Section 4: Academic Calendar, Admission, and Enrollment:

Registration Policies

Course Registration

Student registration is governed by the university and is determined by student’s program of study.

Students in certain programs register for courses online. Course availability lists and schedules appear on the students’ myWalden university portal along with detailed registration instructions. Students must follow the instructions for their particular program.

Based on their catalog year and program, some students are automatically registered for their courses by the Office of the Registrar during each registration period.

Registration Periods

Registration generally opens 75 calendar days prior to all quarter and semester term starts.

Students may add a course to their schedule up until Day 3 of the course. Students may only add a course after Day 3 and through Day 7 with the approval of both the course instructor and the program’s dean or executive director or their designee.

Students may drop a course from their schedule through Day 7 of the course (or Day 3 for 2- or 3-week courses) without transcript notation or financial penalty, except in instances where students receive an “XF”/”XU” grade per the Failed Course Grade Sanction policy below.

No section changes will be made after Day 7 of the term.

The College of Nursing does not change course sections after a registration has been processed for any nursing specialization course. If there are extenuating circumstances, the situation will be evaluated on a case by case basis. Students should contact their student success advisor for more information.

Failure to Register

Students who fail to register, and have not applied for or been granted a leave of absence, will be withdrawn from the university after three terms of non-registration and may not have access to academic and administrative services. These students will not retain financial aid eligibility and their enrollment status will be reported as “W” to the National Student Clearinghouse with the first term of non-registration as the last date of participation. To re-enter the university after being withdrawn for failure to register, they must apply for reinstatement or readmission and, if necessary, reapply for financial aid.

Students who wish to withdraw from one or more courses must notify the university. If the decision is made to withdraw from the course, students should submit a Course Withdrawal Request Form through their myWalden university portal. Although an email request to withdraw from the course will be accepted, students are encouraged to submit this request form in lieu of such email. Phone requests, failure to participate in coursework, or notification to the course instructor does not constitute a course withdrawal request. Students should not submit multiple requests.

The effective date of the course withdrawal will be no earlier than the submission date of the student’s request and is recorded in the university student records system.

Note: Students who wish to drop all their courses must notify a member of the Student Success Advising Team and the Office of the Registrar in writing of their intention.

For courses with drop notifications received no later than the 7th calendar day of the term, there will be no transcript record of the class. For courses with withdrawal notifications received no later than the deadline noted below, a “W” grade for the course will be noted on the transcript. Students who withdraw after these deadlines will receive the grade the course instructor determines to be appropriate given the course requirements.

Please see Financial Aid Programs policies for more information on how course withdrawal date may impact Satisfactory Academic Progress and course completion rate, financial aid eligibility, or balance due to the university. Students who fail to meet the minimum academic standards set by the academic unit are subject to the university Academic Warning and Dismissal policy.

Withdrawal Deadline for a "W" Grade (by course length) 

• For a 2-week course, withdrawal by 10th calendar day.
• For a 3-week course, withdrawal by 14th calendar day.
• For a 4-week course, withdrawal by 18th calendar day.
• For a 5-week course, withdrawal by 22nd calendar day.
• For a 6-week course, withdrawal by 27th calendar day.
• For a 8-week course, withdrawal by 35th calendar day.
• For a 10-week course, withdrawal by 43rd calendar day.
• For a 11-week course, withdrawal by 48th calendar day.
• For a 12-week course, withdrawal by 52nd calendar day.
• For a 16-week course, withdrawal by 69th calendar day.

1. A student may withdraw from a subscription term at any time, but will be required to sit out the remainder of that term before returning to study, unless the student is withdrawn within the first 14 days of a term.
2. If a student has Agreed-to credits for the term and chooses to withdraw, the Agreed-to credits will be counted toward Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and used in future calculations, unless the student is withdrawn within the first 14 days of a term.
3. No notations of a withdrawal from a term or from the program are present on unofficial or official transcripts.
4. If a student decides to withdraw from a term, he or she will not be subject to the 30-day nonengagement policy during the withdrawal period. Their requirement to participate will restart upon the beginning of their next term.
5. Students who are administratively withdrawn who wish to return to Tempo Learning® must sit out the remainder of their term, unless the student is withdrawn within the first 14 days of their term.

