Hi. I posted last week about my friend and her daughter; the daughter was injured at college. She is back in classes and expected to fully recover, but has been told by her adviser that she could withdraw from this semester and return in January. I advised my friend that the daughter should find out about financial aid (they’re paying a few thousand dollars for one of the most expensive universities in the United States), and the daughter plans to find out what will appear on her transcript if she withdraws and returns. What else, if anything, should the daughter consider? Thank you.
i am assuming she will need to attend for a ninth semester to make up for this one. Will she get her merit or financial aid money for that semester, assuming that’s important.
Also, is there an option for her to get in completes on some course and complete the others so she doesn’t lose the semester and its attached funding? D did get some incimpketes and was able to handle the lighter load and make up the incompletes over the summer. It’s not ideal, but another option for consideration.
If she withdraws now and returns for the spring semester (or second quarter if it’s a quarter school), will she be able to get in to appropriate classes? Or will she be unable to register for them because she hasn’t completed the prerequisites?
If she’s in a program where many courses are taught in only one semester/quarter or where many courses are taught as two-semester (or three-quarter) sequences, she may have problems creating appropriate schedules and fulfilling her graduation requirements even with a ninth semester.
In such instances, it might be better for her to come back in the fall rather than January. That way, she could complete the courses in the appropriate order.
Also, carefully consider whether she should withdraw from college or take a leave of absence. And if there are different types of leaves of absence available to her, consider which one is best. At some schools, it’s much more difficult to return from a medical leave than a personal leave, so those who are eligible for both are better off taking the personal leave even if the reason for it is medical.
For tuition refund insurance and financial aid, it may also make a difference as to what type of leave is granted.