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Course Drop Policy/Periods

Registration Period I, II, and III

Courses may be dropped without restriction from the first day of Registration Period I through the 7th calendar day of the quarter (Period III). No record of the dropped course(s) will be recorded on the transcript; however, a quarter withdrawal statement will appear.

Unrestricted Drop Period

This period is from the 8th calendar day of the quarter through the 14th calendar day of the quarter. Courses may be dropped without restriction during this period. No record of the dropped course(s) will be recorded on the transcript, however, a quarter withdrawal statement will appear. There is a $20 Change of Registration Fee charged for all registration changes made on a single day during this period. A tuition forfeiture may be charged.

You may change to or from the audit grade option through 5:00 p.m., Friday of the second week of the quarter. This transaction must be done in person at the Registration Office, 225 Schmitz Hall.

Late Course Drop Period (Annual Drop)

Each academic year (September through August) you may drop one course after the 14th calendar day of a quarter, but no later than the the end of the Late Course Drop Period. Once this "annual drop" is used, no additional drops will be permitted after the 14th calendar day until the next autumn quarter. A W grade and the week designation (W3 through W7) will follow the course title on your academic transcript. There is a $20 Change of Registration Fee charged for all registration changes made on a single day during this period. A tuition forfeiture may be charged.

Annual Drop Restored

You may petition for a Hardship Withdrawal following the 14th calendar day of a quarter if you are unable to complete a course(s) due to physical and/or mental debilitation or unusual or extenuating circumstances beyond your control. The petition must be submitted with supportive documentation. If you used your one "annual drop" prior to submission of a hardship withdrawal and your petition is granted, your one "annual drop" will be restored.

If you use your one "annual drop" and then find that you must completely withdraw from the quarter, your one "annual drop" will be restored.

Dropping a class when the first day of the course is scheduled to begin after the 7th calendar day of the quarter

Any student whose first (1st) scheduled class meeting* is after the seventh (7th) calendar day of the quarter# and who needs to drop from that class, should email the Registration Office (regoff@u.washington.edu) by the Sunday following the first class meeting to request the drop without being charged the $20.00 Change of Registration Fee. The fee waiver will not happen automatically; you must send the email or stop by the Registration Office, 225 Schmitz Hall, to make the request.

If sending by email, type Non-Standard Class Start Date in the subject line of the e-mail.

Be sure to include:

  1. your name
  2. student number
  3. course SLN
  4. course prefix, number and section of the course(s) you want dropped.
  5. Date of first class

NOTE: Only e-mails sent using your UW email account ([your-uwnetid]@u.washington.edu) will be processed.

* Must be identified in the Student Database with an "Official Start Date" after the 7th calendar day of the quarter.
# Includes 7th calendar day of b-term during summer quarter.