ERG, please include the following details:

  • Do you intend to apply this ERG to a reserve capacity, a specific class section, or both? Please provide justification.
  • List courses that will use this ERG.
  • Provide the effective term.
  • Describe the ERG – what population will it control for?
  • Provide additional details as needed.

Changing an ERG

To change the prerequisites of a course, and subsequently, the prerequisite ERG associated with the course, your unit must submit a course change proposal in CARMIn. If the course change proposal is approved, UES will update the course catalog entry for the course to reflect the changes, including making updates to the prerequisite ERG.

For more information about submitting a course change proposal, and the approval process, please visit the Course Proposals page of the OUCPR website.

For more information about prerequisites overall, please visit the prerequisites page of the OUCPR website. 

If you would like to make changes to an existing ERG, please contact ugcurric@iu.edu with the following details:

  • The ERG number
  • Do you intend to apply this ERG to a reserve capacity, a specific class section, or both? Please provide justification.
  • List courses that will use this ERG.
  • Provide the effective term.
  • Describe the ERG – what population will it control for?
  • Provide additional details as needed.

Please note that ERGs associated with prerequisites cannot be updated in this manner. Changes to prerequisite must be submitted through CARMIn in a course change proposal.

Enrollment Options

Enrollment Options Table
GoalMethod of Enrollment ControlMore Information
Schedule a class where enrolled students must always complete a different course or courses (or other requirement(s)) as a prerequisite.

Prerequisite ERG/course catalog ERG. See Changing an ERG > Prerequisite ERGs and Prerequisites. 

 

If a student must complete a course (or courses) or another requirement as a prerequisite to a course, this must be recorded in the Bulletin. New prerequisites or changes to existing prerequisites can be initiated with a CARMIn eDoc. Existing prerequisites are enforced by the course catalog ERG associated with the course.
Schedule classes that students must enroll in simultaneously.

Department or instructor consent, or block enrollment. See Enrollment Consent and Class Permissions.

Classes that have co-requisites (classes students must complete simultaneously) can be scheduled using department or instructor consent, or SOs can schedule block classes. If classes are co-requisites, this must be recorded in the Bulletin. Visit the OUCPR page on prerequisites for more information about co-requisites.
Schedule a class where students must meet a certain GPA threshold to enroll.

Department or instructor consent. See Enrollment Consent and Class Permissions.

Student GPA cannot be enforced with an ERG. If your class has a specific GPA requirement as a prerequisite in the Bulletin, SOs will need to manually screen students who require permission to ensure their GPA meets the threshold for enrollment before providing permission.
Schedule a class that requires students complete an application or audition before enrolling.

Department or instructor consent. See Enrollment Consent and Class Permissions.

Courses that have an application or audition as a prerequisite for enrollment should be scheduled with department or instructor consent enabled. Student who are admitted based on their application or audition can be given enrollment permission.
Schedule a class that is restricted to a specific student population for one term only. For example, scheduling a class for only Hutton Honors students.

Section level ERG. See Use of ERGs > Section Level ERGS and Use of ERGs > Locating Existing ERGs.

To restrict enrollment in a class to a specific population for one term only, or to reserve one section of a class with multiple sections for a specific population, SOs can apply a section level ERG in the Class Requisite field of DSOC. When doing this, please use the ERG search in SIS to find the correct ERG for your target population. Not all student populations can be defined using ERGs; if this is the case, department consent and enrollment permission can be used.
Hold a fixed number of seats in a class for students in a specific population, like students in a certain major, or first year beginners.

Reserve capacity. See Use of ERGs > Reserve Capacities and Use of ERGs > Locating Existing ERGs.

Reserve capacities (rCaps) are enforced by ERGs, so seats can be held for any student group that can be targeted with an ERG. rCaps are used to hold a portion of seats in a class. When setting up an rCap, please use the ERG search in SIS to find the correct ERG for your target population It is possible to apply more than one rCap to the same class simultaneously. The end dates of rCaps are variable and can be set strategically to manage enrollment.
Make a one-time exception for a student to enroll in a class without the required prerequisite.

Enrollment permission. See Enrollment Consent and Class Permissions.

In certain, limited cases, it may be appropriate to allow a student to enroll in a class without meeting the course requisites. In these cases, units may override requisites for individuals using class permissions.