Medical Withdrawal
A medical withdrawal is granted in instances where a student is faced with a serious or unexpected condition that completely precludes the student from being able to function as a student and in which the regular university withdrawal process is not appropriate. The medical withdrawal is to be used after the 100% refund period, as indicated in UW System Administrative Policy 805, Tuition and Fee Policies for Credit Instruction.
A request may be granted to students who experience a serious or unexpected physical or behavioral health condition; who may need to provide care to an immediate family member who is experiencing a serious or unexpected physical or behavioral health condition; or who have experienced the death of an immediate family member. Approval will be granted on a case-by-case basis.
In the case of pre-existing, recurring, or chronic health conditions, documentation must show that the recurrence or worsening of the condition(s) began after initiation of the term for which the withdrawal is requested.
Medical withdrawal results in withdrawal from all classes. Students who are considering the medical withdrawal process and wish to drop some, but not all, of their classes for a term should instead review the course late drop policy.
The Medical Withdrawal Review Committee’s decision may result in a full, partial, or no tuition refund. Students are encouraged to monitor their student account for remaining charges and are responsible for paying their balance in full.
Exceptions to any of the stated provisions in this policy can only be authorized by the chancellor or the chancellor’s designee.
The Dean of Students Office has responsibility for implementation of the medical withdrawal policy at UW-Stout.
Requesting a Medical Withdrawal
Students may apply for a Medical Withdrawal up to one year after the end of the term in question; however, no tuition refunds will be considered for medical withdrawal applications that are submitted after the semester is completed. To be considered for a tuition refund, the application and all supporting documents must be received before the end of the term for which the student is applying.
STEPS
1. Complete the Medical Withdrawal application, which can be obtained in the Dean of Students Office (Bowman 130) or found online. The form must be completed in full and must be accompanied by both a personal written statement and the supporting documentation cited below.
2. Attach a written statement that thoroughly addresses each of the following points:
- Describe the medical condition/circumstances that required you to withdraw from the university.
- Explain in detail how/why the medical condition/circumstances prevented you from completing the academic term.
- Detail the dates of the onset of your medical condition/circumstances, along with the dates of any treatment you received, if applicable.
- If you stopped attending classes, explain why and when. (Please note nonattendance does not exempt you from academic and financial responsibilities.)
- If you stopped attending classes, explain what other campus services you continued to utilize (such as meal plan, Student Health, the Counseling Center, participation in campus events).
Make sure that your written statement thoroughly addresses every point (a-e) above. If it does not, your application will not be considered complete.
3. You must include documentation from your health care provider(s) or other pertinent sources. The documentation should be on clinic letterhead and your health care provider must address each of the following areas:
- Describe the diagnosed medical or psychological condition or circumstances and indicate when treatment commenced.
- Explain how the condition impacts this student. Does it completely preclude the student from attending classes and completing the semester? If so, please describe how and why.
- In the case of pre-existing, recurring, or chronic health conditions, documentation must show that the recurrence or worsening of the condition(s) began after initiation of the term for which the withdrawal is requested.
4. Submit all materials to the Dean of Students Office. Only medical withdrawal applications that are complete and contain all of the above materials will be reviewed.
After the materials are received, your request will be evaluated by the Medical Withdrawal Review Committee comprised of representatives from the Dean of Students Office, Financial Aid, Registration and Records, and Student Business Services. You will be notified when it has been approved or denied. The Medical Withdrawal Review Committee meets once per month and the deadline for the application materials to be complete is three business days in advance of the meeting.