Withdrawal and Dropping Courses

Authoritative information regarding withdrawal and readmission is published under Rules & Regulations VIII in the Catalog.

Authoritative information regarding withdrawal and readmission is published under Rules & Regulations VIII in the Catalog.

Catalog: Rules & Regulations VIII

Georgia Tech has one deadline for course drops and another for withdrawals. See the Academic Calendar for deadlines by term.

Academic Calendar

Students considering dropping a course are encouraged to read our blog regarding the pros and cons of that decision.

Important Policies

• All holds must be removed before a student can drop or withdraw from a course or withdraw from the Institute.
• After registration for a term is closed, a student must withdraw from all classes to receive a refund; there is no refund for a partial withdrawal from courses. In order to qualify for a refund, a student must completely withdraw from the Institute before the withdrawal deadline.  Refunds are calculated on a prorated basis depending on the date of withdrawal. 
• International students (those on an F1 or J1 visa) should consult with the Office of International Education before adjusting their schedule to less than 12 hours. 
• Students who are full-time (enrolled in 12 hours, at least) and withdraw from a number of courses that lowers the semester total below 12 will no longer be considered full-time. For example, if a student is registered for 12 credit hours and then withdraws from one 3-credit-hour course, they will no longer be designated as full-time.
• If there is an alleged academic integrity violation pending, the student may not drop or withdraw from the course. The status of the alleged violation is defined as "pending" when an incident has been submitted to the Office of Student Integrity and has generated an electronic "suspected academic misconduct" notice that has been sent to the student. If the student is found responsible for any prohibited academic conduct, they will not be allowed to drop or withdraw from the course.
• If the student is found responsible for any prohibited academic conduct in a class, they will also not be allowed to withdraw from the term.
• After any transaction in the registration system, students must hit "submit" to ensure that the change is made in the database. Students should the review their schedules again, as indicated below, to make sure they are correct.
• After withdrawing from a class or from all classes, students are expected to print out their schedules, as described below, and keep a copy as a receipt verifying the action that was taken on that date. In the event of a system glitch, this will serve as proof of the intent to withdrawal or proof that the action was taken but not processed properly.

How to Withdraw from a Course After Registration has Closed

Courses withdrawn after the close of Phase II registration will show as a “W” grade on a student’s academic record.

1. When looking at the Register for Classes page, open the bottom panels to see the courses you have registered for.
2. If the courses marked in green under the Status column on the bottom right Summary panel say “Registered”, and you want to withdraw, click the drop-down menu under the Action column next to the Status column.
3. When clicking the Action column drop-down menu you will see the option to Course Drop by Student. Select this option to withdraw from the course.
4. Once you have selected the Course Drop by Student, go to the bottom right of this panel where it says Submit and select it.
5. After selecting it, you have withdrawn from the course. The Status column should be highlighted in green stating “Withdrawn” as seen in photo below.
6. To withdraw from the Institute completely, follow the above steps for all courses. Once all courses have been withdrawn from your schedule, you have effectively withdrawn from the Institute.

How to withdraw from a course and how to withdraw from the Institute

Withdrawing after the withdrawal deadline

Students who are seeking to withdraw from a single course or from the Institute after the withdrawal deadline of the semester must submit a Petition to the Faculty for consideration. The Petition process does not guarantee a withdrawal after the deadline will be granted. It is recommended that you consult with your academic advisor first before starting the Petition to the Faculty process. More information on the petition process can be found at Petition to the Faculty.

Enrollment Status

Enrollment Status: Full-Time or Part-Time

Authoritative information regarding withdrawal and readmission is published under Rules & Regulations VIII in the Catalog.

Catalog: Rules & Regulations VIII

Georgia Tech has one deadline for course drops and another for withdrawals. See the Academic Calendar for deadlines by term.

Academic Calendar

Important Policies

• All holds must be removed before a student can drop or withdraw from a course or withdraw from the Institute.
• The amount of the student's refund will be based on the date she/he changes the status of all courses to "course drop by student". Consult the Bursar's Office for more information about the refund policy.
  • Bursar's Office
• With the exception of part-time (i.e., students enrolled in 6 credit hours or fewer) graduate students, students who withdraw from the Institute must submit a "Petition to the Faculty" form to return the next term.
  • Petition to the Faculty Form

How to Withdraw from the Institute After Registration has Closed

Courses withdrawn after Phase II registration has closed will show as a "W" grade on a student's academic record.

