Registration Policies and Withdrawal Procedures

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Registration Policies
Withdrawal Procedures

Registration Policies - Undergraduate Programs

Registration: Fall and Spring registration is open through the first five days of the semester (the first week of classes). In addition, accepted students may register at one of three Bison Bound early orientation sessions. Returning students typically preregister near the end of each semester for the following semester. Students who decide not to attend a term for which they have registered must drop their classes for that term to avoid having grades of F recorded for those classes. Registration for two-week parts-of-term is through the first day of class; registration for all other parts-of-term is through the second working day of the term.

Late Registration: Late registration in fall and spring for students not currently enrolled is open through the fifth day of classes for full term courses. A late fee and approval by the registrar are required. (See “Special Fees ” section.) Registration is not permitted after the second day of any term other than fall or spring. Exact dates may be found at www.harding.edu/registrar.

Academic Advising: Faculty members serve as academic advisors and should approve all course schedules. Students are assigned to faculty in their majors or preprofessional fields. Students who have not declared a major should go to the University College office (Student Center 236) to be assigned an Exploratory Studies advisor.

Degree Evaluation Requirements: Following the completion of 45 hours and prior to the completion of 60 hours, baccalaureate students are required to submit an official declaration of major and projected degree plan to the Office of the Registrar. The official declaration and plan must include the signature of the student, advisor, and registrar. Students who have completed 45 or more hours must have completed this process to be eligible to register for the next semester; otherwise, a hold is placed on the registration account until the document is received. The document will guide student course selection for future registrations.

Graduation Evaluation Requirements: Students must apply for graduation one semester before the intended graduation date. This application will trigger the following sequence of events:

Upon receipt of the student graduation application (through Pipeline), the Registrar’s Office will process a degree evaluation and inform the student and their faculty advisor if the student is on-track for graduation, or is lacking requirements.
If the student is on-track for graduation, the student and advisor must inform the Registrar’s Office if any information is incorrect or if any changes are made.
If the student is lacking requirements, the student and advisor must make a plan for completing the remaining requirements and immediately communicate that plan to the Registrar’s Office.
Once the revised plan has been received by the Registrar’s Office, a new degree evaluation will be performed and either a new graduation date will be assigned, or the student will be given “on-track” status.

Lack of knowledge, incorrect interpretation of University policies and regulations, or advice which differs from the catalog does not remove the student from the obligation to satisfy all requirements for a degree. The student bears the ultimate responsibility for knowing the requirements of and completing a degree program.

Information on how to generate a degree evaluation may be found on the student tab of pipeline.

Drop/Add: During the first five days of classes in the fall and spring semesters, students may make changes to their schedules with no fee charged; after the first five days of classes, no class may be added. Classes in a part-of-term may be added through the first day of class. In order to drop a class, a student must submit the Class Drop form in Pipeline. Once approval of the teacher is obtained, the student will be charged the drop fee, and the student will receive an email notification that they have been withdrawn from the class.

The grade for any course not completed and not officially dropped will be an F and will count in the student’s GPA. Full-term courses dropped by the 5th class day for fall and spring semesters do not appear on the transcript. Classes dropped after the 5th class day are assigned a grade of W (withdrew); the grade point average is not affected. Students who withdraw completely from the University after the semester begins are assigned a W grade for all courses. For additional information regarding the assignment of a W for parts-of-term, email registrar@harding.edu.

The last day to drop a class is Wednesday of the 14th week for fall and spring terms; Thursday of the second week for two-week terms; Wednesday of the fourth week for four-week terms; Tuesday of the sixth week for six-week terms; Monday of the eighth week for eight-week terms; Friday of the tenth week of an eleven-week term; and Thursday of the 11th week of a twelve-week term.

Withdrawal Procedures - Undergraduate Programs

Procedures for Withdrawal from the University

Occasionally students find they must withdraw completely from the University. The following are steps for withdrawing from the University for students living in University housing and/or enrolled in classes on the Searcy campus:

The student should go to the Office of Student Life to complete paperwork and the required exit interview.
The student is then required to visit with the Office of Financial Services for an exit interview.
The Office of Student Life will inform the Registrar’s Office and other offices on campus of the student’s withdrawal from school.

