Withdrawing from a course or program
3. How to withdraw
The date you withdraw from a course determines whether you are financially liable for it and whether any academic penalties apply.
Click one of the below to find out how to withdraw from your course(s):
Before Census Date
I want to withdraw on, or before, Census Date.
If you withdraw from a course on or before census date in a standard semester, it is deleted from your record and will not appear on your studies report or official transcript, so you won’t face any academic penalty and you won’t be financially liable.
After Census Date
I want to withdraw:
after Census Date, and
on, or before, the final date to withdraw from courses without academic penalty.
You won’t face any academic penalties, but you will retain financial liability for the course. This means you will still have to pay fees, or if you have a HELP loan, you will incur a HELP debt.
A grade of ‘W’ will be listed next to the course on your studies report. It won’t be listed on your official academic transcript.
A ‘W’ won’t affect your grade point average.
In special circumstances you can apply to have your financial liability removed through the Removal of Course process.
Use mySI-net to withdraw from your course(s)Learn more about applying for removal of financial liability through the Removal of Courses due to Special Circumstances process
I want to withdraw:
after the final date to withdraw from courses without academic penalty, and
before the first day of the examination period. This date is called the last day to withdraw with academic penalty and financial liability.
You will be able to drop your course in mySI-net until the start of the examination period.
You will withdraw with academic penalty. A grade of ‘K’ will be listed on your studies report and on your academic transcript. For the purposes of calculating your grade point average, a ‘K’ is a zero.
You will also retain financial liability for the course. This means you will still have to pay fees, or if you have a HELP loan, you will incur a HELP debt.
In certain circumstances you can:
- apply for Removal of Courses due to Special Circumstances. If approved, the course will be removed without academic penalty (a grade of W will be applied) and your financial liability will be removed.
Use mySI-net to withdraw from your course(s)Learn more about applying for Removal of Courses due to Special Circumstances and having financial liability removed
I want to withdraw:
after the last day to withdraw with academic penalty and financial liability
If you are enrolled in a course in a standard semester, mySI-net will not permit you to drop your course after the start of the examination period. You will be awarded a grade based on any assessment you have completed. You will also retain financial liability for the course. This means you will still have to pay fees, or if you have a HELP loan, you will incur a HELP debt.
In certain circumstances you can:
- apply for Removal of Courses due to Special Circumstances. If approved, the course will be removed without academic penalty (a grade of 'W' will be applied) and your financial liability will be removed.
Learn more about applying for Removal of Courses due to Special Circumstances
I want to withdraw after the finalisation of grades.
It is not possible to withdraw from your course(s) after the finalisation of grades.
There are very limited opportunities to change final grades.
In certain circumstances you can:
I want to withdraw from a course scheduled either flexibly or in an intensive teaching period.
If you're enrolled in an intensive teaching period course or a course which is flexibly-scheduled, the last date to withdraw without academic penalty is the same as the census date. If you withdraw after this date, you will retain financial liability and incur academic penalty for the course.
Additionally, these courses typically do not include examinations scheduled in the end of semester examinations period. For that reason, the last day you can drop your course within mySI-net (with academic penalty and financial liability) is the last day for the course/teaching period.
Withdrawing from a program
If you want to cancel your enrolment and withdraw from your studies completely, do the following:
The date you withdraw from all your courses will determine whether any financial liability or academic penalty applies.
In some circumstances, deferring or interrupting your studies may be a better option than withdrawing from a program. Please read the information at the beginning of this page for more information and talk to staff in your faculty, or contact Student Central for advice.