Adding & Dropping Classes

Check your time ticket—available online through your UI-Integrate Self-Service account—for the exact day and hour that you may begin adding courses to your schedule. You can continue to add full-term courses through the second week (tenth day) of the fall and spring semesters. Part-term courses may be added through the first week (fifth day) of the class. Summer deadlines vary by session. (See the Office of the Registrar's academic deadlines for specific dates.)

If you add a course after the first day it meets, it’s wise to contact the instructor to introduce yourself, receive a copy of the syllabus, check on assignments, figure out which books you need, and determine whether there have been any changes in meeting time, location, or any other aspect of the course.

To add a course after the official deadline, you must receive permission from the instructor and the department offering the course. You can initiate this process by submitting the Late Course Change Form. This electronic form will be routed to the instructor and sent to our office for processing once approved. You will receive an email notification when the course is officially added to your record.

A normal full-time load is 12-18 hours per semester. To request an overload, you must meet with an academic advisor to review your academic history and future academic needs before determining whether an overload is warranted.

Please note that an overload request applies only to a specific semester. Due to University policy, approved overload requests are not processed until the Friday before classes (fall and spring terms) or late April (summer term) to allow all students the opportunity to secure course schedules.

For fall and spring terms, as long as you remain enrolled in at least 12 credit hours, you can drop a full-term course without academic penalty until the end of the eighth week of the term. Part-term courses and summer courses may be dropped without academic penalty until the midpoint of the course. (See the Office of the Registrar’s academic deadlines for specific dates.) Courses dropped by the appropriate deadline will not appear on official transcripts.

Be aware that some financial aid packages require completion of a specific number of credit hours. If you currently receive financial aid, talk with a financial aid counselor before dropping any classes.

Dropping to fewer than 12 hours can negatively impact your academic status and may have implications on your time to degree completion, financial aid offerings, NCAA eligibility, visa status, private health insurance, and more. To drop below full-time status, you must schedule an appointment with an academic advisor to discuss your reasons for doing so and the effects it may have on your progress.

Few exceptions to the official drop deadlines are granted. For consideration, you must follow a formal petition process in which you demonstrate that extraordinary extenuating circumstances, particularly those after the official drop deadline, have had detrimental and irreversible effects on your academic ability. You must submit a written explanation of your situation as well as supporting documentation (a doctor’s note, legal paperwork, an obituary, etc.).

If you believe you qualify for a late-drop exception, you should talk to an academic advisor, who can provide you with the official late-drop petition form. Courses approved under the late-drop petition process will show as "W" on transcripts.

The process is similar to that of a late-drop petition. Please schedule an appointment with an academic advisor to discuss this option and obtain the official retroactive late-drop petition form. Courses approved under the retroactive petition process will show as "W" on transcripts.

A DGS committee will review your petition and notify you of the decision within 2 to 3 weeks of the petition’s submission. You must continue to attend class and complete assignments in the course while the petition is being processed. Again, permission to drop after the deadline is not automatic and will be granted only in extraordinary circumstances. If your petition is not approved and you have not been attending class and completing assignments, you are solely responsible for the academic repercussions.