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SeoulTech Withdrawal Policy: Student Perspectives
Jinpyo Hong ㅣ Approval 2025-07-22  |  No.19 ㅣ view : 63

At SeoulTech, the course withdrawal system offers students flexibility to manage their coursework. The SeoulTech looked at how the system operates, what survey data reveal about student experiences, and what improvements students are calling for.



What Is the Course Withdrawal System?



The course withdrawal system allows students to drop a registered course within a specified period, which typically lasts for one week after midterm exams. Students can withdraw from a course by just selecting it in the withdraw menu on SUIS. However, students must remain in at least one course after withdrawal—students can’t withdraw from all courses. Withdrawn courses can’t be replaced with new ones, and no tuition refund is provided for withdrawn courses.



How Are Withdrawals Reflected on the Transcript?



When a student withdraws from a course, the course is marked with a “W” on their transcript and does not impact their GPA. However, if the withdrawn course was a a retake, the previously earned grade is retained, and the course will be deleted from the current semester’s transcript. One of the most appealing factors motivating students to withdraw from courses is that these withdrawals have no impact on their GPA.



How Actively Do Students Use the System?



To gain insight into the withdrawal system, The SeoulTech surveyed 100 SeoulTech students. Out of the 100 students, 82 students have used the withdrawal system at least once. Of the 18 students that have not used the withdrawal system, 15 students were freshmen or juniors. This indicates that the majority of SeoulTech students have or will probably use the system before they graduate. Additionally, for some students, withdrawal is not a one-time event. As shown in the graph below, a significant portion of students have used the withdrawal system multiple times.





Withdrawal Reasons and Retake Decisions



The reasons students gave for withdrawing include:



- Concerned about receiving a poor grade (78%)

- Overloaded with too many courses (41.5%)

- Dissatisfied with the course content (30.5%)

- To retake the course and aim for an A+ (23.2%)

- Occupied with health, family, or part-time work (12.2%)



These percentages are based on a multiple response question, meaning students could select more than one reason for withdrawing.



After withdrawing, students are divided in their approach to the withdrawn course. Some choose not to retake the course (29.3%), some retook the course or plan on doing so (67%), and some have not decided yet. (3.7%)



Reasons for Not Withdrawing



Among students who have never withdrawn from a course, the most common reasons were as follows:



- The course is a mandatory requirement (44.4%)

- Did not see the need (33.3%)

- Midterm exam results were not available (33.3%)

- Missed the withdrawal period (33.3%)

- To meet the minimum dormitory credit requirement (15 credits) (22.2%)

- Wanted to avoid a “W” mark on their transcript (16.7%)



Respondents were allowed to select multiple reasons for not withdrawing, and many chose more than one.



Frustrations and Suggestions



The survey asked students about frustrations or suggestions regarding the withdrawal system. Students felt that the one-week withdrawal period is simply too brief, making it challenging to make informed decisions about dropping a course. Another frustration is that professors often do not release midterm grades before the withdrawal deadline. This leaves students to make choices without information on where they stand in the academic standing. To address this, students suggest that SeoulTech requires all professors to release midterm grades before the withdrawal period ends.



Additionally, some students reported feeling anxious about the withdrawal process itself, as the current system does not provide real-time confirmation that their request has been processed. Immediate system notifications, they suggest, would reduce uncertainty and improve the experience.



SeoulTech’s course withdrawal system is widely regarded as a necessary academic policy among students, giving students flexibility and control over their education. However, more improvements and better communication could help maximize its effectiveness.



 



Reporter



Jinpyo Hong



undohere@seoultech.ac.kr


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[01811] 232 Gongneung-ro, Nowon-gu, Seoul, , Korea ㅣ Date of Initial Publication 2021.06.07 ㅣ Publisher : Donghwan Kim ㅣ Chief Editor: Minju Kim
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