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1. Course withdrawals
After the Course Change (Add/Drop) Period, there is a period of time during each term when you may still withdraw from courses on Minerva without academic penalty. You may withdraw from your courses in any given term using Minerva up to the course withdrawal deadline. There are two deadlines to withdraw鈥攐ne that will allow for a full tuition refund, and a later one with no refund. Withdrawing from your last course in any given term constitutes a University withdrawal.
Non-attendance at classes does not constitute a withdrawal. It will result in a grade of "J" (failure due to absence). A "J" grade is equivalent to a zero in your CGPA. "J" grade(s) are a permanent part of your record; you will not be able to erase them.
NOTE: If you register in a multi-term course that begins in the Fall (example: ECON 230 D1 in Fall, and ECON 230 D2 in Winter):Deadline for Course withdrawal with refund is the Fall term deadline for course withdrawal with refund (eg. the third week of the Fall term). Impact on your academic record:
Deadline for Course withdrawal without refund is the Winter term course add/drop deadline (eg the second week of the Winter term). Impact on your academic record:
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Deciding whether to withdraw
You may wish to withdraw for a number of reasons, which may include illness, financial difficulty, or other personal issues, as well as recognizing that you do not like the course, or that you are not going to do well in the course.
If you are not sure whether to continue in or to withdraw from a course, ask yourself these questions:
- Do I understand the material?
- Am I keeping up with the reading?
- Am I passing the course?
You alone are responsible for your academic record. If you are thinking about withdrawing and do not take action, you may experience potentially serious problems. Be proactive, assess your situation, inform yourself of deadlines and rules, seek advice and help in your decision making.
Grades of "W" are not "bad" for your record; they have no effect on your CGPA and a few over the course of your academic career should not affect future studies or career goals. However, when there are numerous grades of 'W' on your record, some explanation may be required. A W does not necessarily mean you were failing the course; you are free to register in that same听course at another time if you wish.
If you are thinking about withdrawing from a course, you may wish to听consult with a degree advisor to review your options.
What happens if you don't withdraw from a class you stopped attending?
If you miss a final exam, or fail to submit required coursework, you will receive a "J" instead of a "W" for a final grade in the course. A "J" grade is equivalent to a zero in the course and will count as such for your CGPA. A "J" grade remains a permanent part of your record; you will not be able to erase it. You could go into probationary or unsatisfactory standing as a result of a "J" grade.
Missed the deadline?
Permission to withdraw from a course after the withdrawal deadline has passed or from a deferred exam (approval has been granted and a grade of L appears on your Minerva transcript), may be granted for well-documented unforeseeable extenuating circumstances such a severe illness or family affliction. These requests are handled by Service Point, and not by SOUSA or your degree advisor.
If you wish to request permission to withdraw late from a course, you must complete and submit the听Late Course Withdrawal request form and provide any relevant supporting documentation to who will review your request and inform you of their decision. Please note that it is not possible to request a course withdrawal if the final exam for any course has been written.
Myths about Withdrawals
- You can withdraw from a course by simply not going to lectures.
- False:听 You MUST withdraw from any听class that are not intending听to complete.
- Your professor or another University staff member can withdraw you from a course.
- False:听 You are the only person who has access to听withdraw yourself from a course听in Minerva or to make a request for a Late Course Withdrawal.
- A W looks bad on your record and damages your average.
- False:听 A grade of W has no effect on your GPA calculation and many students will complete their degree with a W on their record.
- You can withdraw after the deadline with the professor's permission.
- False:听 You do not need the professor's permission to withdraw from a course and a professor cannot withdraw you from a course.
- Ws on your record prevent you from entering graduate studies, medical school, or finding a job.
- False:听 In most cases, a W (or even two) on your record will not have a significant impact on your post-graduate plans. You are advised to consult the graduate program you are applying to for information on their admissions policy.
- A W means you were failing the course.
- False:听 A grade of W simply means that you withdrew from a class after the Add/Drop (course change) deadline.
- A W means you cannot take the course again.
- False:听 You can always register for a course again in a future semester.
2. University Withdrawals
Withdrawing from all your courses in any one term constitutes a University withdrawal. It is your responsibility to initiate the withdrawal process, non-attendance at classes does not constitute a University withdrawal. To view the University's Regulations Concerning University Withdrawal, click here.
