Portland-State-University 2023-2024 Bulletin

Courses

Course numbering system.

Courses are numbered as follows:

0 - 99        Noncredit courses or credit courses of a remedial, terminal, or semiprofessional nature not applicable toward degree requirements.

100 - 299    Courses on the lower-division level.

300 - 499    Courses on the upper-division level.

4xx/5xx       Master's level graduate courses which are also offered as courses for undergraduates.   

5xx             Graduate courses offered in support of master's degree level instructional programs. Ordinarily employed for units whose majors have access to master's programs or for courses populated by master's students.

5xx/6xx     Graduate courses offered in support of doctoral degree level instructional programs which are also offered as courses for master's level students.

6xx             Graduate courses offered in support of doctoral degree level instructional programs. Ordinarily employed for units whose majors have access to doctorate programs or for courses populated by doctorate students.

7xx            Postbaccalaureate courses which may not be applied toward an academic degree.

8xx            In-service courses with limited application toward advanced degrees and no application toward undergraduate degrees.

In addition, the following number system is generally in effect in all Oregon public institutions: 100 to 110 and 200 to 210 courses are survey or foundation courses in the liberal arts and sciences in the disciplines covered.

The following numbered courses are repeating courses (they may be taken for more than one term under the same number), with credit being granted according to the amount of work done:

  • 199, 299, 399, Special Studies;
  • 401, 501, 601, 801, Research;
  • 402, 502, 602, 802, Independent Study;
  • 403 Thesis/Honors Thesis; 503 Thesis/603 Dissertation;
  • 404, 504, 604, 804, Cooperative Education/Internship;
  • 405, 505, 605, 805, Reading and Conference;
  • 406, 506, 606, 806, Problems/Projects;
  • 407, 507, 607, 807, Seminar;
  • 408, 508, 608, 808, Workshop;
  • 409, 509, 609, 809, Practicum;
  • 410, 510, 610, 810, Selected Topics.

Other repeating numbers are assigned to activity courses, such as art, music, and physical education.

Certain senior level courses are taught concurrently with their graduate-level counterparts. Hence this course may be offered for either graduate or undergraduate credit. (See quarterly Schedule of Classes for specific offering.) In the graduate credit course, additional work appropriate to the graduate level of study will be assigned.

Oregon Common Course Numbers

The state of Oregon has identified a set of commonly transferred lower division courses across all public higher education institutions which are to be part of a Common Course Numbering system. These courses have aligned course numbers, learning outcomes, credit hours, course titles and descriptions. These common course numbers are identified in class schedules and on transcripts with a common marker, in the form of the letter ‘Z’ placed at the end of the course number. Courses with the common course Z identifier are guaranteed to transfer within public institutions within the state of Oregon.