Overview

The Course Shopping Period is available during the fall and spring semesters, starting on the first day of classes and ending on the last day to add a class. See the Penn Academic Calendar for specific dates by semester.

In Spring 2026 Course Shopping will run from Wednesday, January 14 to Tuesday, January 27.

Students can browse different courses in Canvas as they finalize their course selections at the start of each semester. Visible courses can be accessed through Path@Penn via a link on the course listing. When students are visiting a course’s Canvas site, it is not the same as being registered for the course. Students accessing a course through this process will not appear on the Canvas course roster, and they cannot participate in course discussions or submit assignments. Students who access a course’s Canvas site while not enrolled in the course should ask the instructor for permission if they wish to attend any class sessions. If a student wishes to enroll in the course, they must register in Path@Penn to gain full access.

The default visibility setting for Canvas course sites is Course so that only enrolled students have access. During the virtual shopping period, the visibility setting is changed to Institution. After the virtual shopping period, visibility settings revert back to Course.

Included Courses

All undergraduate courses in Annenberg, Arts & Sciences, Engineering, Nursing, and Wharton can be included in course shopping. Graduate courses may also participate. For a course to be visible, an instructor must also have published their course in Canvas. 

Instructors are encouraged to publish their Canvas sites before the first day of classes so that they will be available at the start of the shopping period. Instructors who have published their course may opt out of having their course visible to unregistered students.

Student Access to Course Shopping

  1. Go to Path@Penn.
  2. Use the Search Classes menu to search for courses.
  3. Click on a course in the Search Results.
  4. Participating courses will have a Canvas button in the Course Resources section.
  5. If you decide to enroll in a course, register in Path@Penn.

Instructor Opt-Out

If you wish to opt out of Course Shopping and the semester has not yet begun, please email Canvas Support.