It is recommended that you visit the Readmission page before withdrawing from the university, as you may consider returning to your studies in the future.
Note: You are considered to be withdrawn from the entire academic year (i.e., Fall and Winter terms) if you withdraw from the University in the Fall term. You must follow the procedures for readmission if you plan on returning for the Winter term (if applicable) or for any future term.
If you are readmitted, your rate of tuition may be different from when you were last enrolled at 不良研究所. For more information, please visit the following websites:
You should determine the impact that a university withdrawal and this break in enrolment will have on the timely completion of degree and program requirements, your academic goals and access to any university services. If you are considering withdrawing from the university, please consult the Withdrawal Checklist below.
Withdrawal Checklist (some items pertain to a course withdrawal)
Students who are considering withdrawal from the University should view the information found below that is pertinent to their particular situation:
Student Accounts
Health/Dental insurance
Students, who withdraw late in the term from the University, may not necessarily be eligible for a fee refund of health insurance charges. During the period of withdrawal with full refund, the University will confirm with the insurance providers that the various health insurance plans are eligible to be nullified. This may depend on whether or not claims are being made. After this period, should a student be exceptionally granted a retroactive withdrawal, they will be contacted by Student Accounts to inform them of a refund of Health Insurance premiums. The refunds of the Health Insurance premiums will be processed only if no claims have been made with the insurer. The insurer requires that students must be registered in order to remain eligible for the insurance coverage.
Department fees/Field trip fees
Depending on timing, some of these fees may not be refunded, or may be refunded if materials are returned in good condition. Check with your department if you wish to know if charges specific to your program/course are refundable. Information regarding the policy applicable to these fees may also be available on the Fee descriptions page of the Student Accounts website.
Registration Cancellation Charge
To be applied when withdrawal happens after 1 September for the Fall term, or after 1 January for the Winter term. If there was an admissions deposit for the term of the withdrawal, the deposit is forfeited and no Registration Cancellation Charge is applied. For the current amount of this charge, please check here.
Outstanding 不良研究所 loans
Any outstanding 不良研究所 loans should be repaid. For repayments, please send an email to听loansadmin.finserv [at] mcgill.ca with 鈥湶涣佳芯克� Loan鈥� in the subject line to arrange a payment plan.
Admission deposit
Any admissions deposit will be forfeited if the withdrawal is in the same term as the deposit. This is independent of the date of withdrawal.
Other deposits
Any other deposits on file are reviewed to determine if they are refundable to the student, refundable to an external scholarship provider or sponsor, or should be forfeited.
External scholarship/bursaries
If there are external scholarships/bursaries in the term of withdrawal, or any subsequent terms, the external scholarship/bursary agency will determine if the award needs to be returned to them. This can potentially create a balance owing to the University on the student fee account. In this situation, the student must then pay their account in full.
Third Party Sponsorship
Any third party sponsorships will be reviewed to see if the sponsor will pay for any withdrawn courses that are still being charged to the student, or if any penalties (i.e. Registration Cancellation Charge) will be covered. Anything not covered by the sponsor will be the student鈥檚 responsibility to pay.
Education Tuition Assistance
As a condition of receiving the Education Tuition Assistance for 不良研究所 employees courses must be successfully completed. If a course is withdrawn after the Withdrawal with Full Refund period and the fees are still being charged, the Education Tuition Assistance amount will be reversed, as the course was not successfully completed. The cost of the course is then the responsibility of the student to pay by the next fee payment deadline.
不良研究所 Housing/Residence
Monthly Rent
Depending on the date that the student vacates their residence/housing, rent for the month will need to be adjusted and future months鈥� rent will need to be reversed.
Housing deposit
Depending on the date that the student vacates their residence/housing, the housing deposit may be forfeited, either partially or fully.
Damages charges
There may be damages charges applied to the fee account at the time the student vacates their room, or at a later date.
More information on this topic may be found here.
不良研究所 Food and Dining Services
Depending on the type of meal plan a student is enrolled in, there are different policies on what is eligible to be refunded to the student鈥檚 fee account. Please speak with a representative in Food and Dining Services.
More information on this topic may be found here.
