Academic Regulations
The regulations published in the Undergraduate Catalog are a digest of the rules of the institution. Changes may be made in the regulations at any time to promote the best interests of the university and its students. Students are responsible for knowing the published regulations, policies, and standards of the university and of their college or school.
Class Schedules and Registration
Advising and Student Responsibility
The university provides an academic advising system that requires each student to consult with an academic adviser prior to each registration period. The adviser’s role is to assist the student in making course selections and to approve the student’s schedule. The student, however, bears the ultimate responsibility for making appropriate choices when scheduling classes, including schedule changes made during the drop-add period. Although colleges, schools, and departments may monitor the final class schedule of students in their respective programs, the student also bears the ultimate responsibility for meeting all degree requirements. Where there is doubt concerning requirements, information may be obtained from the office of the student’s academic dean.
Prerequisites
Some courses have prerequisites or corequisites. A student may not take a course unless these prerequisites have been met. Exceptions can only be made in special cases with the prior consent of the instructor, the department chair, and the dean controlling the course.
In a continuous course sequence (such as Writ 101, 102 or Math 261, 262, 263, 264), the prior courses are prerequisite to the subsequent courses unless otherwise stated. Thus, a student who has failed one semester of a continuous course sequence may not take a subsequent course in that sequence until the failed course has been passed. In the case of modern language sequences (such as Span 101, 102, 201, 202), a student may begin at any level but then must take any subsequent courses in order.
Registration Eligibility
To be eligible to register for classes, a student must be: (1) a new student who applies for admission and receives a CERTIFICATE OF ADMISSION, (2) a continuing student from the preceding regular semester or summer term, or (3) a former student, not enrolled in the preceding regular semester or summer term, who applies for re-admission and receives a CERTIFICATE OF RE-ADMISSION.
New Student Registration
Each new undergraduate student attends an orientation session prior to, or at the beginning of, the student’s first semester. During this session, new students are given special assistance in setting up their first class schedule and are able to register for their classes. (See beginning of Student Affairs chapter.)
Full-time Course Load and Maximum Course Load
Full-time enrollment at the undergraduate level and maximum course load are defined in the chart given below:
| Academic Term | Full-time Hours | Maximum hours allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Fall | 12 | 19 |
| First Fall | 10* | |
| Second Fall | 10* | |
| Total Fall terms | 12 | 19 |
| Winter Intersession | 4 | |
| Spring | 12 | 19 |
| First Spring | 10** | |
| Second Spring | 10** | |
| Total Spring terms | 12 | 19 |
| May Intersession | 4 | |
| Full Summer | 12 | 14 |
| First Summer | 7*** | |
| Second Summer | 7*** | |
| August Intersession | 4 |
This definition does not depend on the mode of course delivery or the location of the course. Students are advised not to take more than the maximum hours without a compelling reason and a cumulative GPA four-tenths of a point above 2.0 for each extra hour desired. To register for more than maximum hours allowed, a student must seek permission from his or her dean’s office. Additional fees will apply.
Please Note:
*Fall, First Fall, and Second Fall are combined to determine full-time status (minimum 12 hours) and maximum hours allowed (19 hours). Students must seek permission from their dean's office to register for more than 19 hours for fall, first fall, and second fall combined.
**Spring, First Spring, and Second Spring are combined to determine full-time status and maximum hours allowed. Students must seek permission from their dean's office to register for more than 19 hours for spring, first spring, and second spring combined.
***Full Summer, First Summer, and Second Summer are combined to determine full-time status and maximum hours allowed.
These definitions may not match financial aid definitions of full-time hours.
Priority Registration
Continuing students may register online by using their WebID through the myOleMiss portal. Online class schedules for an upcoming priority registration period are available approximately two weeks prior to the beginning of priority registration. An academic adviser must approve each student’s schedule. The time when a student may begin registration varies for different categories of students. Students accept the responsibility for maintaining acceptable grades and for the payment of fees at the time they register.
Adding a course(s)
Students may add courses, using the myOleMiss portal, through the fifth day in which classes meet during a regular semester. After the fifth day, students must have the approval of the instructor in the course. After the 10th day of classes (the last day to register), courses may be added only under extraordinary circumstances approved by the dean of the school or college in which the student is enrolled, and a small fee will be assessed per added course.
Dropping a course(s)
A student may drop any course, using the online system, until the course withdrawal deadline, which is the 35th day in which classes meet during a regular semester. However, after the 10th day of classes a small fee will be assessed per dropped course. No indication of enrollment in a course properly dropped will be shown on any University of Mississippi record.
Withdrawal Policies
Late Withdrawal from a Course
After the course withdrawal deadline, a student may drop a course only in cases of extreme and unavoidable emergency as determined by the student’s academic dean. Unacceptable reasons for late withdrawal include dissatisfaction over an expected grade or a change in a student’s degree program or major. The deadline to request for a late withdrawal is the last day of classes. Courses dropped after the course withdrawal deadline will still appear on the student’s official transcript. The W mark will be recorded if the student is passing the course at the time of withdrawal; the F grade will be recorded if the student is failing.
