Late Drop Petition

Petitioning for late withdrawal

First, a definition: The Auto-W Deadline is the last day you can drop a class and still have a W (for Withdrawal) added to your transcript instead of a letter grade.

On rare occasions, Center for Students in Transition students are faced with extraordinary circumstances related to serious illness or equivalent distress that make it difficult to drop a class by the Auto-W Deadline, or impede success in a class after the Auto-W Deadline. In these rare situations, a student may petition for approval for a late withdrawal from the course through the last day of classes so they might still receive a W instead of a letter grade even though the Auto-W Deadline has passed.

Poor performance in a course does not qualify as an extraordinary circumstance for requesting a late withdrawal. Approval of a petition is not guaranteed.  

The petition for approval for a late withdrawal is only the first step in the process of dropping a course after the Auto-W Deadline. Before a Center for Students in Transition student can officially withdraw from a course after this deadline, they must receive the approval of the Associate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, the course instructor, and the chairperson of the department in which the course is offered.

It is strongly suggested that students wishing to petition for a late drop communicate with the course instructor ahead of time (in person if possible) to explain the extraordinary circumstances and ask the instructor if they would be willing to give a W if the student submits a late drop petition. 

When:

From the Auto-W Deadline through the last day of classes (the Friday before Final Exam Week). Note that each session (Full Term, 1stEight Weeks, and 2ndEight Weeks) has its own deadline. View these deadlines on the Official IU Calendar.