1. When looking at the Register for Classes page, open the bottom panels to see the courses you have registered for.
2. If the courses are marked in green under the Status column on the bottom right panel say “Registered”, and you want to withdraw, click the drop-down menu under the Action column next to the Status column.
3. When clicking the Action column drop-down menu you will see the option to Course Drop by Student. Select this option to withdraw from the course.
4. Once you have selected the "Course Drop by Student," go to the bottom right of this panel where it says "Submit" and select it.
5. After selecting it, you have withdrawn from the course. The Status column should be highlighted in green stating “Withdrawn” as seen in photo below.
6. Repeat the above steps for all courses. Once all courses have been withdrawn from your schedule, you have effectively withdrawn from the Institute.

How to withdraw from a course and how to withdraw from the Institute

Withdrawing after the withdrawal deadline

Students who are seeking to withdraw from a single course or from the Institute after the withdrawal deadline of the semester must submit a Petition to the Faculty for consideration. The Petition process does not guarantee a withdrawal after the deadline will be granted. It is recommended that you consult with your academic advisor first before starting the Petition to the Faculty process. More information on the petition process can be found at Petition to the Faculty.

Enrollment Status

Enrollment Status: Full-Time or Part-Time

Students who have been called to active duty in the United States Military and wish to withdraw from school will need to provide the following documentation to the Registrar's Office:

1. a request that includes the student's full name, gtID#, and signature
2. a copy of the orders
3. a mailing address to which the refund is to be mailed

The documents should be submitted to the Registrar's Office  via email to comments@registrar.gatech.edu. 

The student will receive the appropriate refund and their schedule will be deleted. No "W" grades will be posted to the student's academic record.

A Military Withdraw will not be approved if the orders were issued prior to the start of the term the student is requesting to withdraw from. 

The following is applicable to all terms (including summer), and to all students (both undergraduate and graduate).

Students scheduled for at least 12 credit hours in a semester are classified as full-time students; those scheduled for 6-11 hours are classified as part-time students; and those scheduled for 1-5 hours are classified as less-than-part-time students.

A "Petition to the Faculty" form may be completed by a student when asking for an exception to an Institute rule or policy. Examples of exception requests include (some apply to all students, but some are specific to the level of the student):

• To withdraw from school (all classes) past the deadline
• To withdraw from an individual course (selective withdrawal) past the deadline
• To count the first instance of the course toward degree requirements if the grade in the second attempt is not passing
• Register in more hours than would be normally allowed in that term (over 21 hours or over the hour-limit if not in good standing)
• Waiver of the 10-year rule
• Waiver of the 39-hour rule
• Late registration in the current term
• Readmission after academic dismissal (rarely approved if it is the second dismissal)
• Return after withdrawing in the current term
• Late request to change a grade mode for a course
• Late adjustment of credit hours for a variable credit course that was not registered properly
• Waiver of the 6-year rule to complete and MS degree
• Waiver of the 7-year rule to complete a PhD degree
• Change to full graduate standing

All "Petition to the Faculty" forms must be completed by the student and signed by all appropriate offices. Instructions for completion are printed on the form. The form is available on the link above. Once completed and reviewed by the major school, these forms should be submitted to the Registrar's Office via email to comments@registrar.gatech.edu or through DocuSign.

These petitions are processed by the Registrar's Office and may require more than one level of review. Students should allow up to one week as a general rule to receive a decision. This process may take longer depending upon whether more information is needed from the student, the academic advisor, or other offices, how many levels of review are required, and the time of year that the petition is received. The Registrar's Office operates under the delegated authority of the Institute Undergraduate Curriculum Committee and the Institute Graduate Curriculum Committee in these matters.

Students are notified by email of the decision. The academic advisor who signed off on the petition is copied on the email. Any updates to the SIS (student's record) are completed as soon as the decision is made and prior to the email being sent to the student.

Important Supplemental Information

Guidelines for Students Preparing Petitions

Mental Health Guidelines

Guidelines for Major Schools in Evaluating Petitions to Waive the 10-year Rule

The Bursar's Office is committed to ensuring financial integrity in the receipt, collection and deposit of all revenues, including tuition and fees, while providing the highest level of professional, efficient, and responsive customer service. We continue to seek new and improved ways to meet this commitment.