Bryn Mawr College

Withdrawing from a Course

After a student has confirmed her registration with her dean during the second week of the semester, she is expected to complete all her classes, with the exception, of course, of a fifth class dropped within the first three weeks. A student will not be allowed to withdraw from a course simply because she is not doing well in it, does not like it, or does not need it. However, circumstances may arise that make it unreasonable to expect a student to complete her entire course load. If during a semester you experience significant illness, a family emergency, or some other serious problem in your life or if you find that you have been placed in a class for which you lacked adequate preparation,, you should talk to your dean about whether it might be appropriate for you to be withdrawn from one or more classes. Withdrawal requires the consent of both your dean and the course instructor. Your transcript will include the course as part of your schedule for the semester, but instead of a grade, a "WD" will be listed.

 

Some colleges and universities have very different policies in this regard and allow students to drop courses throughout the semester and sometimes even retroactively. Although more permissive, these policies are in no way inherently more fair than Bryn Mawr's, since they allow students with greater financial resources to have greater academic flexibility. Such differences in policies mean that you may occasionally be advised by parents, friends from high school, or even faculty new to Bryn Mawr that "you should just drop that class." Rather than dwelling on the fact that you can't drop a class, you should talk to your dean about what you can do to complete it successfully: work with the professor outside of class, study with other students in the class, work with a peer mentor or tutor, or make adjustments to your daily schedule that will give you more time to devote to your schoolwork.