Withdrawal from all courses (Drop to 0 hours)
A student who wishes to withdraw from the university (i.e., withdraw from all courses) during the course of a semester, intersession, or summer term can withdraw online at myOleMiss.edu or can provide written notification via fax, mail, or in person to the Office of the Registrar. Appropriate university offices (Student Housing, Financial Aid, Bursar, ID Center, Library, and Academic Dean) will be notified of the withdrawal. Full refunds of tuition and fees (minus a processing fee) are given for withdrawals during the first 10 days of classes of a regular semester, and no refunds are given after the 10th day of classes. The deadline to withdraw from all courses is the last day of classes for the term. Courses dropped after the course withdrawal deadline will still appear on the student’s official transcript. The W mark will be recorded if the student is passing the course at the time of withdrawal; the F grade will be recorded if the student is failing. Students who withdraw must apply for readmission if not enrolling for the subsequent term. Students who received aid for the term they are withdrawing may have a financial impact. Students should contact the Office of Financial Aid for details.
Withdrawal as an Accommodation under the Title IX or Interpersonal Violence and Sexual Misconduct Policy
Circumstances may exist in which withdrawal for either a complainant or a respondent who is working with the Office of Equal Opportunity & Regulatory Compliance (EORC)/Title IX Office may be appropriate. Such a withdrawal may be granted when a determination is made by a licensed health care provider, including professional counselors, that a student cannot continue enrollment in courses, or following the recommendation to allow withdrawal as an accommodation by the Office of EORC/Title IX. If the request is approved, the student’s final grades will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Students receiving financial aid or scholarships should contact the Office of Financial Aid for information on the potential financial impact of withdrawal.
Military Withdrawal
A student required to withdraw who is a member of the Mississippi National Guard, or one or more units of the Mississippi State Guard, or who is a member of any of the reserve components of the armed forces of the United States, and who has been placed in active duty status by orders of the president of the United States, or who has been drafted into any component of the armed forces of the United States, may be allowed to withdraw as a student of the institution, with a full refund of tuition, out‐of‐state fees (if applicable), student fees and any special fees, with room and board fees prorated with the approval of the institutional executive officer. The student who withdraws under this policy will not receive any grades. The student record will show evidence of the withdrawal with documentation on file.
Any student called to active duty who has completed at least three-fourth of the semester and is in good standing with the institution, and who needs to only take the final examination to complete the semester, has the option to leave the university pursuant to this policy, without his/her class standing affected, and without refund of any of the above fees or tuition. However, within 90 days after release from active duty, the student may make arrangements to take the final examination. The score of the final exam plus the unfinished semester's work will constitute the student's final grade.
Alternatively, any student called to active duty who has completed at least three-fourth of the semester and is in good standing with the institution, has the option to leave the university pursuant to this policy, without his/her class standing affected, and without refund of any of the above fees or tuition and shall have the option of receiving full credit for each enrolled course of study with the grade earned at the date he or she was called into active duty.
The student’s academic dean will decide if the three-fourths requirement is met, and the student’s instructors will decide whether or not final examinations will be required.
Retroactive Withdrawal
A student who has stopped attending classes due to highly unusual circumstances resulting from extreme hardship can petition for a retroactive withdrawal. A student may petition to withdraw retroactively from a semester within one calendar year after the term is completed. The request for withdrawal will be considered only when accompanied by appropriate documentation of the situation (e.g., medical emergency or administrative error) that was related to the student’s recorded academic performance for the semester in question. If a student’s case meets the above criteria, then that student may contact the registration coordinator in the Office of the Registrar for further clarification. If financial aid had been received for the semester, paybacks may apply.
Unofficial Withdrawal
Unofficial withdrawals occur when students simply stop attending classes during a term. Although the students did not formally withdraw from UM, they did not complete the period of enrollment for which federal aid was disbursed. The U.S. Department of Education mandates that universities develop a mechanism for determining whether a student who is a recipient of Title IV funds has ceased attendance without notification. To meet this requirement, the Office of Financial Aid has created a term-based report that identifies all students who received federal aid and posted all “F,” “W”, and/or “I” grades. For students falling into these categories, the institution must determine if they actually began attendance, per the Attendance Verification Policy. Students are processed as schedule cancellations (if never attended) or as unofficial withdrawals (if attended at least once, but then abandoned all courses without officially withdrawing). Financial Aid will use the midpoint of the enrollment period as the default date for when attendance stopped, unless the student can document attendance past the midpoint.
Summer Term Deadlines
During a summer term, the last day for full refunds on complete withdrawals is the last day to register or add courses, and the course withdrawal deadline is the 10th day of classes.