Dropping and Withdrawing from Individual Courses

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 Drop a Course During an Active Registration Phase

Courses dropped during an active registration phase do not show 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 drop a course, 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 Delete. Select this option to drop the course.
  4. Once you have selected Delete, go to the bottom right of this panel where it says Submit and select it.
  5. After clicking Submit, you have dropped the course and will no longer see the course in your Summary panel.

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.
Screenshot

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