A student may be placed on a leave of absence for personal or other reasons, including health, family obligations, or military service.
A request for a leave of absence is not automatically granted. Approval from the Vice Dean of Academic Affairs (or designee) is required before a leave of absence is granted for a specific period, not to exceed one year. Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis.
How to Submit a Request
A student seeking to be placed on a leave of absence, extend a leave of absence, or be reinstated following a leave of absence must submit the request in writing using either the Leave of Absence Request form or Approval for Reinstatement Following a Leave of Absence form, along with any supporting materials to their faculty adviser.
The faculty adviser will forward the request form, indicating their recommendation, to the Vice Dean of Academic Affairs (or designee), who will make the final decision whether or not to approve the request and will then notify the Office of the Registrar of the decision.
The Office of the Registrar in turn will notify the student and the appropriate parties indicated on the request form, including, if the request is approved, the Financial Aid and Student Accounts offices and if applicable, the Office of International Services.
For students in receipt of federal financial aid, the Financial Aid Office will recalculate the eligibility for federal Title IV student financial assistance for the student, if applicable. Federal aid recipients who are considering going on a leave of absence should consult with the Financial Aid Office in advance to discuss the financial aid implications.
When Your Courses Have Already Started
Students must submit the request to be placed on a leave of absence (or extend a leave of absence) at least two weeks prior to the start of the semester in which the leave of absence will take effect. Students cannot be placed on a leave of absence during a semester in which they have matriculated and the course(s) they are enrolled in have already started.
Students who are unable to complete the current semester in which they are enrolled must drop/withdraw from all courses in accordance with the School of Education’s dropping and withdrawing from a course policy.
If the deadline has passed to withdraw from courses in which the student is currently enrolled, the student will need to file a General Petition form to appeal to be withdrawn from those courses.
Please note that appeals to withdraw from courses after the deadline has passed will only be granted in exceptional circumstances, such as a family emergency.
The same documentation used to support the leave of absence request should be submitted to the Office of the Registrar as part of this general petition.
Please note that federal aid recipients who withdraw from all coursework will have their federal aid canceled and will be responsible for any debit balance created.
Tuition & Fees
There is no fee for a leave of absence. The period of leave is considered an approved interruption of the degree program and will not count toward the maximum time allowed for degree completion. Students placed on a leave of absence are still required to meet all tuition/fee and financial aid obligations.
Registration
A leave of absence presupposes no registration during the period of leave granted. Students placed on a leave of absence are not permitted to register for or attend classes, use school or university services, or maintain employment with a student status while their leave is in effect.
Time Limit
The maximum time allowed for each period of leave granted is one year. A student whose initial leave of absence period is about to expire has the option to request a leave of absence extension, subject to the approval of the Vice Dean of Academic Affairs (or designee). Except in exceptional circumstances, the maximum time allowed for students to be placed on consecutive leaves of absence will not exceed two years. AlLeave of absence cannot be approved retroactively after a period of non-registration. All leave of absence requests should be made before the start of the next semester directly following the last term in which the student was enrolled. A student must have completed a minimum of one semester of study to be eligible for a leave of absence.
Please note that students in the EdD program will be granted a maximum of two leaves of absence, irrespective of the length of each period of leave and whether cumulatively the total period of leave falls below the two year limit.
Students who fail to matriculate or obtain approval for an extension following the expiration of a leave of absence will be administratively withdrawn from the program by the Office of the Registrar.
Please note that veterans applying for readmission following inactivation/deactivation of a previous admission decision cannot be denied entrance for reasons relating to their service.