What happens when you withdraw from a class at UGA?. If a student withdraws before the semester’s withdrawal deadline, the student will receive a grade of W. An instructor may withdraw a student from a course due to excessive absences as defined in the course syllabus, and the student will receive a grade of W
What happens when you withdraw from a class at UGA?
Withdrawals
Students who withdraw from courses before the withdrawal deadline (two weeks after the midpoint, as specified by the academic calendar) will receive a grade of W. Withdrawals from courses will not be permitted after the withdrawal deadline except in cases of hardship as determined by the Office of Student Care and Outreach (SCO) within the Division of Student Affairs. Students with an active financial or registration hold on their record must clear that hold before being able to withdraw from their coursework.
Students may drop one, some, or all of their classes during the drop/add period. Courses dropped in this manner do not appear on a student’s transcript and are not considered as hours attempted for financial aid purposes. No grade is assigned for such courses. However, a student who wishes to withdraw from a course after the last day of the drop period for a term must withdraw through Athena.
If a student withdraws before the semester’s withdrawal deadline, the student will receive a grade of W. An instructor may withdraw a student from a course due to excessive absences as defined in the course syllabus, and the student will receive a grade of W.
If the student does not initiate the withdrawal, the Registrar will notify the instructor and the student of the withdrawal.
If a student experiences significant personal hardship (e.g., medical or family emergency, prolonged illness), SCO can approve a hardship withdrawal from all courses in the term for which the student is currently registered. In the case of an approved hardship withdrawal from all courses, the Registrar will assign grades of W for those classes. The instructor must be informed of the assignment of the W grade. The deadline for final approval of a hardship withdrawal by SCO is the withdrawal deadline of the semester following the semester for which the hardship withdrawal is sought (e.g. withdrawal deadline of summer semester is the deadline for a spring semester hardship request). If the hardship withdrawal process is not complete by the withdrawal deadline of the following semester, a student must appeal for a retroactive hardship withdrawal from the Educational Affairs Committee.
A hardship withdrawal cannot ordinarily be used to withdraw selectively from some courses while remaining enrolled in other courses. Selective withdrawal will be permitted only under exceptional circumstances. In these cases, SCO will document the hardship and work with the Registrar’s Office to assign a withdrawal grade for each course.
Each year, SCO will submit a written report to the Educational Affairs Committee summarizing the number of hardship withdrawals granted (both complete and partial) within the past year and, in the case of partial hardship withdrawals, the circumstances justifying the use of a partial withdrawal.
Appeals for retroactive hardship withdrawals must be directed to the Educational Affairs Committee. Retroactive hardship withdrawals are rarely granted if it has been more than two years since the last day of class for which the withdrawal is sought. Extraordinary justification must be shown. In the case of approved retroactive hardship withdrawals, the Registrar will assign a grade of W. The instructor who originally assigned the grade must be informed of the change of grade.
If a student is suspended by the Office of Student Conduct following a violation of the University’s Code of Conduct not related to academic dishonesty, the Office of Student Conduct may facilitate a University-initiated withdrawal from courses for which a student is registered for the term. The Registrar will assign grades of W for those classes. The instructor must be informed of the assignment of the W grade.
All probation and exclusion rules apply regardless of the circumstances of the withdrawal. For more information, see General Academic Regulations related to Academic Probation and Academic Dismissal.
No student shall be withdrawn from a course for lack of a prerequisite after the end of one calendar week from the beginning of the term.
No refund is available for a reduction in hours due to individual course withdrawals that occur after the drop/add period.
Students should be aware that a reduction in their hours might result in the loss of full-time student status and thus affect their financial aid, scholarships, athletic and ticket eligibility, University housing accommodations, use of University resources and access to University facilities, immigration status for international students, and Veterans Educational Benefits. Students should contact the appropriate office and their academic advisor with questions about the impact of their withdrawal from a course before initiating a withdrawal. Students who are returning from academic dismissal are advised to consult with their academic advisor prior to withdrawal because violation of the minimum enrollment requirements can lead to a second dismissal from the University. Veterans and dependents of veterans who receive educational benefits must notify the Veterans Education Benefits Area in the Office of the Registrar of any course load reductions.
