Academics
The University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa is the flagship institution of the University of Hawai‘i System. UH Mānoa is a leader in Hawaiian, Pacific, and Asian studies, as well as in fields such as Astronomy, Oceanography, International Business, and Travel Industry Management. Exchange and Visiting students can enroll in a variety of courses across academic areas while studying at UHM.
Course options
There are a variety of ways to explore your course options at the University of Hawaii at Manoa:
- Browse the Class Availability page to see what classes are being offered in past, current, and future terms.
- Review the UHM Academics page to look through each of the Colleges, Schools, and majors/minors at UH Manoa.
Course numbering
- Undergraduate courses (1-499) – Courses that are numbered 1-99 are courses that are not applicable for credit towards a bachelor’s degree. 100-199 are considered initial or introductory courses. 200-299 are second-year courses in a sequence or development in a field of study. 300-499 are third- and fourth-year courses in a sequence of courses or first courses in professional curricula.
- Post-Baccalaureate courses (500-800) – Courses that are numbered 500 are directed study courses. 500-599 are courses applicable toward first professional degrees (law and medicine) and in-service training programs in education. 600-699 are considered graduate courses and 700-799 are advanced graduate courses. 800 are courses involving dissertation research.
Course formats
A variety of course formats are offered: fully in-person, online asynchronous, online synchronous, and hybrid. The course format for each course can be found on the Class Availability page, under “GenEd/Focus/Special Des.”
Try something new
Make the most out of your Exchange/Visiting student experience by choosing courses that are unique to Hawaii or unavailable at your home institution:
- Hawaiian (HAW)
- Hawaiian Studies (HWST)
- Natural Resources & Environmental Management (NREM)
- Ocean & Earth Science & Technology (OEST)
- Pacific Island Studies (PACS)
- Peace and Conflict Resolution (PACE)
- Second Language Studies (SLS)
- Travel Industry Management (TIM)
Language courses are also an area of expertise for UHM. A variety of languages are taught each semester for credit. In recent years, this has included Arabic, Cambodian, Chamorro, Chinese, English, Filipino, French, German, Greek, Hawaiian, Hindi, Ilokano, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Maori, Portuguese, Russian, Samoan, Sanskrit, Spanish, Tahitian, Thai, Tongan, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
Top ranked subjects
UH Manoa is consistently ranked among the best national and international universities. UHM is particularly strong in the following subjects:
- Archaeology
- English
- Lingustics
- Languages
- Agriculture
- Psychology
- Geophysics
- Geology
- Earth Science
- Physics and Astronomy
- Geography
- Communication
- Education
Course restrictions
Unless otherwise agreed to between UH Mānoa and an applicant’s home institution, access to specific courses cannot be guaranteed and Exchange/Visiting students are encouraged to maintain a flexible study plan with several alternate course selections to avoid disappointment if first-choice courses are unavailable. With the exception of specific course restrictions, and subject to prerequisite requirements, Exchange/Visiting students are free to select their courses. Students typically select courses within the academic area of their major at their home institution, although enrollment outside of your major is often possible, particularly with introductory-level courses that do not have prerequisites.
Prerequisites
Departments screen students’ transcripts carefully for prerequisite courses. Students interested in enrolling in non-introductory coursework (typically numbered 300 and above) must have completed equivalent courses at their home institution and achieved good grades in those courses, as determined by the offering department.
Graduate courses
Exchange/Visiting students who are currently enrolled in a graduate-level degree (MSc, MA, PhD, etc.) at their home institution may enroll in graduate courses (generally numbered 500 and above) only with the permission of the faculty teaching the course and/or the host department. Students should be prepared to select alternative courses, as needed.
Language courses
If you are interested in taking a foreign language course while at UHM, a placement exam may be required to determine your level prior to registration, particularly if you plan to take any course above the 100-level. For more information, visit the following pages on Placement Exams and click on the appropriate tab.
Department restrictions
The academic majors listed below are considered “impacted”, which means the department’s courses are in high demand. Availability of courses in these fields will be limited and in certain cases may be restricted by the offering department and/or priority will be given to degree-seeking students at UHM who may require these courses for graduation.
| Department | Notes |
| Academy for Creative Media | Very limited availability. Exchange/Visiting Students may only be able to enroll in the Intro to Cinema course. Students may not choose ACM as their host department. |
| Business |
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| Dental Hygiene | Not open to Exchange/Visiting students |
| Education | Limited availability. In terms of Education, courses in the following departments are most open to Exchange/Visiting Students: Ed Foundations (EDEF), Learning Design & Technology (LTEC), and Ed Psyc (EDEP). |
| Law | Not open to Exchange/Visiting Students |
| Medicine | Not open to Exchange/Visiting Students |
| Music (and Dance) | All MUS 48__ courses are restricted to degree-seeking majors at UHM who have completed three years of composition. MUS 125 and 283 are restricted to degree-seeking Music majors at UHM. Hula/Chant Ensemble courses (MUS/DNCE 312 and 412) also have very limited availability. |
| Nursing | Not open to Exchange/Visiting Students |
| Travel Industry Management | Students must complete TIM 101 (or the equivalent) before they are eligible to enroll in a TIM course with TIM 101 as a prerequisite (which is almost all TIM courses). |
