Students may withdraw from the College, apply for a late administrative withdrawal under extraordinary circumstances, take a leave of absence, or apply for a medical leave of absence.

Students have a number of options, depending on their circumstances, to withdraw or take leave from the College. Students who do not enroll at Ramapo College for two or more consecutive fall and spring semesters/cohort terms must apply for readmission with the Office of Admissions by the established readmission deadlines: August 1 for the fall semester and December 1 for the spring semester.

Leave of Absence (LOA)

Students in good academic standing may take a leave of absence of one semester/cohort term by arrangement through the Center for Student Success (in the case of undergraduate students) or their program directors (in the case of graduate students). Undergraduate students who plan to be away for two or more semesters/cohort terms must officially withdraw from the College (refer to Withdrawal from Ramapo College, below). Graduate students who plan to be away for two or more semesters/cohort terms are officially inactive.  Students requesting a ‘leave of absence’ due to medical reasons must make arrangements with the Center for Health and Counseling Services (refer to Medical Leave of Absence, below).

Students who take a leave of absence for one semester/cohort term do not need to apply for readmission and can simply register for the next upcoming semester during the registration period after consulting with an academic advisor.

Graduate students in good academic standing whose continuation after a one-semester/cohort term leave of absence is prevented due to the availability of required classes may remain on active status with the approval of the program director until the next time the prerequisite course(s) is (are) offered. The program director will communicate approval to the Registrar.

Students who are readmitted will continue their studies under the graduation requirements in effect at the time of their readmission.

Medical Leave of Absence (MLOA)

Students may apply for a Medical Leave of Absence (MLOA) from the College for reasons of physical or psychological illnesses. Students must withdraw from all registered courses under this policy. Exceptions may be considered on an individual basis. The grade for each course will be recorded as “W” on the student’s transcript. There will be no refund if the request for an MLOA is completed after the College refund deadline (see Academic Calendar on the web).

Students considering applying for an MLOA need to contact the Center for Health and Counseling Services (CHCS) to request an evaluation for the purpose of pursuing a MLOA.  If the condition is medical in nature, contact Student Health Services (SHS) (201-684-7536); if the condition is psychological in nature, contact Counseling Services (CS) (201-684-7522). In order to obtain an MLOA a student must obtain a medical recommendation from the appropriate unit (i.e., Health or Counseling) within the Center for Health and Counseling Services.  In order for an MLOA to be processed for a given semester, the evaluation must be completed prior to the final day of classes.

Students can take as much time as needed away from the College to recover from their condition; however, students who do not take classes for two or more consecutive semesters must reapply for admission through the Office of Admissions. Students who stay out for longer than two consecutive semesters and are readmitted will continue their studies under the graduation requirements in effect at the time of their readmission.

In order to be approved to return from an MLOA, a student must provide the required documentation and complete an evaluation through the appropriate unit (Health or Counseling) within the Center for Health and Counseling Services.  Students returning from an MLOA must complete the process by the established deadlines: August 1 for the fall semester and December 1 for the spring semester. If the deadline is missed, the student’s return from an MLOA will be postponed until a later semester. If the process to return from an MLOA is not completed by the deadline, the student will be deregistered.

For detailed information, refer to the Center for Health and Counseling Services website.

Late Administrative Withdrawal under Extraordinary Circumstances
The College recognizes that extraordinary circumstances may prevent a student from completing the semester. These circumstances include, but are not limited to:

• Personal illness;
• Death of a family member, spouse, or partner;
• Caring for a terminally ill family member, spouse, or partner;
• Recovery from catastrophic circumstances or natural disaster;
• Immediate relocation required by an employer.

