Graduate Registration

Audit Grade Information

Students enrolling for an Audit must designate their intent to enroll on an Audit basis at the time of registration or prior to the end of the second week of a sixteen-week semester (prior to the end of the second week of an eight-week summer session). An equivalent prorated amount of time would be allowed for courses of shorter duration. Students registering for short courses must register for Audit prior to the beginning of those classes.

Students cannot designate a course for Audit from within SalukiNet Self-Service. Instead, they should first register for the course in SalukiNet Self-Service, then fill out a Course Request Form (CRF) which designates the change from regular registration to Audit. The CRF must be submitted to the Graduate Registration office.

Students registering for a course on an Audit basis receive no credit.

Auditing students' CRFs must be marked accordingly, and such students pay the same tuition and fees as though they were registering for credit. Students are expected to attend regularly and to determine from the instructor the amount of work expected of them. If an auditing student does not attend regularly, the instructor may determine that the student should not have a satisfactory (AU) audit grade. If the audited class is unsatisfactory, a grade of UAU will appear on the student's transcript.

Late Registration

After the first week of classes, students are required to have the Graduate Dean's permission to add courses and must come to the Center to process a registration or add. After the first week of classes, all registration and section changes must be processed at the Center. Drops may be processed in SalukiNet through week 10 for full-semester courses.

A late registration fee of $15 shall be assessed to all students taking on-campus classes who register after the designated registration period. This fee shall be non-refundable and non- waiver able, except when it is clearly shown that the late registration was caused by faculty or administrative action. Off-campus classes and registration in 599, 600 and 601 shall be exempt from such fee.

Course Loads

Financial Aid Awards

For financial aid awarding purposes, the following defines the number of semester hours for full and half-time:

Graduate students enrolled in fewer than 6 hours for fall and spring semesters or 3 hours for summer session are not eligible to obtain student loans.

Enrollment Certification

The following semester hours of credit are to be used to certify full-time and half-time attendance of graduate students.

*Students who hold at least a quarter-time (25% FTE) graduate assistantship are considered as full-time if they have a minimum of 8 semester hours.

Minimum and Maximum Course Loads

Maximum coursework for graduate students is 16 hours each semester; 9 hours is considered normal load. The minimum and maximum loads for graduate students under several types of financial support are summarized below, a graduate student must enroll in graduate-level course(s) (typically a 400- and 500-level course; certain 400-level courses are not available for graduate credit.) Please consult the Graduate Catalog for available 400-level graduate courses. Audit work will not qualify to meet the minimum load. An exception to the 16-credit hour maximum load may be possible only with advanced written permission of the graduate dean.

Graduate students with a Graduate Assistantship must enroll in a minimum of eight graduate credit hours during the fall/spring to receive a full tuition waiver. During the summer, a minimum of three graduate credit hours are required to receive a tuition waiver for up to 9 hours. Students with a Graduate Fellowship or SIU Scholarship must enroll in a minimum of nine graduate credit hours during fall/spring and three during the summer.

All University employees who wish to use the employee tuition fee waiver (faculty and staff) and are classified as graduate students are only permitted to register for six hours. To request permission to take over six hours, a memo from their hiring department approving the extra hours must be submitted to the Graduate School Records Office. If graduate students’ enrollments fail to meet the minimum hours required by their type of financial support, the financial support will be terminated.

601 Continuing Enrollment

All students in a graduate program but not enrolled in classes by the Friday of the first week of the fall or spring semester will be registered in 601 by the Graduate School. This hour will be dropped if the student subsequently enrolls in a class that semester or is granted a leave of absence by his/her graduate program by the 10 ^th week of the semester. Each program has its own policy of whether and when to grant leaves of absence. Students on leave are not required to enroll in 601 for the period of leave but a leave of absence does not affect the time-to-degree requirement. Summer sessions are exempt from the continuing enrollment requirement.

Registration in 601 (1 hour per semester) is required of all graduate students, whether in residence or not, who are not otherwise enrolled in fall or spring semester. Concurrent registration in any other course is not permitted.

Students registering in 601 are assessed only in-state tuition for the credit hour associated with the registration. Since none of the other student fees are assessed for 601, the student is not eligible for the benefits of any other programs such as Recreation Center use, Health Service and Student Medical Benefits, Students’ Attorney Program assistance, etc. Students needing the above benefits that require fees may instead register for additional research, thesis, or dissertation hours.

Students who have not paid their bills and owe more than $200 will not be allowed to enroll, and this may affect their graduate standing. They should enroll as soon as their Bursar hold is lifted.

Students with assistantships are not allowed to register for 601.

