WITHDRAWAL PRIOR TO THE MIDDLE OF THE TERM OF INSTRUCTION. A withdrawal from the university occurs when students drop all their courses within a semester. Students may drop all their courses through the middle of the term of instruction using the online enrollment system or in person at the Office of the Registrar, 150 Administration Building. For withdrawals that occur before the middle of the term of instruction, courses in which the student is enrolled will be deleted from the official record.
Undergraduate students are strongly advised to seek guidance regarding the impact of withdrawal from the university by contacting either the associate dean of their major college or academic advisor. For most students who have fewer than 56 credit hours, the Associate Dean’s function is served by the Neighborhood Student Success Collaborative (NSSC). Exceptions are James Madison College, Lyman Briggs College, and the Residential College in Arts and Humanities. Graduate students should consult with their advisor, major professor, or graduate program director; this is especially important if appointed as a graduate assistant.
Additionally:
- Fees are subject to refund according to the refund policy.
- A student living in a residence hall should consult the manager regarding the policy on the refund of room and board fees.
- A student living in an off-campus organized living unit should consult the individual unit for policies regarding room and board refunds.
- A graduate student appointed as graduate assistant forfeits their assistantship upon withdrawal from the university.
- Any student whose enrollment at this university is interrupted for any reason so that they have not been enrolled for three consecutive semesters, including the summer sessions should submit a readmission to the Office of the Registrar at www.reg.msu.edu.
WITHDRAWAL AFTER THE MIDDLE OF THE TERM OF INSTRUCTION. A student may drop a course or withdraw after the middle of the term of instruction only to correct errors in the enrollment or because of events of catastrophic impact, such as serious personal illness. If the student is passing the course, or there is no basis for assignment of a grade at the time of the drop, a W grade will be assigned. If failing, a 0.0 (or N in a P-N graded course) will be assigned. The course will remain on the student’s academic record.
Undergraduate Students: To initiate a late withdrawal, the student must obtain approval from the office of the associate dean of their college or the Neighborhood Student Success Collaborative. Exceptions are James Madison College, Lyman Briggs College, and the Residential College in Arts and Humanities.
Graduate students should consult with their advisor, major professor, or graduate program director; this is especially important if appointed as a graduate assistant.
There is no formal procedure for withdrawal at the end of a semester; however, a student living in university housing should notify the manager of the appropriate unit.
UNAUTHORIZED. Students who leave the university during a semester or summer session without officially dropping their courses will be reported as having failed those courses and will forfeit any fees or deposits paid to the university. The withdrawal procedure will not take place automatically for the student who leaves campus because of illness, of either one's self or family member, or for interim or final suspension for disciplinary reasons, but must be initiated by the student. Fees are subject to refund according to the refund policy.
INVOLUNTARY. Students who are called into the armed forces during the semester should submit a copy of their orders to the Office of the Registrar for appropriate action.
ACADEMIC RECESS OR DISMISSAL. If a student is academically recessed or dismissed, courses in subsequent semesters are dropped without grades and fees are subject to refund according to the refund policy.