A medical or compassionate withdrawal request may be made in extraordinary cases in which serious illness or injury (medical) or another significant personal situation (compassionate) prevents a student from continuing his or her classes, and incompletes or other arrangements with the instructors are not possible.
Usually, consideration is for a complete withdrawal. All applications for withdrawal require thorough and credible documentation; however, applications for less than a complete withdrawal must be especially well documented to justify the selective nature of the partial medical/compassionate withdrawal.
A student may request and be considered for a medical withdrawal when extraordinary circumstances, such as a serious illness or injury prevent the student from continuing classes. The medical withdrawal policy covers both physical health and mental health difficulties.
A student may request and be considered for a compassionate withdrawal when extraordinary personal reasons, not related to the student's personal physical or mental health (for example, care of a seriously ill child or spouse, or a death in the student's immediate family), prevent the student from continuing in classes.
Each college has a dean's designee (see list below) who reviews medical and compassionate withdrawal requests, according to that college's procedures. A student requesting a medical or compassionate withdrawal is referred to the dean's designee of the college of their major. A non-degree student is referred to the dean's designee of the college with which he or she is primarily affiliated. The dean's designee determines the appropriateness of the medical or compassionate withdrawal request and based on the documentation provided either approves or denies the request. If approved, the dean's designee also determines the approved effective date based on the documentation provided by the student or healthcare provider. In addition, if the medical or compassionate withdrawal request is approved the dean's designee must also determine if a medical administrative hold is appropriate. If a medical administrative hold is placed on the student's records, the student will be blocked from all future registration at ASU until the hold is removed by the dean's designee. The removal of the medical administrative hold is usually only processed after the student or healthcare provider supplies documentation explaining that the student is well enough to return to the university.
An approved medical/compassionate withdrawal request will result in a special note line indicating the nature of the withdrawal on the student's unofficial transcript. Medical and compassionate withdrawal applications and supporting documents are retained by the college of the student's major for at least five years and filed separately from the student's other records.
Student Procedure for Medical and Compassionate Withdrawal
The following procedure applies to students who are unable to continue classes for extraordinary medical or other personal reasons. You are strongly encouraged to submit your request as soon as possible.
If you are receiving financial assistance, you are strongly encouraged to consult with a Financial Aid and Scholarship Services counselor to identify and understand the financial aid and monetary implications of processing this withdrawal transaction.
If you are an international student with an F1/J1 visa, you must consult with the International Students and Scholars Center to discuss the serious immigration consequences that may result from your withdrawal from ASU. As an international with an F-1/J-1 visa, you must provide medical documentation from a U.S. licensed medical doctor, doctor of osteopathy, or licensed clinical psychologist.
To request a medical/compassionate withdrawal, you must submit a Request for Documented Medical/Compassionate Withdrawal form along with appropriate documentation to the college of your major.
Appropriate documentation for a medical withdrawal consists of a letter from your attending health care provider that specifies the following:
Requests for less than a complete withdrawal must be especially well documented to justify the selective nature of the medical withdrawal request. The letter must be typed on the health care provider's letterhead stationery.
Appropriate documentation for a compassionate withdrawal is dependent upon the nature of your circumstances. Your dean's designee can provide advice in this area.
The medical and compassionate withdrawal process is primarily focused on the student’s academic record as it relates to the student’s health and wellness. In some cases partial tuition adjustments or nonrefundable credits may also be granted through the medical and compassionate withdrawal process, however, this will depend on each individual student’s circumstances and is only an option if approved within two years of the end of the semester.
Deans' Designees for Medical and Compassionate Withdrawals | |
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College | College Designee |
Business, W. P. Carey School of |
Enrique Quinones (undergraduate programs) |
College of Global Futures |
Elisha Thompson (undergraduate programs)
Lisa Murphy (graduate programs)
|
Design and the Arts, Herberger Institute of | Amanda Kling |
Engineering, Ira A. Fulton Schools of | Sergio Quiros |
Graduate College (non-degree graduate students only) | |
Health Solutions, College of | |
Integrative Sciences and Arts, College of | Lorraine DeRosa |
Journalism and Mass Communication, Walter Cronkite School of | Mary Cook |
Law, Sandra Day O'Connor College of | |
Liberal Arts and Sciences, The College of | Carolyn Harley |
New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences | Catherine Kerrey Morgan Johnson |
Nursing and Health Innovation, Edson College of | Cassandra Capizzi |
Public Service and Community Solutions, Watts College of | Amanda Andrew |
Teachers College, Mary Lou Fulton | Erica Mitchell Hannah Lee |
Thunderbird School of Global Management |
Josh Allen (graduate programs) |
University College | Samantha Carter |
If Approved
If Denied
Page last updated: January 6, 2021
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