Retroactive Academic Action Information

General Information

• No tuition or general student fees shall be refunded in cases where withdrawal occurs after the deadline stated in the Board of Trustees policy, except for students in grave circumstances who demonstrate that, for reasons beyond control, they are utterly unable to continue their education programs.
• A student must be withdrawn from the University for the semester requesting a refund before the request may be considered.
• Tuition and fees will not be refunded for courses that have already been completed earlier in the semester and for which a final grade has been earned.
• Only circumstances fitting one of the conditions listed below will be considered for any retroactive changes. Supporting documentation must be provided to the Retroactive Academic Actions Appeals Committee.
• In any case, you must complete both pages of the Retroactive Academic Action Petition and be submit your supporting documentation to the Graduate Registration Office before any consideration will given.

Criteria for Retroactive Academic Action Requests

1. Accident or illness occurring prior to the withdrawal deadline which incapacitated the student and made it impossible for them to withdraw prior to the deadline
2. Accident or illness in the student’s immediate family that occurred prior to the withdrawal deadline and is of such nature as to prevent the student from continuing their education
3. Emotional or psychological trauma resulting from an incident which occurred prior to the deadline and for which the student is undergoing counseling or therapy.
4. A disciplinary, academic, or financial aid termination appeal that is not accepted if the appeal was initiated prior to the withdrawal deadline.
5. Induction into military service for a period not less than six months.

6. To add a course after the deadline.

7.  To switch sections after the deadline.

Documentation Examples

• Written verification from a physician as to the accident or illness to the student or in the student’s immediate family and the student’s inability to withdraw prior to the deadline.

•  Written verification from a physician or counselor supporting the conditional of emotional or psychological trauma that substantiates the incident occurred prior to the deadline.

•  Copy of letter denying disciplinary, academic, or financial aid termination appeal with verification the appeal was filed before the deadline.

•  Written correspondence from the military which verifies when the student is to report for military service and the length of time the student is expected to serve.

Download the Retroactive Academic Action Petition (PDF).

For more information about the Retroactive Academic Action Petition please contact:

Graduate Registration
Student Services Building, Room 325
618-453-2969
gradregistration@siu.edu

All documentation needs to be submitted to:

Graduate Registration
Student Services Building, Graduate School
1263 Lincoln Drive MC 4716
Carbondale, Illinois 62901
Fax: 618-453-2915
Fax: 618-453-2915

Illinois Residency

Determination of residency status of each applicant for admission to the University is made at the time of admission. A student may petition for change to Illinois residency by contacting the Graduate Registration Office.

Applying for Illinois Residency

To qualify for in-state tuition at SIU, a student must be a citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. and must be a bona fide resident of the State of Illinois for the six-month period immediately preceding the start of the semester of which they wish to be classified as an Illinois resident. To qualify for in-state tuition, you need to be at least 18 years old at the time classes begin and move into Illinois and remain living in Illinois for six months prior to applying. You must also change your driver’s license to an Illinois driver’s license, register to vote in Illinois and if you are the sole owner of a vehicle you will driving in Illinois, it must be registered in Illinois six months prior to applying. You will need to complete an application for Illinois residency, and include with the completed application any appropriate documentation as requested. Have the application notarized before you submit OR have your application notarized in our office (requires two picture ID’s) and submit copies of the documents listed below to be considered for in-state residency for tuition purposes.

The below documents are required and must be changed 6 months prior to the semester residency is being requested.

1. A copy of your Illinois driver’s license, or if you do not drive, a copy of an Illinois ID Card.
2. A copy of proof you have registered to vote in Illinois. Permanent Residents do not need this.
3. If you drive a vehicle in the state of Illinois, you must submit a copy of your vehicle registration, which is the card that your license plate sticker comes on. If you are the sole owner of the vehicle, it must be registered in Illinois.
4. Proof you have lived in Illinois for the six consecutive months immediately preceding the start of the semester. This may consist of one item per month of any of the following documents.
   
   • Bank statement with your name, Illinois address and date showing.
   • Paycheck if you are employed in Illinois with your name, Illinois address and date showing.
   • Rent receipts with your name, Illinois address and date showing.
   • Utility bills in your name with your Illinois address and date showing.
   • Telephone bills in your name with your Illinois address and date showing.
   • A copy of your Lease with your name and the effective dates listed.
   • If none of the above, then: Three notarized letters from Illinois residents attesting to your residency in Illinois for the six months before the semester begins.

The deadline to submit the Illinois Residency application and all documentation is by the end of the first month of the semester.

