Medical or Emergency Withdrawal Policy

Approved by: Northeastern State University Executive Cabinet

Responsible Official: Student Affairs
918-444-2120
Administration, 2nd Floor
Tahlequah, OK 74464

History: Adopted July 5, 2016

Additional References:

Forms: Medical or Emergency Withdrawal Online Form

POLICY

PURPOSE

A Medical or Emergency Withdrawal may be an option for students who are unable to continue courses or benefit from the learning environment due to an unexpected medical or emergency situation.

Approved Medical or Emergency Withdrawals will remove students from ALL classes they are enrolled in during the designated semester. No partial withdrawals will be permitted. Special considerations may be made when a class has been completed (such as a weekend seminar) prior to the determined withdrawal date or in some cases when a student is enrolled in second 8 week classes that begin after the determined withdrawal date. Medical or Emergency Withdrawals are considered a one-time option. Further requests may require additional justification.

MEDICAL WITHDRAWAL

A Medical Withdrawal is an option for students experiencing serious injury or illness, including physical and mental health difficulties, as well as pregnancy related issues. The medical issues may create an inability to complete or make satisfactory progress towards academic or behavioral requirements. Students may also qualify for medical withdrawals when providing direct medical care for a child, parent, family member, or spouse.

EMERGENCY WITHDRAWAL

An Emergency Withdrawal is appropriate when a situation prevents a student from attending class or benefiting from the learning environment but is not medical in nature. For example, an Emergency Withdrawal may be warranted following:

Significant impairment in the ability to function as a student
Behaviors that pose significant risk to the health or safety of others
Behaviors which prevent others from benefiting from the learning environment and/or experiencing a safe living and learning environment
A situation which incapacitates the student to the point they are unable to personally withdraw from the university
A crime which may or may not result in medical care such as a sexual assault, stalking incident, dating or domestic violence incident

A MEDICAL OR EMERGENCY WITHDRAWAL IS NOT INTENDED TO:

Serve as a solution to unsatisfactory progress or other academic or behavioral concern
Assist a student in avoiding disciplinary actions related to potential misconduct
Assist a student who reports lack of knowledge or misunderstanding of the refund deadline and/or policy
Remove charges from a student's account

MAJOR BENEFITS:

Failing grades may be changed to "W"s or removed from the transcript (depending on the date of withdrawal).

Withdrawing from Northeastern State University (NSU) may impact a student in a number of ways. Students should check with any health insurance company, scholarship office, international programs official, faculty, athletic director, Veteran's benefits coordinator, financial aid, and/or other entity where enrollment may impact status or benefits. Withdrawal dates are used to calculate tuition and fees that may be refunded (if any) and may impact financial aid awards and/or initiate repayment of all or part of the award amount.

DOCUMENTATION:

All applicants will be required to submit documentation as it pertains to the withdrawal request, which may include, but is not limited to:

Medical documents
Treatment records
Newspaper articles
Court documents
Police reports
Or other documentation outlining the nature of the request

Documentation will vary according to individual circumstances and should serve to support and clarify the request. Faculty and staff may be contacted regarding the withdrawal request. The date of withdraw will be determined by the documentation received.

If a student provides a letter from his/her health care provider to serve as documentation to support the application, the letter should include:

Date of illness onset
Dates of professional care
General information regarding the condition and how it prevented completion of coursework and/or class attendance
Follow-up or after-care plan if applicable

Other information may include:

Date of anticipated return to school
Last date of class attendance

Requests for Medical and Emergency Withdrawals must be made within one year of the semester from which a student wishes to withdraw.

Consultation with Student Affairs may assist a student in examining his/her options and deciding if a Medical Withdrawal is the best option.

Student Affairs will notify the student through his/her NSU email address (or alternate email address, if not an active student) of the decision to deny or approve the request. All decisions are final.

Medical and Emergency Withdrawal requests and documentation are retained by Student Affairs for five years and are filed separately from other educational records.

The following arrangements/accommodations may be considered before a medical or emergency withdrawal is approved or as a suggestion for students returning from leave:

Referral to or participation in on and off campus resources and services
Housing relocation
Utilization of Student Disability Services
Lighter or adjusted course load
Incomplete Grades
Academic Forgiveness

OF SPECIAL IMPORTANCE:

Every semester, NSU publishes withdrawal deadlines for students to drop a course or withdraw without grades. These deadlines provide students with time to decide if they will be able to complete the course successfully. All students are expected to adhere to university policy and procedures. Once these deadlines have passed, the student has made a commitment to complete his/her courses. Further questions regarding withdrawal dates can be directed to the Office of the Registrar in Tahlequah: 918-444-9638 or Enrollment Services in BA: 918-449-6134.

Medical or Emergency Withdrawals do not eliminate a student's obligations or debt to the University or to other parties such as Financial Aid. Withdrawal dates determine the extent of refund (if any) and/or financial aid repayment in accordance with university policy, federal guidelines, and scholarship policies. A student may still be responsible for charges accrued through parking services, student organization dues, university charge accounts, housing charges, and/or fees.

Any questions related to a student's account may be directed to Business Affairs (Tahlequah/Muskogee: 918-444-2160 or Broken Arrow: 918-449-6251).

International Students should also consult with the Office of International Programs to discuss potential immigration consequences.

University staff may apply an Administrative Hold to the student's account following a medical or emergency withdrawal to prevent future registration until the hold is removed. To remove the hold, the student may be required to attend a meeting and/or provide additional documentation supporting the student's readiness to return to the university. To maximize future academic success, a student seeking Medical or Emergency Withdrawal should actively work to alleviate, treat, or otherwise address the complications related to the withdrawal prior to re-enrolling.

Prior to requesting a withdrawal, students should consult with all funding or financial assistance representatives regarding the impact of a withdrawal.

To ask questions and/or request a Medical or Emergency Withdrawal:

Students from ALL campuses should contact the Division of Student Affairs at 918-444-2120.

NOTE: some specially accredited programs such as Optometry and other professional programs, may have their own medical withdrawal policies and guidelines that should be consulted. In addition to Student Affairs, students enrolled in these programs should consult the program director.

Documentation must be on file with Student Affairs for a Medical or Emergency Withdrawal to be reviewed.

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