Dropping Courses Vs Withdrawing
| Dropping a Course | Withdrawing from a Course |
| “Dropping” a course means you dropped it before the end of the drop/add period | A student “withdraws” from a course after the end of the drop/add period |
| Credit hours for dropped courses are not included in your hours of enrollment for financial aid | Generally results in a grade of W, WP, or WF |
| Dropped courses do not count in your HOPE/Zell Miller or Undergraduate Admissions Academic Scholarship attempted hours | Withdrawn hours count in your HOPE/Zell Miller or Undergraduate Admissions Academic Scholarship attempted hours |
| Dropped hours do not appear on your transcript | Withdrawn hours appear on your transcript |
| Repayment of financial aid may be required if it was previously disbursed to you based on planned enrollment and then you drop courses | Students who withdraw from all of their courses may need to repay a portion of their student financial aid |
| Withdrawn hours count toward Satisfactory Academic Progress calculations |
Dropping a Course(s):
Dropping a course(s) prior to the last date of the official Drop/Add period results in a reevaluation of the student’s Enrollment Status for Financial Aid Purposes and his or her financial aid eligibility for that term.
Credit hours for dropped courses are not included in determining a student’s enrollment status for Federal Student Aid (FSA). Neither do they count for HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarships or UGA scholarship eligibility determination purposes, nor are they included in determining the student’s Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).
No courses or grades are posted to the student’s academic transcript for dropped hours.
Any tuition and any related fee charges for the dropped course(s) are returned to the appropriate financial aid program(s).
Student repayment may be required if financial aid was previously disbursed to the student based on the subsequently dropped credit hours.
Also see the Office of the Registrar’s Registration Overview for more information about the registration process.
Summer Pell Grant recipients should review the “Important Note” at the bottom of this page.
Withdrawing or being Withdrawn from a Course(s):
Withdrawing from a course(s) following the end of the semester’s Drop/Add period historically resulted in the assignment of a grade of W,WP,or WF. Effective the Fall Semester of 2014, students who withdraw from courses before the semester’s withdrawal deadline will receive a W grade. All types of W grades and the course hours associated with them are still considered as attempted hours for the purposes of determining Federal Student Aid(FSA), State of Georgia aid (such as the HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarships) and UGA scholarship eligibility, and they are included in both the quantitative and qualitative portions of the financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standards.
Also see the Office of the Registrar’s Policy on Withdrawals for more information about the withdrawal process.
Summer Pell Grant recipients should review the “Important Note” at the bottom of this page.
Withdrawing or being Withdrawn from All Courses:
Withdrawing from all courses can affect a student’s financial aid eligibility as cited under the preceding topic. In addition, when a student withdraws or is withdrawn from all his or her courses prior to completing more than 60 percent of the term, federal financial aid regulations generally require the student to repay a portion of the federal student aid received during the term. The amount of any required aid repayment is calculated by UGA Student Accounts according to the federally prescribed formula.
Also see the Office of the Registrar’s Policy on Withdrawals for more information about the withdrawal process.
Important Note Regarding Summer Pell Grant:
If a student drops or withdraws from a course prior to the end of the Short Session II drop/add period then that course must be removed from Pell Grant enrollment status. Please review the Office of the Registrar’s Academic Calendar to determine the end of the Short Session II drop/add period.
Any classes dropped or withdrawn prior to this date cannot be counted for Pell Grant enrollment status. For example, if you enroll in 12 hours during Summer term and withdraw from 3 hours before the end of the Short Session II drop/add period, you will be considered ¾ time for Pell Grant purposes. This may result in a Pell Grant repayment if you have already received Summer Pell Grant for 12 hours.