34-00 Course Scheduling

34-89 Course Drop

A student may drop a course without academic penalty during the Course Drop period (however, a tuition penalty may be assessed according to Penn State’s tuition policies – see http://www.bursar.psu.edu/adjustments.cfm#PENALTY). This period is the first ten (10) calendar days of either the fall or spring semester, if the duration of the course is equal to the duration of the semester. For all other courses (those not equal in duration to a semester of which they are part and all courses offered in the summer), the duration of the Drop Period is calculated by multiplying ten (10) days by the duration of the course (in days) divided by seventy-five (75) days, and then rounding up to the next higher whole number of days.

There is no limit to the number of courses/credits that can be dropped during this period and courses dropped during this period do not show up on the student's academic record.

The Late Drop period for a course begins with the first calendar day after the Course Drop period and ends on the day when 80 percent of the duration of the course is attained. During the Late Drop period, the student may drop a course (Late Drop), and a WN symbol will be entered on the student’s academic record. Specific rules regarding the use of Late Drop credits are as follows:

1. Use of the Late Drop during the Late Drop period is limited to a maximum of 16 credits for undergraduates in baccalaureate programs. Students registered as nondegree (regular or conditional), provisional, and associate degree students are limited to ten Late Drop credits.
2. If a student's period of enrollment is interrupted, the available Late Drop credits do not get reset upon re-enrollment except in the case of academic renewal (Policy 58-60).
3. Late Drop credits used while a student is in nondegree or provisional status will count towards the Late Drop credit limit when the student enters or re-enters a degree program (baccalaureate or associate).
4. Late Drop credits used in one degree program will count towards the Late Drop credit limit for students who switch to another degree program without earning a degree in the first program. However, if a degree in the first program is earned and a student pursues a sequential degree (Policy 60-20), the Late Drop credits are reset to the number allowed for the sequential degree.

Note: By exercising a Late Drop, a student may be seriously jeopardizing his or her expected progress toward graduation. It is possible that a student will not be able to schedule the dropped course in the succeeding semester for a variety of reasons, thereby delaying progress toward graduation. In addition, financial aid may be affected. Therefore, students with financial aid are strongly urged to consult with Penn State’s Office of Student Aid.

A student may not drop or late drop the last/only course on his/her schedule. Dropping or late dropping the last/only course must be done through a withdrawal (policy 56-30).

C-2 Registration