All documentation needs to be submitted to:

Amy Ramsey
Graduate School Registration
Student Services Building, Room 325
1263 Lincoln Drive MC 4716
Carbondale, Illinois 62901
Fax: 618-453-4562

Withdrawal From Courses AND From the University

Students who officially register for a session must officially withdraw from that registration in a timely manner to avoid being charged as well as receiving a failing grade for those classes. An official withdrawal must be initiated by the student and processed by the Graduate Registration office. Outlined below are the procedures to be followed for course drops and for withdrawing from the University and/or Program.

Deadlines for Dropping from a Course(s)

*Students must drop a course or withdraw from the University by these deadlines to receive an account credit equal to a full refund of tuition and fees. Students who drop courses after the full refund deadline but remain enrolled in the University will not receive any refund. Student who withdraw from the University after the full refund period will receive an account credit up to week four (see chart below).

Course Drops

All students that wish to officially add or drop classes will do so within the SalukiNet portal. If the student has a hold on their registration a Course Request Form can be sent to the Graduate Registration Office, gradregistration@siu.edu. Graduate students may drop from a course through the 10th week of the fall and spring semesters. Drop deadlines for shorter sessions are correspondingly earlier (see schedule above). Course drops after the refund deadline but prior to the deadline to withdraw will result in the course listed on the student's record with the symbol W. Unless a student has processed an authorized drop from a course by the deadline in the schedule above, the student will not be allowed to drop the course. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that the drop process is officially completed. It is probable that a student, who does not drop by the deadlines, but stops attending, will receive a grade of WU (unofficial withdrawal). Note: ceasing to attend a course may affect a student’s financial aid eligibility (student loans and tuition waivers). Students who drop courses after the full refund deadline, but remain enrolled in the University, will not receive any refund.

Withdrawal from the University

Students registered for academic work must obtain a withdrawal if they contemplate leaving the University. Semester withdrawal occurs when all courses for which the student is registered are dropped. If the student has a graduate assistantship, the student must resign from the contract.

Withdrawal from the University is a serious decision, which, in many cases, affects financial assistance status and academic records. Students cannot drop all their courses. Semester withdrawal is processed through the Graduate Registration Office, gradregistration@siu.edu. A withdrawal will not be issued beyond the tenth week of the semester unless the reasons for the withdrawal are beyond the student’s control and verified in writing. Warning: if a student obtains a withdrawal after the 100% refund period and is receiving financial assistance, the student may be in violation of the Satisfactory Progress for Financial Assistance policy since no academic credit will be earned for the semester. The table above provides the deadline dates for withdrawal. All credits or refunds are determined by the effective date of the withdrawal and are subject to the direction of the USDOE for the distribution of Title IV funds if applicable.

Students receiving a withdrawal from a full semester length course within the first two weeks will, under normal circumstances, receive a refund of all tuition and fees paid by the student. Some or all financial assistance funds, depending on the source, will be returned to their original sources if the student withdraws during the 100% period.

Students who withdraw after the full refund deadline will receive an account credit equal to the appropriate refund of tuition and fees for student loans. Students with an assistantship will lose the tuition waiver at the time of withdrawal. An administrative fee will be assessed to all students who withdraw from the University and receive a refund beyond the full refund period. The amount of the fee will be a fixed charge of $100. See the following:

SIU Refund Policy for Withdraws for Semester Length Courses

No tuition refund will be given after week four; no refund of fees will be given after week three. Student fees are charged as a condition of enrollment.

Special consideration is extended to individuals who leave school for extended military service (six months or longer). These students may choose to withdraw completely and have the withdrawal backdated to show no enrollment. If withdrawing during the third through tenth weeks of school, these students may receive WMS grades in all classes, with the appropriate refund. When the withdrawal occurs after the tenth week, students will receive both grades and credit hours for the courses in which they are passing. In all instances, a copy of the military orders or a letter from the commanding officer is required for verification of impending military service. To be eligible for these benefits, students must remain in school to within ten days of their military reporting date.

Students in military service with the State of Illinois pursuant to the orders of the Governor have the right to receive a full monetary credit or refund for funds paid to any Illinois public university, college or community college if the person is placed into a period of military service with the State of Illinois in the event of state emergencies pursuant to the orders of the Governor and is unable to attend the university or college for a period of seven or more days. Students may elect to receive course credit for all of their courses rather than a refund.

Students who have a graduate assistantship and resign from their contract will not be automatically withdrawn from their courses. Students must complete the withdrawal process.

Withdrawal from the Program

Students who want to withdraw from their program are responsible for contacting the Graduate School. Failure to withdraw from the program will result in auto-enrollment of Continuing Education, 601 during fall and spring semesters. An email needs to be sent to gradschl@siu.edu to officially withdraw.