Courses numbered in the 500s and 600s are offerings of the graduate faculty for graduate students in advanced-degree programs. Undergraduate or nonmatriculated graduate students and students from the university's graduate professional schools are admitted to these courses according to rules printed elsewhere. Information about special prerequisites for some courses may be obtained from graduate program offices and from instructors at initial class meetings. Courses numbered in the 700s are intended for students preparing individual research theses or dissertations for advanced degrees.

Advanced undergraduate courses (numbered in the 300s and 400s) do not appear in this catalog, but among them are many that may serve as useful prerequisites to particular graduate courses. Under certain conditions, these courses may be accepted for credit toward graduate degrees. Within the limits described in the Degree Requirements and the Academic Policies and Procedures chapters, a student in the Graduate School–New Brunswick may register for an undergraduate course with the approval of his or her graduate adviser. Information about undergraduate course offerings must be sought in the appropriate undergraduate catalogs and separate schedules of classes. Graduate-level courses at the Rutgers professional schools and at partner universities also must be sought out in the catalogs of those schools.