Leave of Absence or Withdraw?

Parents Forum
1

<p>As I have posted previously, my S is 99.9% convinced that he doesn't want to return to his college next year. For a variety of reasons, he says he was very unhappy and wants to be closer to home.</p>

<p>His plan is to take a year of CC work to then transfer into another school as a junior.</p>

<p>He thinks he should just withdraw from his current school as he doesn't plan to return. My thought is that he should go ahead and register for fall classes, and then he has the summer to determine what he really wants to do.</p>

<p>Right now he may think he doesn't want to go back, but after a summer home with us and some time to really think, he may change his mind. We have told him that we aren't forcing him to go back, but we would like him to leave his options open, at least over the summer, while things get sorted out.</p>

<p>I'm assuming that withdrawing means that you would have to re-apply if you want to return, where applying for a LOA would be a different story.</p>

<p>I also know that each college is probably slightly different, but I wanted to gather some insights from all of you that have probably been through this, know more about university policies, etc.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>You would definitely need to understand what the tuition and room/board obligations are if he registers for fall classes, then does not attend.</p>

3

<p>Typically if he registers but withdraws or applies for a leave of absence before the semester starts or in the first week of classes, there is no money due.</p>

<p>I agree with you, that he should take a leave of absence. He won’t necessarily have to register for fall classes unless classes at his college are very difficult to get into or he needs specialized classes, but taking a leave leaves his options open. It doesn’t mean he can’t withdraw later if he really wants to leave.</p>

4

<p>I’d check with the U about their policies about registration, payment, LOA, and room/board if he decides not to attend his U in the fall. With info, it is better to make decisions that will work for your S.</p>

5

<p>You must read JoeDNC’s recently-updated thread on the parents’ forum, “My son tried to transfer to a harder school and failed out.” He said his son should have taken a LOA and understood the details better. (Spoiler alert – his thread has a happy ending, but lessons learned that can benefit others.)</p>