Dropping Courses
Dropping a course is also referred to as withdrawing from a course. Every term, there is a deadline by which you can drop courses without any academic penalty. Please refer to the Academic Dates and Deadlines page to find out the drop deadlines for the current term. It’s up to you to be aware of this date!
Note: Students who drop all courses in which they are enrolled must also withdraw or take a Leave of Absence from their program.
Withdrawal Without Academic Penalty
Retroactive Withdrawal (WDR)
After the official deadline to drop a course without academic penalty has passed, students wishing to drop a course must petition to the Committee on Standing for a late withdrawal from the course. It is important for students in such a situation to meet with your academic advisor.
Withdrawals approved under this procedure will be noted on the academic record with the status WDR (retroactive withdrawal). This course status will have no effect on the GPA.
It is important that students in this situation meet with their academic advisor as a first step.
The Committee on Standing convenes at the following time periods to consider each term’s petitions:
Provide any supporting documents:
Submit the above documents to Student Services through your academic advisor.
Please note that the Committee may or may not support the request based on the reasons submitted. Generally, the Committee will only consider documented, extraordinary, unexpected circumstances as valid reasons for dropping a course after the official drop deadline. This could be a personal or medical situation, but the situation must be one that was unforeseeable and that was sufficiently serious that it prevented you from completing the course.
Petition results
The Committee on Standing will communicate with students who have requested a retroactive withdrawal from a course. There are only two possible outcomes: Approved or Denied.