Academic Difficulty
We understand that students experience academic challenges for many reasons, including personal, financial, health, family, or other issues. Academic Advising is here to support you in deciding how to best proceed while maintaining your enrollment, success, and well-being. Students should make an appointment or attend drop-in hours to speak with an advisor to discuss the following options available to students.
Reducing Course Load
Course Drop
Please see the information about dropping a course on our Registration FAQ page.
Underload (enroll in less than 12 hours)
Please schedule an appointment or utilize our drop-in hours to speak with an advisor to discuss your unique circumstances.
Withdraw from UNC
Withdrawal refers to the official process of leaving the University and dropping all classes in an academic term (fall, spring, summer). There are different ways to withdraw from the university:
- Academic withdrawal (personal, financial, etc.)
- Medical withdrawal (either physical or psychological)
- Administrative withdrawals (typically for disciplinary purposes, etc.)
To learn more about academic, medical and administrative withdraws, please see the and information on the registrar’s website. Scroll down to “Withdrawals” and review the type of withdrawal that fits your situation. Before making a decision, we invite you to see an advisor to discuss which option is best for you.
We encourage you to familiarize yourself with the process of returning to the University and speak with an Advisor to discuss next steps.
Pass/Fail
Courses can be declared pass/fail beginning the fifth day of classes through the eighth week of classes for the fall and spring semesters.* The deadline to declare a course pass/fail is posted on the registrar’s academic calendar each term. Before declaring a course as pass/fail, we encourage you to make an appointment or attend drop-in hours to speak with an advisor. Read more about the rules, regulations and the pass/fail policy. *For terms impacted by Covid-19, please see the University’s accommodations and timeline. You are doing the best you can, utilizing resources and your faculty, and yet the outcome is not what you expected. We understand. The Academic Eligibility Policy works to guide undergraduates to maintain enrollment eligibility and to stay on track to college degree completion. At the end of each term, undergraduates earn an academic status that determines their eligibility to continue enrollment in a subsequent term at UNC-Chapel Hill. Academic status will be determined by the four standards of satisfactory academic progress, to find out more please visit our Academic Eligibility Standards page. You can find the full policy in the Academic Eligibility Policy Document (Word doc). Our support is designed to help students and promote a successful experience at Carolina. We are committed to the academic success of each of our students, and understand that success is not always achieved in a predictable path. There are many reasons students may fall below the academic standards at UNC, including personal, financial, health, family, or other issues. Our goal is to help you identify the factors that are relevant to you and to help you address them. You are not alone in experiencing these difficulties. Hundreds of students participate in the available support each year and make progress towards achieving their goals. Engagement contributes to student success! If you find yourself with an academic standing of warning, please review your next steps here. If you have been approved for probation, please see the email communication you have received and learn more here. A student who begins an enrolled term with a status of Warning or Probation and falls short of the standards at the end of that enrolled term will earn an academic status of Suspension. Students with an academic status of Suspension cannot enroll in any courses in any term, including Carolina Courses Online. While you may need time away from the University, this is not the end of the road. Suspended students with extraordinary circumstances may appeal for both Academic and Financial Aid Probation. Approval for Probation is required for students to enroll in any class in any term, including Carolina Courses Online and Summer courses. Please review our resources and guidelines to prepare your appeal. We know that very talented and intelligent students can end up on Warning and Probation. Sometimes things get in the way of our ability to succeed. In addition to the individual support available, we have a group opportunity that may assist in developing community, a sense of accountability, and learning from your peers. For those enrolled with a status of warning or probation, Road to Resilience is a great engagement opportunity where we will work to help you figure out what your challenges may be and how to best handle them. To learn more about Road to Resilience, please visit our Student Support page. Still have questions about Academic Eligibility? Check out our FAQs and check in with an Advisor.
Academic Eligibility
Warning & Probation
Suspension & Appeal for Probation
Student Support