Exiting the College

Students who wish to exit the College may request a leave of absence or withdraw.  The last date of class attendance is used to determine the official date of exiting the College. The following applies to current coursework based on a student’s last date of class attendance:

• If the last date of class attendance falls before the drop deadline of the semester, the Registrar will drop all in progress coursework from the current semester.
• If the last date of class attendance falls between the drop and withdrawal deadline of the semester, the Registrar will issue a withdrawal grade for all in progress coursework in the current semester.   
• If the last date of class attendance falls between the withdrawal deadline and the last day of classes in the semester, the Registrar will issue a withdrawal grade for all in progress coursework in the current semester. These students are not eligible to return from their leave of absence in the subsequent semester. 
• If the last date of class attendance is the end of term, the Registrar will not update any coursework from the completed semester.
• Students are responsible for all relevant tuition and fees in accordance with College refund policy.

The College also reserves the right to administratively withdraw students for reasons listed within this policy.

Leave of Absence

A leave of absence allows a student to temporarily exit the College for a maximum length of one year, except in cases of a military leave of absence due to active military service.  A military leave of absence due to active military service can extend up to five years.  

An undergraduate student who wishes to take a leave of absence from the College must contact the Academic Advising Center to complete an exit interview and leave of absence request form. This includes service members called to active duty.  Undergraduate students on an approved leave of absence must request a permit to register from the Academic Advising Center in order to return to the College.  Undergraduate students on an approved leave of absence that do not return to the College within one year of their most recent enrollment will be administratively withdrawn (see Administrative Withdrawal section below).

A graduate student who wishes to take a leave of absence from the College should contact their Department Chair to complete a leave of absence request form.  This includes service members called to active duty.  Graduate students on an approved leave of absence will have their candidacy period extended for an equivalent amount of time to their leave. Specific conditions for academic preparation to return to the program may be required.

Withdrawal

A withdrawal is intended for students to permanently exit the College. A student who has withdrawn from the College and wishes to return must reapply through Admissions.

An undergraduate student who wishes to withdraw from the College must contact the Academic Advising Center to complete an exit interview and withdrawal request form.

A graduate student who wishes to withdraw from the College should contact their Department Chair to complete a withdrawal request form. 

Administrative Withdrawal

Springfield College reserves the right to administratively withdraw students from the institution in the following cases:

• A student is marked as “Never Attended” in all of their courses during the verification process of class attendance in the current semester. 
• An undergraduate student completes a semester and does not enroll in their program’s subsequent semester without an approved leave of absence.
• An undergraduate student does not enroll in the subsequent semester following their leave of absence.
• A graduate student completes a semester and does not enroll in the subsequent three consecutive semesters without an approved leave of absence.
• A graduate student has not been conferred by the conclusion of their degree completion period.
• A student informally notifies a College representative of their intent to withdraw from the institution and does not complete the appropriate leave of absence or withdrawal request form.

A student who has been administratively withdrawn from the College and wishes to return must reapply through Admissions.