A student must confer with the Assistant Dean in order to withdraw during the semester. The student will obtain a withdrawal form, which will need to be signed by the Assistant Dean, the Dean, and other college officials as stipulated on the form. The Assistant Dean will record the primary reason for withdrawal with the Registrar. The student will return the completed withdrawal form to the Registrar. This will complete the student’s withdrawal and the Registrar will notify the college offices and the student’s tutors of the official withdrawal and effective date. If a student is unable to complete the form due to illness, the student should speak to the Assistant Dean and fill out the top part of the form. The student should make sure to turn in all library or music library materials as needed and turn in the dorm key to the Assistant Dean’s office. If offices are closed, the student may turn in the key to Public Safety.
A student who leaves the college without formally withdrawing may have difficulty obtaining a transcript, refundable fees, or the balance of the caution fee.
When a dependent student withdraws or is dismissed from the college during the semester, the parents or guardians will be notified. When a dependent student is told he or she will not be allowed to continue into the next semester, the parents may be notified. When a dependent student decides not to continue at the college at the end of a semester, the parents or guardians are not usually notified. When a dependent student, under extraordinary circumstances, is given permission to withdraw from one or more classes during the semester, dropping to part-time status, the parents or guardians may be notified.
If a student withdraws before three-quarters of the way through any class session, the withdrawal will result in no academic credit for the class. A “W” will appear on the transcript. If a student withdraws after the three-quarters point, a grade of “F” will be assigned and will appear on the student’s transcript. An appeal to the assistant dean to receive a “W” is possible, if there are mitigating circumstances.
Students who withdraw from the college when school is not in session should fill out a withdrawal form as soon as their decision not to return has been made. The form may be obtained from the website or by contacting the Office of the Registrar. Students who withdraw when school is not in session will have the last date of their attendance recorded on their transcript. In such cases, parents usually are not notified of a student’s decision not to continue.
The process for involuntary withdrawals is addressed through the Safety Intervention Policy.
Information regarding financial aid, federal student loans, and tuition refund policy in the case of a voluntary or involuntary withdrawal may be found in the Financial Aid Handbook found online at sjc.edu/finaid/forms or by contacting the Director of Financial Aid. The Financial Aid Handbook states that if a student registers for a class in which he or she was previously enrolled for more than three weeks, the class may be considered as repeated work, and the student may not be eligible for financial assistance. Exceptions to this policy may be granted by the Dean in cases of voluntary or involuntary withdrawal for medical or psychological reasons or other severe mitigating circumstances. In addition, a student on financial aid may owe a refund to the federal aid programs. Students are automatically enrolled in the Tuition Refund Plan through A.W.G. Dewar insurance company. This benefit allows up to a 60% tuition refund in the case of a medical or mental health withdrawal. Students may waive this benefit through the first day of class. Information about the insurance plan is available through the Student Accounts Office.
A student wishing to be readmitted to the college for the fall or spring semester must submit a readmission application to the Registrar on the campus last attended. The student must comply with any conditions of re-enrollment set forth in the student handbook or as required by the college at the time of separation or at the time of proposed re-enrollment. The Assistant Dean will determine what if any documentation will be required before re-enrollment to demonstrate a student’s readiness to resume studies and be a successful member of the college community. The Assistant Dean will also determine what if any conditions should be set to ensure the safety and well-being of the campus community and that the college’s academic program is not disrupted.
A deposit, the amount of which is noted on the application, must accompany the readmission application along with other items listed. Students who are seeking readmission and who fail to meet the deadlines and Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and College Scholarship Service (CSS) filing dates stated below will be considered for readmission but may be unable to enroll if space in the class or financial aid is not available.
The deadlines for submitting the readmission application are:
The deadlines for filing the FAFSA and CSS Profile, if needed, are:
After a readmission application and deposit have been received, the Dean and Assistant Dean review the student’s file. The student will be informed of the decision and, if the decision is for readmission, of any conditions that must be satisfied. If the student is not readmitted, the deposit will be returned. Once a student has been readmitted the deposit is not refundable and a deposit is never rolled forward to a future year. A readmitted student who decides not to enroll at the college must notify the Office of the Registrar by August 1 for the fall term and by December 1 for the spring term. Failure to notify the Office of the Registrar by these dates will result in the requirement of an advance deposit of $1,000 for any subsequent readmission application. The student must be in good financial standing with the college and with educational lending institutions before being allowed to re-enroll.
Application for financial aid is made separately. Students should seek the advice of the Financial Aid Director as soon as they are considering applying for readmission. Involuntary withdrawal from the college for disciplinary reasons may result in forfeiture of merit aid offered at initial time of enrollment. Readmission to the college does not guarantee an offer of financial aid though a student must have been readmitted before he or she can receive an aid award. Aid is need-based and granted on a rolling basis; the general rule for students who will require financial aid is: Apply for readmission early and submit aid forms within the filing deadline.
St. John’s College is conceived as a single college existing on two campuses, Annapolis and Santa Fe. A principal feature of this structure is the opportunity for students to study the program and experience life on both campuses. Any student in good standing may apply within the time frame stated below for transfer to the alternate campus for the upcoming academic year. Because an imbalance in the numbers of students going each way can disrupt enrollment, staffing, and housing on the campuses, the number and distribution of transfer students is subject to the discretion of the Deans and the Presidents. Students wishing to transfer between the campuses must follow the protocol described below.