If a student is also a residence hall student, he/she will need:

A Drop From Housing form from the Office of Student Life and the withdrawal form. The Drop From Housing form must be signed by a Student Life dean.
The student will then take the Drop From Housing form to the Office of Residence Life to have it signed.
Next, he/she will need to take the form to the residence life coordinator, who will fill it out along with a room inventory form when the student turns in his/her room key to the residence life coordinator.
Finally, the residence life coordinator will take this form to the Business Office, where the student will be officially removed from the residence hall.

The following are steps for withdrawing from the University for students who are enrolled in a class not on the Searcy campus or only in on-line courses:

The student may fax a written withdrawal notice to the Office of Student Life at 501-279-4059; or email the notice to studentlife@harding.edu; or mail the written notice to the Office of Student Life, Box 12252, Searcy, AR 72149-2292. The student must provide their name, student ID number, home address, telephone number, semester of withdrawal, brief statement of the reason for withdrawal and signature.
The Student Life Office will notify the Office of Financial Services, Business Office and Registrar’s Office of the withdrawal.

A student will not be considered officially withdrawn until the registrar has received notification and completed the drop for all classes. Students who do not complete an official withdrawal may receive a failing grade from each course. Students should follow the deadline as listed in the academic information section of the current catalog. Students who withdraw from Harding must switch to the current catalog if they are absent for more than two years.

Registration Policies - Graduate and Professional Programs

Some graduate or professional programs may have cohort courses that are sequential in nature and experiential courses that are compressed into shorter time frames. Therefore, course registration and withdrawal policies vary by graduate and professional program. See each program handbook for program-specific information regarding course registration and withdrawal policies. If not otherwise stated in the program handbook, the following policies govern course registration and withdrawal.

Registration: Registration for new students is held during the first five days of the semester. Returning students typically preregister near the end of each semester for the following semester. Students who decide not to attend a term for which they have registered must drop their classes for that term to avoid having grades of F recorded for those classes.

Late Registration: A late fee and approval by the registrar are required for late registration. The deadline for late registration varies according to the term:

16 week term: Third Monday of the term
8 week term: Second day of the term
6 week term: Second day of the term
4 week term: Second day of the term
2 week term: Second day of the term

Academic Advising: Faculty members serve as academic advisors and should be consulted about all course schedules.

Adding Classes: During the first three days of classes in the traditional fall and spring semesters, students may make changes to their schedules with no fee charged. However, if a student wants to add a class after the first three days of classes, he or she must submit to the registrar a Drop/Add Notice signed by the instructor. For nontraditional terms, see listing above under “Late Registration.”

For both currently enrolled and new students, the final day to add a class is the last day of registration for the term; no class can be added following the close of registration for any term.

Withdrawal from Classes: During the first five days of classes in the traditional fall and spring semesters, students may make changes to their schedules with no fee charged. In order to drop a class, a student must submit the Class Drop form in Pipeline. Once approval of the teacher is obtained, the student will be charged the drop fee, and the student will receive an email notification that they have been withdrawn from the class.

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that withdrawals are submitted in a timely manner. Any class dropped without official University approval is recorded as a grade of F, and the failing grade counts in the student’s GPA and will subject the student to a return of federal financial aid. A student considering dropping a class should contact the Financial Aid office to determine the impact of such a decision.

The last day to drop a class is determined by the term:

16 week term: Friday of the thirteenth week
8 week term: Friday of the sixth week
6 week term: Wednesday of the fifth week
4 week term: Friday of the third week
2 week term: Wednesday of the second week

Refunds: Students are granted admission with the understanding that they are to remain for a full term. A student who enrolls in a class but does not attend or stops attending and does not officially withdraw may not receive a refund.

An official withdrawal from the University begins with the respective graduate or professional office. Please note that the Business Office manages the refund policy, not the individual programs. A prorated refund will be made according to an established refund schedule that takes into account the particular characteristics of each course (traditional, on-line, nontraditional term, etc.) Please contact the Business Office for more information.