Under those circumstances, the student should make every effort to withdraw from courses prior to the last date to withdraw or, if appropriate, to ask instructors for incompletes or to apply for a Medical Leave of Absence (MLOA). In the event that the student is unable to withdraw under standard college procedures, due to reasons beyond his or her control, or is not granted incompletes, he or she may apply for a late administrative withdrawal under extraordinary circumstances by taking the following steps:

• No later than the last day of classes of the regular (i.e., fall or spring) semester following the term (i.e., fall, winter, spring, summer) for which the student wishes a late administrative withdrawal, the student must submit to the Office of the Provost an appeal letter in his or her own words supported by official documentation.
• The appeal letter should address the following points:
  • The student should explain the nature of the extraordinary circumstances that prevented him/her from completing the semester. If the student had a personal illness, the letter should include the nature of the medical or psychological condition. The standards used to grant a late administrative withdrawal for medical reasons are the same as those used to grant the MLOA. The student should review the MLOA policy in the college catalog.
  • The student should explain the reason why he/she was unable to follow standard college procedures for withdrawal or why he/she did not ask for, or was not granted, incompletes. Ordinarily, the student should apply for the late administrative withdrawal before the end of the semester. If the student is unable to do so, he/she should explain why he/she did not apply for the late administrative withdrawal before the end of the semester. All students are academically obligated for the courses for which they are registered and are responsible for withdrawing from those courses properly.
  • The student should indicate the term for which he/she wishes to be withdrawn. Typically, a student who is granted a late administrative withdrawal will receive Ws in all courses for the term in question. In addition, the student will ordinarily be withdrawn from only one term per appeal. However, under extraordinary circumstances, a student may be withdrawn from some courses while the grades for other courses are retained, and a student may be withdrawn from more than one consecutive term per appeal (e.g., spring and summer). Thus, if the student wishes to retain some grades, he or she must justify why, despite the circumstances, he or she was capable of completing some courses successfully and not others. Moreover, if the student wishes to be withdrawn from more than one consecutive term, he or she must justify why circumstances beyond his or her control mitigated his or her best attempts to manage the medical or psychological condition or other relevant circumstance.
• Examples of appropriate documentation may include, but are not limited to:
  • Official documentation from the medical provider addressing diagnosis, date of onset, effect of the medical or psychological condition on the student’s academic performance, effect of the condition on the student’s inability to withdraw from courses using standard college procedures, prognosis, and treatment plan;
  • A death certificate of a family member, spouse, or partner;
  • Relevant medical documentation for a family member, spouse, or partner along with proof that the student was required to provide ongoing medical care that only he or she could provide;
  • Official documentation of relocation due to a natural disaster;
  • A dated letter from an employer requiring immediate relocation.
• The Provost or his/her designee will review the appeal letter and any documentation and consult as necessary with appropriate campus professionals.
• Based on that review, the Provost or his/her designee will make the decision whether to accept the application for a late administrative withdrawal. The Provost or his/her designee may also request a meeting with the student in order to reach a final decision or request supplementary information or documentation. In all cases, the burden of proof is on the student.
• The Provost’s Office will communicate the final decision in writing by e-mail and process the appropriate paperwork if the late administrative withdrawal is granted.

The decision of the Provost or his/her designee is final.

Withdrawal from Ramapo College

Undergraduate students who decide to withdraw completely from Ramapo College must consult with an advisor from the Center for Student Success and process a ‘Notice of Withdrawal/Leave of Absence’ form. Students requesting to withdraw due to medical reasons must make arrangements with the Center for Health and Counseling Services (refer to Medical Leave of Absence, above).

Adherence to the withdrawal procedure is necessary for possible readmission to Ramapo College. Students who have withdrawn from the College and decide to return must apply for readmission with the Office of Admissions by the established readmission deadlines: August 1 for the fall semester and December 1 for the spring semester.

Officially withdrawing from or taking a leave of absence from the College will not automatically withdraw students from courses.  In addition to submitting the official withdrawal form through Center for Student Success (or Health and Counseling Services for medical leaves), students must drop courses for the semester through the College’s web registration services system (if the add/drop deadline has not passed), or complete a “Course Withdrawal Form” with the appropriate approvals and according to the established deadlines.  Course Withdrawal Forms are available in the Office of the Registrar.

Back to Undergraduate Academic Policies