Academic Policies

Questions about academic standing, readmission to the university, and waivers of deadlines? Click on the following links for more information, or contact the Department of Undergraduate Studies.

Regulations regarding academic standing Students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or above to achieve good standing. This applies to students in the College of Education and Human Development, College of Liberal Arts, College of Management, the College of Science and Mathematics, and Continuing and Professional Studies. (Students in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences follow an additional set of academic standards.) If your cumulative GPA falls below 2.0, the Office of Undergraduate Studies will notify you via email and/or a letter encouraging academic advising. However, it is your responsibility to know your academic standing by checking your grades and transcript on the WISER system.

Procedures for re-enrollment at the university Students who wish to return to the university and resume their studies must complete the appropriate re-enrollment application. You need to know your academic standing status when you left the university. If you do not know, please email reg.forms@umb.edu.

Voluntary withdrawal from the university Students may withdraw from the university before the last day of classes of the semester for both fall and spring semesters, although the effective date of withdrawal is when the forms are completed, signed, and returned to the Office of the Registrar. If you withdraw, you will receive a “W” for each course in which you are enrolled.

Deadline Waiver: Drop of Classes (see more…)

In fall and spring, the add/drop period lasts one week (click here for the applicable dates for this semester). Undergraduate Studies will review requests from students who wish to DROP classes after the posted deadlines. In the winter and summer sessions, the add/drop periods are shorter and typically fall within two or three days after classes begin. Students wishing to ADD classes after the deadline should contact the University Registrar at registrar@umb.edu

Undergraduate Studies will consider requests to drop classes after the deadline has passed (either in-semester or in prior semesters), but students are advised that we can grant such requests only in very rare cases. Waivers are typically granted in circumstances of sudden, unexpected emergencies that prevent students from meeting the posted deadlines. Students who register and simply do not participate are not eligible for deadline waivers. Students who do participate in classes after drop/add deadlines are also ineligible. Our full policy regarding waiver requests is provided to students with the application materials and is also available for download.

Students are strongly urged to consult with the Undergraduate Studies Coordinator, Steve Ward, who will make an initial assessment and will offer advice. The process generally takes two to three weeks since instructors and other offices (such as University Advising, Financial Aid, Bursar, Registrar, Housing, etc.) may be asked to provide input.

To begin the process, please click here.

Deadline Waiver: Withdrawal From Classes and Changes of Grading Basis (see more…)

Students have until approximately 2/3 through any academic session to withdraw from selected classes. Withdrawal results in a class grade of "W" (which carries no weight in GPA calculations). Students who wish to withdraw from individual classes, but do not meet the deadline, may request a waiver. Usually, this deadline is the same for declaring change of grading basis in any class that allows this option (see here for more information). Students may request retroactive withdrawals from classes after the semester has ended, but the request must be for all classes in that semester. Undergraduate Studies will also review requests from students who wish to declare a change of grading basis after the deadline passes.

We will consider requests to withdraw from selected classes after the deadline has passed (either in-semester or in prior semesters), but students are advised that we can grant such requests only in rare cases. Waivers are typically granted in circumstances of sudden, unexpected emergencies that prevent students from meeting the posted deadlines. In fall and spring semesters (but not in summer and winter), students may formally withdraw from all their classes at once through the University Advising Center until the last day of classes. Our full policy regarding waiver requests is provided to students with the application materials and is also available for download..

To begin the process, please click withdrawal -or- change in grading basis.

Credit load Full-time load: An undergraduate student is deemed to be in full-time status during a semester if carrying 12 or more credits. Some financial aid programs may be reduced if enrollment is for fewer than 12 credits.
Maximum load: Undergraduate students may apply for no more than 17 credits per semester which includes fall, spring and summer (all sessions). For the winter session the maximum allowed is 6 credits.
After the first semester, however, you may ask to take additional course credits. Please see the credit overload request form on the Registrar's Forms page.

Course repeats Students may repeat up to four different courses taken at the university, regardless of the original grade earned in these courses, but any course may be repeated only once. Under certain circumstances, exceptions to this rule will be considered. You may apply for a waiver of this policy by completing the DocuSign application.

For a complete list of all academic policies please refer to the Office of the Registrar.

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