Application forms are available from the Registrar on each campus. The deadline on both campuses for submitting the Application for Inter-Campus Transfer is the third Monday in February. Applications submitted after the third Monday in February will not receive priority treatment. The application, accompanied by the advance deposit established for the upcoming year, is submitted to the Registrar of the campus currently attended. The application is subject to approval by the Dean and Assistant Dean on both campuses. After the application deadline, the advance deposit is neither refundable nor transferable. If, however, the application is not approved, the advance deposit is transferable for the upcoming year only. An advance deposit will not be rolled forward to a future year. A student who changes his or her mind about transferring after a transfer application has been approved by both campuses is not guaranteed a space on the home campus. Availability for financial aid may be limited.
Transfer applicants who require financial aid must complete and file all paperwork for the FAFSA/Renewal, FAFSA, and CSS Profile by March 1. The FAFSA must be sent to both campuses, and the Profile to the campus currently attended. Approved transfer applicants receive only one award – from the campus to which they want to transfer. If a transfer applicant fails to have all financial aid paperwork complete by the March 1 deadline and in accordance with the above instructions, the transfer application will be rescinded. If a transfer applicant has indicated on his transfer form that he is in need of St. John’s grant assistance and his financial circumstances change so that he no longer needs assistance, he must notify the financial aid office by March 1 or his application will be null and void.
After the transfer application deadline, each applicant will be assigned a lottery number within his or her class.
This lottery number will be applied to the following ranking categories:
Applications will be approved in the order of their ranking subject to the needs of the college as determined by the Deans and Presidents of the college.
Approval of a transfer application is always understood to be contingent upon the successful completion of the work of the second semester. Students should not assume that their work is satisfactory for purposes of transfer merely because the don rag committee at the end of the second semester indicates that they may continue into the next year. Unsatisfactory work in any part of the program will jeopardize inter-campus transfer, as will having a lot of work that is barely satisfactory. Every effort will be made in such a case to give students a final determination as early in the summer as possible, but that determination must wait upon receipt of final clarification of the record on the campus to which the student wishes to transfer. If there are complications, it may be late in the summer before a student learns that transfer isn’t possible after all.
A student will not be allowed to transfer unless all financial obligations to the home campus have been met by May 1 prior to the fall of transfer. Mid-year transfer between campuses is not allowed unless under extraordinary circumstances and is particularly problematic for financial aid recipients. Rising seniors transferring to the other campus are expected to participate in the commencement exercises on that campus.
The readmission and transfer deadlines and guidelines stated above apply. Applicants for readmission and transfer who apply after the above deadlines will be considered for readmission only.
A student applies to the campus last attended (the home campus) for readmission and transfer. The readmission application is considered first and, if approved, the transfer application is considered. If both applications are approved by the home campus, they are forwarded to the other campus along with those of applicants currently enrolled for consideration of transfer by the Dean of the other campus. The applicant is advised of the readmission and transfer decision by the home campus. Readmission and transfer applicants for the fall term will be advised of the transfer decision before the end of March prior to the fall in which they wish to enroll. Students should seek the advice of the Financial Aid Director on the home campus as soon as they are considering readmission and transfer.
All tuition, room and board charges, and associated fees and fines must be paid in full in order for a student to register for any semester. In addition, outstanding obligations to the college may result in receipt of an unscripted diploma at commencement and ineligibility to transfer to the other campus.
Undergraduate students are charged a $200 student deposit upon enrolling at the college. This deposit is used to cover charges such as lost library material and damage to college property. The deposit is used to offset any balances/fees/fines remaining on a student account upon leaving college. Any unused portion of the student deposit is refunded when a student leaves the college.
This deposit is required to secure a place in the upcoming academic year until the first semester’s tuition and fees are due. It must be paid on or before April 1st, so that the teaching slate for the upcoming year can be created. If the advance deposit is not paid by that date, the student will be removed from the roster and cannot be guaranteed a place in the class for the upcoming year. Parents are notified that the advance deposit is due, but students are responsible for seeing that it is paid on time. Students applying for transfer to the Santa Fe campus have a different deadline for the advance deposit. Please see the Transfer section in this Handbook for further information.
Advance Deposit payment options: Cash/check can be remitted at Student Accounts (Hodson House) on campus or via check mailed to SJC’s Baltimore lockbox: St. John’s College, PO Box 69183 Baltimore, Maryland 21264-9183. Advance Deposits can be remitted via the student portal's Payment Portal (EFT or credit card options available).
Parents are notified that the advance deposit is due, but students are responsible for seeing that it is paid on time. Students applying for transfer to the Santa Fe campus have a different deadline for the advance deposit. Please see the Transfer section in this Handbook for further information.
Non-transferring students who have paid the advance deposit and who decide that they are not returning to the college will receive a refund if they notify the Registrar of their decision prior to the second Monday in April. If a student has paid the advance deposit and the college determines that the student cannot return the following semester for academic reasons (unsatisfactory academic performance or failure to be enabled), the deposit will be refunded. After the advance deposit date, if a student is expelled for disciplinary reasons or required to leave the college for excessive absences, the deposit will not be refunded. An advance deposit is never rolled forward to a future year. This policy is waived for incoming freshman who chose to defer enrollment to the following semester or fall.
A $35 fee will be charged for any items returned by the bank or payment processor.
In compliance with the Student Right-to-Know Act, the Office of the Registrar will provide and make readily available completion or graduation rates to current and prospective students.
The college retains student records as required by applicable local, state, and federal regulations.
See Appendices for a full statement of the college’s compliance with this act.