Scholarships and Student Aid
If a student has an internal scholarships/bursaries in the term of withdrawal or any subsequent terms, it may be revoked. If the award paid into the student鈥檚 fee account, it will be reversed out of the fee account, potentially creating a balance owing to the University. If there were internal awards paid by direct deposit or cheque that will be revoked, these will also be charged to the student鈥檚 fee account and potentially create a balance owing the University. The decision to revoke undergraduate and need-based awards is undertaken by the Scholarships & Student Aid Office. The decision to revoke graduate awards is undertaken by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
If the student had a US Direct Loan, US Parent Plus loan, or US Grad Plus Loan in the term of withdrawal, Scholarships & Student Aid will need to do a Return to Title IV calculation to determine if any of the loans needs to be returned by Student Accounts to the US government. This may create a balance owing to the University on the student鈥檚 fee account.
More information on this topic may be found here.
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Other charges that may affect you
uPrint charges
Minerva > Student menu > uPrint 鈥� Campus Printing Menu
These charges are only applied to the student鈥檚 fee account once a month. Students can review any new charges since the last e-bill on Minerva.
Library fines
Students should review their library account to see if there are any outstanding fines to be paid.
Withdrawal Prior to the Deadline
To withdraw from the University, you must withdraw from all your courses on Minerva BEFORE the deadline for University Withdrawal.
Withdrawal After the Deadline
Permission to withdraw from the university after the university withdrawal deadline may be granted for serious and well-documented extenuating circumstances such as an illness or death of a family member through Service Point. If you wish to request permission to withdraw from the university after the deadline, you must complete and submit the Late Course Withdrawal request form and provide any relevant supporting documentation to Service Point who will review your request and inform you of their decision.
Please note that access to your will be impacted if you withdraw from the university.
Your Record
If you drop all your courses on Minerva BEFORE the course add/drop deadline, you will not have a record of study for this term and your student record will remain inactive.听
If you were granted a University Withdrawal after the deadline, your record will indicate "Withdrew from the University" and the date on which your withdrawal became effective.
If you withdraw in the Fall term, you are considered withdrawn from the entire academic year and your Winter term is deleted.
If you wish to return to 不良研究所 in the future, you must apply for readmission.
3. Undergraduate Leave of Absence (LOA)
Per the , a听Leave of Absence may be granted for any of the following reasons:
- Maternity or parenting reasons
- Personal or family health reasons
- Professional development
- Required military service
Considerations for LOA:
- LOA can be granted for a period of up to 52 weeks.
- LOA cannot be granted retroactively.
- Documentation to support your request is required.
- You are encouraged to discuss your options with a degree advisor.
- The LOA notation - but not the reason - will be reflected on your academic record.
- If you are subsequently asked to provide the reason for your LOA by an immigration authority, graduate school admissions committee, or otherwise, you will be responsible for providing the explanation.
- All decisions will be communicated to you via your 不良研究所 email address, including information about the your record (eg. missing grades in the previous term).
Eligibility:
- Newly-admitted students are not eligible for LOA in their first term.
- Students who have not received any credits for courses are not eligible for LOA.
- Students in Unsatisfactory academic standing are not eligible for LOA.
- Timing:
- You must be actively registered for the term in which you are applying for the LOA.
- Your request must be made before the end of the withdrawal with refund deadline of the term in which the LOA is requested.
- You must clear any holds on your academic record, as they may delay approval of your LOA.
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To submit a request:
- Submit your LOA .
- Check your 不良研究所 email inbox for confirmation that your request was duly submitted.听
- Reply to the email, ensuring you have attached your supporting documentation.
If approved:
- For the term(s) in question, your courses听will be dropped, and a 鈥楲eave of Absence鈥� notation will be entered on your academic record.
- If enrolled in spanned multi-term course听(eg. D1/D2 courses), the D1 portion will be withdrawn without refund, whereas the D2 portion will be dropped.
- You will have access to course registration in the subsequent term and will not be required to apply for readmission.
- If you do not re-enroll in the subsequent term, your record will be inactivated. You will need to apply for readmission to request a return to your studies.
- You are not permitted to register for courses at 不良研究所 or at another University while on LOA.
- No transfer credits shall be considered or approved for courses taken elsewhere during your LOA.
- International students:
- Contact International Student Services regarding how the LOA may impact your student status.
- Refer to the following for information regarding possible impact to your rate of tuition: