Drops/Withdrawals

Students have the opportunity to drop courses after enrollment. This is a normal and sometimes beneficial decision. However, dropping a course at UW-Madison requires specific actions from the student.  If these steps are not taken, students remain enrolled in their course.

Common reasons for dropping a course(s) include:

• Schedule challenges
• Academic difficulty
• Health-related issues
• Change of interest in course topic
• Change of academic plans
• Personal challenges

Students who need to be enrolled full-time should consider the impact of dropping a course on that status.  Full-time enrollment may be required for international student visas, athletics, housing, financial aid, or scholarships.  Talking with relevant support offices may be helpful.

If you are uncertain about dropping a course after talking with your major advisor or want to talk about your options, you can meet with a Dean on Call.

To drop a course:

• Before the final drop deadline for the course, use Course Search & Enroll.
• After the final drop deadline for the course, you must appeal to CALS Scholastic Policies and Actions Committee (SPAC). Please review the information below about the appeal.

Dropping all courses in a given semester (or Summer Term) is called a withdrawal, and students should follow the steps for Withdrawals.  If there is a medical issue preventing you from being a student, please review the Medical Withdrawal process.

It is your responsibility to know the drop deadlines for each of your courses. Each course has deadlines for noting a DR, tuition adjustments, and a final drop deadline. These specific deadlines vary depending on the length of the course.

It is recommended that students leave time before deadlines to meet with their major advisor prior to dropping a course to discuss the impact of the change.

How do I find the deadline to drop a course?

• Enrollment page in Course Search & Enroll
• Registrar’s website
• MyUW Student Center
  • Select Manage Classes and term of enrollment
  • Select the calendar icon next to a specific course to access “Deadlines”

Dropping a course on or after the DR/W transcript notification date will result in a DR notation on your transcript.  The DR is an accurate reflection of the limited time you were enrolled in the course and it is highly unlikely to be removed even if an appeal is submitted.  Students looking for more information about DR notations on transcripts should review this page.

After the final drop deadline for the course, you must appeal to CALS Scholastic Policies and Actions Committee (SPAC) here.  The withdrawal deadline is the same as the earliest final drop deadline of any of your enrolled courses.

• Appeals are reviewed individually and approval should not be expected.  You should continue to attend the course, take exams, and submit work while you are waiting for the results of your appeal.
• Your appeal should include information and relevant documentation for the unforeseeable non-academic circumstances beyond your control that prevented you from dropping the course on time.  If requesting to drop one course when you are currently enrolled in multiple courses, you will also need to clarify why these circumstances affected one course and not others.
• The following reasons are not sufficient to support a late drop:
  • Lack of awareness of deadlines
  • Poor academic performance
  • The difficulty or grading of a course in comparison to other courses being taken during the specific term
  • Circumstances that occurred before the deadline, allowing a one-time drop
  • Choosing not to drop the course before the deadline in order to attempt successful completion
  • Choosing to spend less time or effort on one course to perform better in other courses
  • Circumstances that likely affect the student’s experience as a whole, not one course specifically. Students in this situation should consider a withdrawal.
  • Disagreement about grading – students should follow the department’s grade dispute or grievance procedures