Walden University provides students with the opportunity to drop or withdraw from courses at designated times in the term. Typically, in the first 7 days of the course, the student may drop the course without any financial penalty, and that course does not show on the transcript or count toward attempted credits. Once the drop period is over, students may withdraw from the course at any time during the established withdrawal period, with a sliding scale of financial responsibility depending on the date of withdrawal.* Please refer to the “Financial Aid Programs” section within the Walden University Student Handbook for more information. When a student withdraws from a course during the withdrawal period, the course shows on the transcript with a grade of “W.” The grade of “W” counts toward credits attempted and academic progress but does not calculate into the GPA.

In a case where an academic integrity or other Code of Conduct violation is identified and ultimately sanctioned with a course failure, the student will be issued a grade of “XF” to notate the sanction. If the sanction occurs during the course drop or withdrawal period and a student drops or self-withdraws, the “XF” grade will override such course drop or self-withdrawal. The course will be treated as an attempted course and remain on the student’s academic record. However, students who receive an “XF”/”XU” as the result of an academic integrity or other Code of Conduct violation will still be eligible for any applicable refunds in accordance with Walden University’s Refund Policies or return of disbursed federal funds in accordance with the Federal Return of Title IV Funds Policy, respectively.

This grade is an important distinction from the grade of “W” in that the “XF” grade will calculate into the GPA, regardless of whether it is issued before, during, or after the withdrawal period. This grade is only to be used for cases of a failed course grade sanction due to academic integrity or other Code of Conduct violation.

Similarly, for courses that are graded as Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (“S”/”U”), a failed course grade sanction of “XU” can be issued at any time during the term due to an academic integrity or other Code of Conduct violation. This grade is treated in the same manner as the “XF” grade, with the exception that at no point will it calculate into a student’s GPA (per standard “S”/”U” grading policy).

In accordance with existing policy, a student may appeal the decision in cases of Code of Conduct violations. (See “Appeals Process” in the Student Appeals and Grievances section of this Walden University Student Handbook.)

In instances where the course failure sanction did not result in separation from the institution, is not a matter of public benefit, and/or does not pose a threat to any institution or third party, students may submit a request to remove the “X” on the permanent transcript record upon the successful completion of a course or other academic integrity exercise deemed appropriate by the student’s school dean. Requests should be made in writing to the dean and codeofconduct@mail.waldenu.edu. Note that a desire to remove the violation or the failed grade should be pursued by the appeals process above.

* Pursuant to the Tuition Refunds policy, typically students enrolled in a 2-week or 3-week course may only drop a course without financial penalty within the first 3 days of the course. For such courses, there is no established withdrawal period for which they are eligible for a refund.

To provide quality educational offerings and opportunities to students, each college may set minimum and maximum registration limits for any course or any section of a course. Registration limits and exceptions to this policy require review by the vice provost, college dean, or program director.

Courses should be offered only when they meet the minimum registration threshold, as stated below. When a course section is shared, registration will be determined by the cumulative total number of students in the collective sections.

0001 through 9000-level courses: 3 students or more

In the event a course is canceled by the Office of the Registrar due to low registration, registered students will receive notification prior to the start date of the course. Students will then work with Student Success Advising to determine appropriate course options.

Practicum courses require students to apply the knowledge, concepts, and skills that they have acquired in their didactic courses during their program of study, particularly in relation to their specialization. Therefore, didactic courses are required to be completed prior to entering corresponding practicum courses. Due to this requirement, students who drop or withdraw from the didactic course will be required to complete the same action for the corresponding practicum course.

Students taking courses are often required to obtain specific textbooks and reading packets for each course. Students should consult information on their myWalden university portal to determine the textbooks, reading packets, media or other materials required for their courses.