Effective Date: January 1, 2013
All Students
Office of the Provost
A.
Quarter System Students ________________________________________________________ 1
B.
Semester Students _____________________________________________________________ 2
C.
Saturday Scholars ______________________________________________________________ 2
D.
Accelerated Courses ____________________________________________________________ 2
A.
Transcript ____________________________________________________________________ 2
B.
Academic Progress _____________________________________________________________ 2
A.
Late or Retroactive Withdrawal ___________________________________________________ 3
Undergraduate students may withdraw from a course during the “withdrawal period”. The Academic
Calendar provides dates for each term and program type, including quarter, semester, and accelerated programs. The Academic Calendar establishes term deadlines.
For students on the quarter system, the withdrawal period lasts from the beginning of the third week through the end of the seventh week of the term. Specifically, withdrawal from a course taken on the
Drexel University Academic Policies www.drexel.edu/provost/policies
1

quarter system must be executed by close of the business day on the Friday of the seventh week of the term.
For students on the semester system, the withdrawal period lasts from fifteen days after the first day of the semester until the last day of the semester.
Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in Saturday scholar courses (which normally last five weeks) are advised that the “withdrawal period” lasts from Monday of the second week through the end of the fourth week in the Saturday Scholar schedule.
Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in accelerated courses (which normally last five weeks) are advised that the “withdrawal period” lasts from Monday of the second week through the end of the third week of the quarter. Withdrawal from accelerated courses must be executed by close of the business day of the third week of the quarter.
Note that dropping or withdrawing from courses can have serious financial and academic implications, possibly affecting billing, financial aid, VA benefits, eligibility to participate in NCAA athletic events and, for international students, immigration status. Students are strongly encouraged to thoroughly discuss their decision with their academic advisor and financial aid counselor before making the decision to withdraw. Students are considered the responsible parties for any/all transactions processed against their academic records and are wholly accountable for making the determination to withdraw.
Withdrawal from a course will result in the name of the course and a grade of “W” being reflected on the student’s transcript. A “W” indicates that the course was attempted but not completed.
Withdrawal from a course may impact a student’s ability to progress in the major, as in the case of withdrawal from pre-requisite courses; or a student’s eligibility for financial aid as described in the
Satisfactory Academic Progress policy . Given these impacts, students are strongly encouraged to discuss this decision before withdrawing from a course. Students are advised to consult with
 the course instructor to assess their performance and progress in the course and determine if withdrawal is warranted; and
Drexel University Academic Policies www.drexel.edu/provost/policies
2

 their academic advisor to explore the impact of withdrawal on reasonable progress in the program given pre-requisite standards and potential course sequencing limitations; and
 a financial aid counselor to review impact of withdrawal on current and future aid eligibility.
A student must first secure the instructor’s signature on the “ Drop/Withdraw ” form as verification of a discussion regarding his/her performance and progress in the course.
A student must meet with his/her academic advisor to discuss the performance in the course and program as well as to explore potential impacts of withdrawal on their program plan of study. T he advisor’s signature denotes that the decision to withdraw and the impacts of this action have been discussed with the student.

Withdrawal forms will not be considered complete without the advisor’s signature.
The student submits the form to the Student Resource Center where financial aid counseling can also be obtained. Appeals submitted to SRC after the deadline will not be accepted or processed and must then be advanced as a late appeal.
Late or retroactive withdrawal is generally not entertained. All students are expected to comply with the University’s established withdrawal deadlines. However in the event of exigent circumstances, consideration of the deadlines may be warranted. In the event of unforeseen emergencies, such as an extended hospitalization, students may advance a petition to their college/school advising office to withdraw from classes after the close of the established withdrawal adjustment period. If the petition is determined to meet the criteria established for exigent circumstances, an appeal can be advanced to the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs with an explanation of the circumstances leading to the late appeal. The Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs will review the recommendation and make the final decision supporting or not supporting the appeal.
Drexel University Academic Policies www.drexel.edu/provost/policies
3